10 Questions with ... Tone E. Fly

NAME:Tone E. Fly POSITION:mornings STATION:KTTB B96 MARKET:Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN COMPANY:Northern Lights Broadcasting BORN:Hartford, CT RAISED:Wilton, CT

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

A string of small Connecticut and upstate New York radio stations led to weekends and Promotions at Z100 in New York. I was also in charge of keeping Kid Kelly's groupies in check, picking up Steve Kingston's dry-cleaning and ordering pizza for Jack Da Wack. After that, Power 99/Atlanta, B93/Austin, B97/New Orleans, many years at KDWB, then KHFI/Austin. Currently, I'm loving doing the morning show at B96 in the Twin Cities.

1. Why radio?

I've always been a radio fan. I started collecting airchecks when I was a teenager. I've just always wanted to be on the radio. Who wouldn't?

2. B96 just got a nice little present under the tree with a city of license and new tower site. How critical is this new coverage to the growth of your show and the growth of the station?

Before the new signal, we were pretty much a car-only radio station. Now, we can be heard indoors on alarm clocks, desktop radios, walkman-type radios. PPM changes the game, we all know that. If they can't hear you, you don't get ratings. The fact that we've been this successful with 53% market coverage is amazing to say the least, and now that half of our signal isn't wasted on Minnesota forests, we're optimistic.

3. You were very public about the station's old signal. How much of that was schtick and how much was you venting?

The frustration we expressed on the air was 100% real. My money is based on the whole market, not just where we come in clearly. This was our third attempt at acquiring a tower, the process was moving way too slowly and to top it all off, PPM had just started in this market.

When we were told that the tower in New Hope was finally a done deal, we involved the audience. Things got schticky during the actual launch of the new signal, but what fun is a radio launch without schtick? Stupid street hits like when B-Right, frustrated with the signal reach, went to the shore of the Mississippi River with a bullhorn to repeat everything we said over the river so St. Paul could hear what we were saying.

Now the new signal is the major push of the station. We're going through a very unique scenario. I'll let you know if it works.

4. What makes you cry?

Professionally? Walking by a local heritage radio station's booth at the Minnesota State Fair and hearing syndicated programming blaring out of the speakers. Ok, so I didn't really cry because I'm a dude. From a radio fan's perspective, it is a little sad though.

Personally...injured puppies.

5. When you think about your radio future, where do you see yourself in five years?

I hate questions like this because in 5 years when I'm running the board for Big Boy's Neighborhood, a lot of these young jerkoffs will look back and laugh at the answer I'm about to give...

We don't have the big money promotions anymore. Quality music of every format can be heard through a million different outlets. People like good shows. My bosses have made it clear to me that they want to be in the local entertainment business, and so do I. In 5 years, I see myself right here in the Twin Cities, doing my local radio and TV show. Suck it, Big Boy.

6. Are there any current radio personalities from your first gig/station that are bigger than you?

Nope.

7. Hypothetical situation...you are getting married in six months. Who would you like to be the your "Wedding Singer"?

I'd hire my co-host B-Right. He's a very talented singer, and he's cheap. He also sells cars, so if any of you guys are looking, hit him up on Facebook. Cash 4 Clunkers is over, and it's hard out here.

8. What do you think you'd be doing professionally right now if you hadn't gone into Radio?

If it weren't for radio, I probably wouldn't have dropped out of school. I might have gotten a degree and went to work on Wall Street, or maybe real estate. No matter what, I was destined to end up in a growing business with a bright future.

9. Ever see someone on TV and think, he/she would probably make a great co-host?

If I did I would never admit it. B-Right and Danni Starr, my other co-host, are very territorial with their gigs. Plus, who needs TV personalities? We've got Fly-TV, a nightly half-hour TV show on the CW affiliate here in the Twin Cities.

10. On a professional level, who in radio would you like to network with that you don't already network with?

I'm terrible at networking. Between show prep, the production of the radio show, the Web site, Facebook, Twitter and a daily TV show, I don't give myself a lot of time for it. I listen to a lot of podcasts and live feeds. I steal one-liners from JJ Kincaid's Twitter all the time and he doesn't even know it. Kane in DC is very talented. JB and Sandy are phenomenal in Austin, TX. I think Howard Stern is still awesome. I've always admired Elvis Duran at Z100, plus I've seen him topless, so I admire him on more than one level.

If you could have one "super hero power" what would it be?

I would love to somehow acquire the ability to get into a stopset on time. It would make life a lot easier.