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10 Questions with ... Dan Kelley
January 2, 2007
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NAME:Dan KelleyTITLE:PDSTATION:WJIM (and classic rock WMMQ)MARKET:Lansing, MIOWNER:Citadel
1 How would you describe your first radio gig?
I was in high school and hanging out every free second - literally daily - at a suburban Chicago radio station. Eventually got behind the board - and on the air - after nobody else wanted to work Christmas Night.
2 What led you to a career in radio?
It's all I wanted to do since I was eight or nine. Lots of time spent listening to WLS and WCFL back in the day - as well as the FM dial in Chicago.
3 It's been over a year since your station flipped from Oldies to Pop. How would you describe the Lansing radio landscape these days?
It's settled down - but I'm waiting for the next round of changes - most likely with Citadel's competitors in the market. When you're doing well, all the guns turn and aim in your direction.
4 What is your favorite part of the job?
Being behind the scenes as the architect and then listening to results of those efforts.
5 Could you give us a little insight into your on air staff?
For the most part, it is a very young airstaff, assembled quickly - and recruited locally. When the station signed on, we had a lot of rough edges. All but one is still on the staff 15 months later and it has been really satisfying helping and watching them grow.
6 Who is your favorite air personality not on your staff and why do you like them?
I've never heard anyone match the air talent Chicago listeners heard on the AM Top 40 dial in the late 60s to mid 70s. Name any personality on AM 890 or AM 1000 and they were - without exception - the best assembled anywhere.
7 What's one thing that would surprise many people to learn about you?
I'm not sure it is so surprising to people in our business - but I created a radio station in my bedroom at age 12 - from a Lafayette Radio AM transmitter kit I built. Used a Heathkit stereo amp as a makeshift mixer with a turntable and a portable cassette recorder for jingles and spots. Yes - the "Mighty 1200 - WDK" even had jingles (pieced together with single letter sings from the old Pepper/Tanner production albums I had
access to at the commercial station I hung out at.)
8 What is it about our industry that keeps you wanting to do it for a living?
It's the only industry that will have me. It is all I've done. It's not a job. It's a lifestyle.
9 What is the one truth that has held constant throughout your career?
The harder you work the luckier you get - both personally and on a competitive level.
10 What advice you would give people new to the business?
Decide where you want to be in 3 to 5 years and do everything to work toward that goal. Be honest: 'fess up to mistakes and move forward. Also, depending on what you want to do, learn everything. On-Air. Promotions. Marketing. Engineering and Technical. I can't tell you what the ability to put a dead transmitter back on the air, swap out an exciter or build a studio has done for my job security.
Bonus Questions
Name the artist/act (living or dead) you'd love to meet and why?
Neil Young. His music was part of the soundtrack to my youth.
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