10 Questions with ... JJ Prieve

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

• WPGU/Champaign, IL 1998-2000 - Prod/Imaging Dir/MD/Nights/receptionist
• WBZA/Rochester - 2000-2001 - Prod Dir/Promo Dir/AM Show Producer
• WZNE/Rochester - 2001-2002 - Imaging/Weekends/Promo
• KRFR/Bakersfield - 2002-2004 - Imaging/Nights
• KKXX/Bakersfield - 2004-2005 - PD/Imaging
• Here - 2005-now - PD for 8 stations, and everything that comes along with that

1) What got you interested in radio?

Fell into it in college. Wanted to make some money in college, and they were hiring in the news dept. Did news for about three days, and realized it sucked. Jumped into an internship/show bitch role on a late-night morning show called "Planet Afterhours" ... and the rest is history.

What career path would you be following had it not been for this industry?

Urinal cake designer.

2) What makes your station or market unique?

Everyone thinks Burlington is this unique snowflake, but it's really not. Country kills here, just like it does everywhere else. The rest of us are just trying to be numbers 2-5. There is no special sauce that only works in Burlington. Guys like to rock, so we rock harder than anyone in the market. Crazy idea, eh?

3) How do you position the station musically?

We're up against a heritage Alternative, so we stay clear of the super-alt stuff. It's good to be a station with an "-est" ... we're the hardest. Our competition has an "-est" too ... We'll let you put in your own joke about their inadequacies....

4) What is the biggest misconception about your station?

That it doesn't really exist. We've only been a full-market signal since April, so we're still just trying to get the word out that we're here. Prior to our signal upgrade, we were a tiny little 400-watt regional stick that barely reached the Burlington metro. Oh yeah, it was a Country format, too ...yikes!

5) What do you like best about working in this format?

The rules are easy ... It just has to rock. Plus, you can be way more creative with positioning with a Rock station than you can, say, a Hot AC.

6) What research tools do you use to program your station?

We use radiotraks.com for local online research. If I'm on the fence about a song, I'll throw it out to our Facebook fans to get their feedback. Really love the direct interaction we get with the Facebook page. Other than that, instincts, charts, other people in the office ... you know, the usual suspects.

7) How would you describe the music and imaging on your station?

The music rocks and the imaging is creative and balls-out. They are both tight as hell, and give the station its identity. Attitude is king in the Active Rock world, so we ooze our machismo ... Not sure if that's even the right usage of machismo, but we'll go with it. We balance the attitude with a good dose of humor and intelligence. You won't hear boob references in our imaging ... I really try to give this thing funny shit that isn't so obvious and unoriginal.

9) How do you feel about the new royalty rate increases for Internet radio and proposed royalties for terrestrial radio?

It's dumb. Take away terrestrial radio and labels lose their main promotional tool. Yeah, the Internet is great, but the vast majority of the world doesn't get their music that way ... yet.

10) What type of features do you run on the station?

We run a weekly promotion called "FACEBOOK FRIDAY. We promote the hell out of our Facebook page -- and invite listeners to become fans. Every Friday we give away gift cards from local businesses and big concert tickets; it's a great feature for the sales staff to sell, and the listeners LOVE it. We're doing a promo now called "Rock Dat Tat" with a local tattoo shop ... Have listeners post pics of their body art on our Facebook page, and it qualifies them for a big load of new art every month ... pretty popular and easy to execute.

How are you using new music technologies to work with the music you program on your station, in production and in your personal life?

I don't even have a functioning CD player in my office. Everything is digital ... been waiting for this for about 10 years!

What can we be doing with our station websites to better our stations as a whole?

UPDATE THEM REGULARLY! Integrate social networking into EVERYTHING we do. That's where the people are, so we need to go to them, instead of assuming they will come to us.

What is the one truth that has held constant throughout your career?

Bigger is not necessarily better. Kills me to listen to bigger market radio and know that my little stations in Burlington, VT sound WAY better. Same applies to heritage ... just because you've been around forever doesn't mean you're good. Just means you haven't had to try.

Where do you see the industry and yourself five years from now?

Broadcasting on a Wi-Fi radio station. Thanks, Google

What did you want to be when you were growing up?

Computer engineer ... man, I was an uber-dork.