10 Questions with ... Brigette Rose

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

• 2013-2014: Cumulus Active Rock KRDJ (Rock 93.7 FM)/Lafayette, on-air weekends and specialty show "Two Hot Chicks on a Saturday Night" (Station was sold, now silent.)
• 2014-2016: Cumulus Top 40 KSMB/ Lafayette, on-air weekends to start, then I was moved to middays.
• 2015-2016 (while still on KSMB): Cumulus Media Classic Rock KKGB (Rock 101.3)/Lake Charles, middays -- briefly as promotions director.
• 2016-now: KYMK (106.3 Radio Lafayette)/Lafayette, middays. After a year, PD and Production Dir. positions became available, and I was made full-time, and am currently the midday host.

1. How did you become interested in radio?

I've always loved listening to the radio since I was little. It was so exciting, requesting songs and hearing them played with a shout-out to me. As I got older, I listened for more than just music. I am one of those weird people who can appreciate a good commercial. There is an artistry to it. I went into Media Production in college and fell in love with the world of sound and voiceover. It wasn't too long after that I was discovered in a model search (hosted by a local Rock station), who instead offered me a job on a specialty show called "Two Hot Chicks on a Saturday Night." It was mostly lewd humor and music, but very funny and people loved it. It was a real learning experience. After that I began pursuing a full-time career in radio.

2. Who are your mentors?

The one and only Jace Edwards. He's the PD who gave me that first crack at radio. The experience I gained from working for him was most valuable. Currently, he owns his own Rock station in Winnemucca, NV. His ability to create intriguing bits and listener interaction was phenomenal. His morning show was the best and most interactive I've ever heard. He was one of those local guys who could easily compete with even the biggest syndicated shows. It's been almost five years since he left the Lafayette market and people STILL nominate him for Best Local DJ.

I also consider the PD of my second radio job one of my mentors. His name is Bobby Novosad; he's been a voice on my hometown's Top 40 station for decades. It was an honor to learn from him and work on his station.

I guess I could also include a few syndicated personalities as inspiration ... like maybe OHP's John Garabedian, or maybe Howard Stern or Kidd Kraddick. But really it comes down to those first two PDs who really made an impact on me ... both brilliant in their craft.

3. How long has the station been Triple A?

Since 2014

4. Tell us a bit about the Lafayette market.

We're in the deep South! We love our culture and Cajun heritage. There is a festival for almost everything here, and local music thrives. Everything local is popular. Like, no one goes to Starbucks ... local coffee houses are all the rage ... love that chicken from Popeyes, Cajun food, etc. We're also the Zydeco capitol, and a very artistically driven community. The bulk of the population is very blue-collar, lots of oil field and restaurant business people here, but it's also a college town!

5. How would you describe the music on the station?

Feel-good music. Alternative and Triple A music from today plus Alternative classics from the '90s, early 2k's, '80s new wave, and other classics from the late '70s that were alternative before that was even a genre. We have an all-acoustic specialty show on Sundays, a local music show Sunday nights, and a retro hour for the 5p drive on weekdays.

6. What new artists are you most excited about?

For Triple A, I'm really loving Alice Merton, The War on Drugs, and Anderson East the most of the new artists. Also love Highly Suspect, although they are more Alt Rock than Triple A. There are tons of new bands I'm diggin', but those are just the ones inside our format.

7. How do you stay in tune with your audience?

Social media and calls. We use Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter - but by far we have the most interaction on Facebook. People tell us what they like and don't like through social, and I frequently get calls during my cover song segment (one song each weekday at the top of the one o'clock hour). Our audience can also rate the songs we play with our mobile app.

8. What is your biggest challenge at the station?

Blogging, haha - I've never been much of a writer. I'm super-slow at typing. I'd rather just make a video and say what I want to say. I also find Facebook challenging at times. Instagram has a simpler layout, and easier to manage posts. At events, listeners who don't know my face mistake me for an intern a lot ... which is weird since we don't have any interns. I have a baby-face and I'm kinda small ... so it's hard to be assertive :(

9. What would surprise people most about the station?

I think what surprises most people is the variety of music. Most Triple A/Alt stations don't dip as deep into the classics like we do. We also play a featured local artist every few hours. We identify all of our newest adds with an artist name/song title sweeper, and all of our local artists with an artist name/song title sweeper. Those are some of the things I've been told by listeners that make us stand out among the competition.

10. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day ...

... without COFFEE!

Last non-industry job:

GameStop.inc.

First record ever purchased:

Acid Bath's Pagan Terrorism Tactics

First concert:

Bush, for their Razorblade Suitcase tour (Veruca Salt opened) @ Cajundome in Lafayette, LA. I was in middle school at the time.

Favorite band of all-time:

Aw man, that's really hard ... Mastodon and Ghost are my favorite bands right now, but... "all time"? The Cure or The Stone Temple Pilots (with Scott Weiland) possibly? Too hard to choose, really!

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time away from work?

Ha ha ... oh boy! This is where things get weird - so, I make costumes, build prop weapons and armor and dress up like anime, comic book and video game characters. I wear them at competitions like comic book conventions and anime conventions ... and a lot of times I win money! Working with thermoplastics and casting resin are my favorite parts about it, sewing is fun to,o. In the nerd-world, we call it cosplay! That is something I've found doesn't really exist in the radio industry ... cosplayers. I'm starting to think I'm the only one! People pay me to host events in costume, or sometimes just as a model. Being a radio personality with lots of high quality handmade costumes has its advantages.