10 Questions with ... Larry Mac

1) What was your first job in radio and early influences?

My first job was at an AM daytimer Country Gospel station in Phoenix. In 1985, I interned at KSTM "The Storm" before getting hired overnights and weekends at KSLX, and then onto KUPD a year after that. My early influences include Curtiss Johnson and Jonathan L.

2) Was there a defining moment that led you to a career in radio and made you realize "this is it?"

When Curtiss Johnson hired me at KUPD. I realized it could be more than just a fun weekend gig to help me get through College.

3) How long have you been rocking for Lotus in Tucson and what are your positions there currently?

I have been with the company since 2007. I currently am OM of Classic Rock KLPX and Rock102.1 KFMA.

4) You have the dual role as PD/midday host on KLPX, not to mention your OM/PD duties with sister station KFMA. How do you balance your time so all these roles are effective?

Lots of long days and lots of hard work! (And a home office helps.) Plus a passion for both stations! I have an incredible APD for both stations with Razor, and a fantastic GM (Ken Kwilosz) who gives us the tools we need to succeed. I love this job; these radio stations and this city. I have been a fan of both stations prior to even working here, as I could catch KLPX/Phoenix when I lived there, and would listen to KFMA when I visited the city prior to ever living here. In this day and age, wearing multiple hats seems to be the norm when I talk to my friends in similar positions in other markets across the country.

5) Let's talk about the music on KLPX. Many Classic Rock stations have evolved into playing harder rock and '90s titles. How is KLPX positioned musically and what's your take on the Classic Rock format today?

We have been there for the past six years. Our core artists are AC/DC, Van Halen, Zeppelin, Floyd, Rush and now Metallica is creeping into the format. We play very little Beatles and tunes from the '60s now. The Tucson audience has told us they want to rock, so we do! We have become more '80s-centric, and have also started sliding in some early '90s acts like Nirvana, Green Day, and Chili Peppers as well.

6) Now let's talk about KFMA. The station has long been considered one of the tastemakers in the Alternative format, but over the last couple years it's evolved into a Rock station, and recently joined the Active Rock panel. Can you walk us through the station's evolution from Alt to Rock?

When I first took over in 2014, our consultant Jeff Murphy shared me with research that showed the listeners in Tucson wanted more rock on the station. I think it's because the station has been around so long. The Active and Alternative charts used to share a lot of music, but over time that has changed pretty drastically. We used to program with a foot in the Active Rock sandbox, and the other foot in the Alternative sandbox. Over time the sandboxes got further and further apart. It was getting harder and harder to play both sides of the fence as fans of each genre would complain when we played the other style of music. We did another research project that showed that we felt like two different radio stations to the listeners out there. And over time, our top-researched songs and requests were always the rock tunes. With Alternative leaning more and more pop, it felt like we were forcing songs into the playlist that didn't fit into the recipe anymore, so we followed our listeners, and made the switch.

7) How has the audience reacted to the KFMA transition to Active Rock?

Anytime you make a change, you are going to get a few complaints, but the overwhelming majority of the feedback has been positive. In all reality, all we did was take some Alternative library and currents off the air. The majority of the Active Rock songs we were already on. Our Gold library was already playing most of what we have on now. Most of the listeners are just telling us that they feel they can listen longer now without changing the station. The switch was organic, and something Rock102.1 morphed into over the years. Our festivals always had big rock acts on the bills like Disturbed, Shinedown, Breaking Benjamin, Linkin Park, Metallica, and Muse to name just a few. So this isn't a big shock to our audience, and it shouldn't be to the industry either. It makes my job picking music with my APD, Razor a bit easier now. A few years ago, we would pick the best of both worlds to play, and it worked, but the last few years has been a struggle with the pop nature of Alt now. The songs didn't fit anymore on the same station. If we had decided to go pure Alt, we would have had a big backlash from our core audience.

8) With KFMA's move to Active Rock, who are some of the shared artists, if any, with KLPX?

That's easy ... AC/DC, Ozzy, STP, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, Guns n' Roses, Pearl Jam and Nirvana, to name a few. We will be flying wingtip to wingtip with the sister station.

9) With KFMA's transition, what is your take on the current state of new music at Active Rock and the format as a whole?

I love the format. It's a lot of fun. I grew up as a fan of Active Rock. As with any format, there are artists who are derivative of more successful bands, and some crap. BUT ... there are some great core heritage bands that continue to make great music like Metallica, Shinedown, Godsmack among others. And some fantastic newer bands like Ghost, GVF and Starset and others. I love the fact that I can play these bands along with groups like Highly Suspect, Badflower and my new favorite Fever 333. With Alternative being so pop leaning right now, I really believe that Active Rock could create the next big artist out there with the right support. Labels gotta find them!

10) Finally, with all of the radio roles you have, what do you like to do for fun and relaxation when you're not in "work" mode?

That's an easy answer. Spend time with my family (wife and two little girls), and I love to hike!