10 Questions with ... JD Garfield

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

• WIAI/Danville, IL from 1995 to 1999
• WEBX/WQQB/WBNB/Champaign, IL from 1999 to 2000
• WKTT/Cleveland, WI from 2000 to 2003
• WRPW/WZPW/WIHN/Bloomington-Peoria, IL from 2003 to 2007
• WJQM/Madison, WI from 2007 to present.
• I've held a variety of positions in my 16 years in radio. I've done just about everything except sales.

1. What or who got you into radio?

Tried the military however, physical problems prohibited that. I'd wanted to be in radio since I was a kid so I decided to give it a shot.

2. How much of an insight into "JD Garfield" does Facebook give your listeners?

Well, I'm trying to get all of the listeners off my personal page and onto the Fan page. But, what you see there is pretty much who I am. BUT, I'm nowhere near as angry a person as some of my status updates would lead you to believe. I just like to stir the pot.

3. You've been battling a Top 40 competitor since signing on over four years ago. How's the battle coming along?

Like Patton's 3rd Army rolling through the deserts of Northern Africa - THAT'S HOW! No, seriously we've been fighting a good fight for over 4 years now and all the blood, sweat and tears have finally paid off. In our latest report card, we went #1 Persons18-34, #1 Persons 18-49, Top 5 12+ and each daypart was either #1 or #2 in demo. We're REALLY stoked with the ratings and it's fueled our fires here. Bring on the Summer book!!!

4. Has your "new" morning show had a big impact at the station?

YES! Fish has been in the market for over 10 years. Not only has he had a big impact on the station, he's had a big impact on me personally. The man has so much energy and so many ideas, it's hard not to be infected by it. Plus, it's great to be live and local in the morning.

5. When you've had a rough day, what do you do to get back to your happy place?

No matter how bad a day I've had, I find that the short 5 minute drive home normally calms me down. If that doesn't work, a glass of Jameson and 'Rescue Me' reruns on the ole DVR works wonders.

6. What's your biggest, non-radio pet peeve?

I've found that a lot of drivers in Madison drive as if they have no idea where they are going and are just making it up as they go. Which makes them drive insanely slow which makes me lose my mind.

7. Think back to being a 10 year-old. What did you want to be when you grew up?

F-16 Fighter Pilot. Ever see the movie "Iron Eagle"? Yeah, it's cheesy as hell, but I thought it was really cool when I was a kid. I wanted to fly really fast and blow shit up.

8. A scratch golfer or dating a Bears cheerleader?

Huh? I'm the furthest thing from a scratch golfer. I'm a "I can't find my ball, so I'm just Droppin' next to yours" - golfer. Ms. McKaskey got rid of the "Honey Bears" (Bears Cheerleaders) back in '88 because she thought it softened the image of the "Monsters of The Midway" so there are no orange and navy clad hotties for me to drool over. #Fail. BRING BACK THE HONEY BEARS!

9. Madison is a great college town with plenty to do. Do you have a favorite bar or restaurant?

The Great Dane is a really nice micro-brewery that attracts post-grads and yuppies, so I generally go there. It's NEAR campus, but not considered a campus bar. You'd be surprised by their menu too. Not your typical bar food. Restaurant wise, I have to choose Portabella. It's a small Italian place downtown.

10. Do you have a favorite Greg Lawley quote or Lawleyism?

I can never remember how it goes, but he has a saying about the 3 things he's allergic to.

If you were to leave Radio and music today and you could choose any other occupation, what would it be?

High School English teacher. Had a 16 year old kid call me yesterday, he didn't know the difference between an exclamation point and an apostrophe. Sad. Put down the XBox controller, turn off Jersey Shore and read a book, dude. I fear for our country's future.

When it comes time to cast the biographical movie about your life in radio, who should be cast to play JD Garfield?

Danny Bonaduce...