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10 Questions with ... Lindsay Kimball
July 5, 2022
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Lindsay Kimball is the new Program Director for 89.3 The Current. She started with The Current in 2005 as an intern and has grown with the station. In addition to being a host and working with the music department to shape the music on The Current, she has produced The Current in-studios and remote broadcasts, including shows from Bonnaroo, SXSW and Rock the Garden; and launches initiatives such as Schell's The Current Beer, Local Current webstream and the live event series The Current Road Trip. Most recently, she led the MPR Membership department raising nearly $23M per year. Before joining The Current and MPR, she was host and music director for KWLC, Luther College, IA. She graduated from Luther College with a B.A. in communications and psychology.
1. How did you become interested in radio?
I became immersed in the local music scene of Minneapolis and St. Paul as a high schooler because of radio. I would stay up late to listen to the Loud and Local show, and I went to as many shows as I could. By the time I got to college, I wanted to find a way to share these awesome bands with more people, and radio was the way to do it. I started with a Saturday night shift on KWLC 1240AM and picked up any extra shifts I could. I became MD and spent most of my free time at the station. I'm still in touch with each new crop of students at the station.
2. Who were/are your mentors?
My first radio prof, Jen Cantine, was my first introduction to radio, but I have learned a lot from other former and existing staff at The Current like Steve Nelson, Jim McGuinn, David Safar, Derrick Stevens, and Mary Lucia.
3. What are some of the resources from Minnesota Public Radio can you tap into?
MPR is part of American Public Media Group. With our suite of national programs, and news and classical programming, we have easy access to all kinds of information for our audience. If there is a weather event, we can reach out to the meteorologist. If there is breaking news, we have a team of reporters that can stop up and explain what is going on to our audience. If one of the national programs has a guest in, we can usually piggy-back on that, and have them in for an interview or Theft of the Dial (radio takeover). We are also lucky to have fantastic facilities, so when a band comes in to do a session, they are proud of what they recorded. But I’ve also had an opportunity to work in Membership fundraising and lead that team for three years to really understand the public radio revenue model, how to empower passionate listeners to support a vital public service and resource, and how to maneuver large-scale change in a complex organization. As I return to The Current after three and a half years, I get to bring that expertise and those skills with me into this role.
4. Tell us about some of the stations most successful benchmark promotions.
I’m still proud of our partnership with August Schell Brewing Company where we created a beer together: Schell's The Current. We paired the beer with music, so there were six tracks from local bands that were available for download. We had those bands play our beer release events. It was a great combination of local music, local radio, and local beer, and it had our brand in front of a large audience. Our micro-show series with New Belgium Brewing company has been successful as well – pairing amazing bands with intimate and unique venues with a small audience. Micro-shows have yielded really special recordings from unforgettable performances.
5. What other things are you doing to generate market penetration?
The Current is actively involved in the local music community. We do it because we're passionate about it! As we move forward through the challenges of the last several years, I’m thinking about new ways we can engage the community and our listeners to create a real, meaningful connection. The Current is also thinking about what we need to do to reach new audiences. Carbon Sound, our new Urban Alternative stream, was recently launched to serve younger, digital-first, BIPOC audiences, for example.
6. What has been your biggest career highlight?
Starting this new role as PD is my career highlight. My heart and passion is programming radio, and I can’t wait to work with this team and make radio that matters to our community.
7. Of all the skills you have gained so far, is there an area you'd like to improve?
There's always room for improvement! There’s always going to be an artist I don’t know about or a fancy short cut in Music Master or data about the audience that will help me understand how to serve them better. I never want to stop growing or learning.
8. What do you view as the most important issue facing radio today?
How does radio retain its role in the community, in connecting audiences with music, and it’s influence while we compete with digital content? Our competition isn’t defined by a terrestrial signal, so we have to thinking differently about how we serve our audiences and become – and stay – important to them.
9. If you wanted to completely change careers today, what would you do?
I could probably go back into fundraising, but if I did something completely different, I’d want to learn how to operate an excavator, or work at a brewery, or become a city council person…or all three!
10. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day ...
…without my phone. It’s all the things: my wallet, my garage opener, my calendar, my distraction…
Bonus Questions
Last non-industry job:
I worked at a day care center in high school and college, and then I started at The Current as an intern a week out of college.
First record ever purchased:
Michael Jackson "Bad" I saved up all my birthday money to buy the cassette!
First concert:
Bush with Veruca Salt opening at The Target Center. April 28th, 1997.
Favorite band of all-time:
The Avett Brothers or Bon Iver. It a tie.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time away from work?
Visiting breweries, finding a fun community event to attend.
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