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10 Questions with ... Kellen Brent Pierce
November 21, 2017
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1) What was your first radio job and what did you do?
My first gig was an internship with 102.9/750 The Game, (KXTG/Portland) for Alpha Media. The internship led to several paid opportunities at Alpha in both news and sports. I was fortunate to work on the production side at different times for three great syndicated shows at their flagship stations -- The Lars Larson Show, Ground Zero with Clyde Lewis, and The Bald-Faced Truth with John Canzano.
2) How did the experience of producing radio shows in the Portland market prepare you for doing your own show?
Hands-on experience day in and day out with some of the most hard-working and professional talents in their market really made me step my game up. I learned from the best, and realized that they'd easily spot the weakest link. I didn't want it to be me, so I absorbed as much as I could and tried to imitate their methods as much as possible.
3) How long have you been at KZND and what makes this station so unique?
Anchorage is a very unique market to begin with; Alaska is a world of its own. But at KZND the most important thing to me is the creative freedom to experiment and find out for myself what works in this market and what doesn't. Although I've been in radio for about seven years, I've only been in Rock radio for about a month -- 9/18/17 was my first crack on the KZND mic.
4) You have the dual role as MD/afternoon-drive host. Let's talk about your afternoon show first. Are you doing any special music or programming features on your show?
The first thing I noticed was how insane Anchorage listeners go for free stuff. My first week here I was giving away baskets of McDonald's new Buttermilk Crispy Tenders -- they're chicken strips -- and the phones were lit up all afternoon. I had one lady get into a car wreck in the middle of the call! I'm after engagement and interaction, and if free stuff gets the water churning, so be it. Our sales team is already pulling gold rabbits out of hats, so I'm eager to see where we are by this time next year.
5) What do you use for show prep for your afternoon show?
Reddit. I can't stress Reddit enough. I've had a few legit prep services come across the desk, but if you take the time to search out the right communities on Reddit, the content literally generates itself. We rock Loudwire Nights so they're a great source for rock news. Also, being new to Anchorage, first thing I did was set notifications on all the local media Twitter accounts, both in Anchorage and in the state capitol Juneau.
Kellen Is Ready To Rock Alaska!!!6) You're originally from Oregon and I would imagine Anchorage, Alaska is a whole different animal. What can you tell us about doing Rock radio in Alaska? How much different is it doing radio in AK as opposed to the "lower 48?"
Part of the difference has to do with the interaction, like I mentioned earlier. Listeners in Alaska are incredibly engaged. The hunger in this market has to do with its remoteness, as opposed to a place like Portland where fans have a dozen great shows to choose from on any given weekend night. Also, I thought Portland was blue collar until I came North. Alaskans are true salt of the earth types -- think fishermen, soldiers, oil men. Now pile feet of snow and ice on top of that, then take away the sun.
7) Now let's talk about the music. What's your take on current Active Rock music?
Combine the lack of any Active radio support plus a thriving diverse venue/club scene for smaller acts, and the result is a Portland market that cultivates a definite sort of snobbery. Because of this I disregarded the Active rock bands for a while, but I've always admired the art of crafting a hit, a song with that instant draw to make a first-time listener decide to crank it instead of switching the channel. To me that's what Active Rock is all about- tastemaking.
8) What are three of your favorite new Rock tracks over the last six months and why?
- Greta Van Fleet - Highway Tune The first time I heard GVF I thought Zeppelin had a new unreleased track out. How many rock bands have been influenced by Led Zeppelin? Most. But how many have captured their sound this close? NONE. Even my dad was blown away, so if it passes the test of a first-generation Zepp Head, then you know they're legit.
- Foo Fighters - Run Dave Grohl is one of the greatest drummers in my lifetime and plays on some of my favorite albums, but his songwriting has always made me grit my teeth. I think it's his incessant use of the bridge in EVERY SONG. Regardless, to me Run is their greatest track since Everlong. I've read that it's being called the heaviest track they've ever written so maybe that has to do with it. But I heard the studio version and there is a bridge in it! So I'll qualify my statement and say the radio edit of Run.
- Metallica - Spit Out The Bone Hardwired is Metallica's greatest album since Master of Puppets. These guys had a really awkward phase from about Garage Inc all the way through Death Magnetic but it feels like they finally grew back into their skin this album. That old thrash sound coming back, making Lars work for a living again. The classic, timeless METALLICA that generations of fans grew up listening to.
9) Let's talk about social media and KZND. How much do you use Facebook and Twitter to interact with your station's listeners?
People may not have their radio on at all times, but they're ALWAYS staring down at their phones. The more quality, KZND-branded content in their social media feed, the better. I'm scheduling out posts and checking the analytics to see what kind of content leads to engagement and when listeners tend to engage more. And smartphones have come so far that I'm often doing everything -- even editing audio and video -- right from my Galaxy. Hell I'm answering these questions on my phone right now!
10) Finally, what do you like to do for fun when you're not in your "working at a radio station" mode?
Well, because I'm settling in for my first Alaskan winter I've made a conscious effort to get into video games. I bought an old PS3 and a pile of games to burn through. I keep meaning to embarrass myself at the local comedy open mic; we'll see how that goes.
Bonus Questions
You're stuck on a deserted island and you only have five CDs with you. What are they?
- RHCP - Californication John Frusciante never gets the respect he deserves for being able to write such melancholy yet effervescent hooks. He took back the reigns on this one.
- Mars Volta - De-Loused in the Comatorium Unbelievable layered album from an irreplaceable ensemble. I could listen for 10 more years and still hear new things in it.
- Rage Against The Machine - Battle of LA Those palm trees gotta get cut down. Shelter has to be made. Latrines must be dug. You're gonna need a pump-up album for all that island work. Top-to-bottom hype jams.
- Queens of the Stone Age - Lullabies to Paralyze To me, their greatest album. Featuring Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, Lullabies was the swaggeriest, dirtiest, sexiest, strip-clubbiest album that QOTSA ever made. Coming off the heels of Songs For The Deaf, Lullabies was the summit of the mountain, their waxen wings. They never topped Lullabies.
- Pedro The Lion - Control This one's a personal favorite. David Bazan is a Seattle songwriter who had this project called Pedro the Lion where he wrote these beautiful concept albums. Control is the story of a business man who is cheating on his wife, and she murders him. That's the story in just one sentence. He tells it in such great detail, with these songs as chapters of the story, each immersed in its own emotion.
And with that, my bags are packed for this desert island.
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