10 Questions with ... NuYork

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

I graduated from Alabama A&M University as a music business major and began my career in radio my second year of college. I went from intern to weekends, weekends to night, nights to morning show and morning show to middays. I am currently the PD and MD in Birmingham, AL.

1) I assume NuYork is an air-name, how did you get it?

It's funny because I get this question a lot and when I tell people I was born and raised in Queens, NY, I often hear, "Oh ... duh!" However, I wasn't the one who named myself. It was actually 95.7 Jamz former morning show host ad radio vet, Buckwilde. At the time, my New York accent was still very strong and it stood out. It just made sense. Surprisingly, I hated the name at first. I mean, who claims a whole state? That's pretty bold and not to mention cocky of someone. In the end, I kept the name but out of respect, I chose to spell it N-U-Y-O-R-K instead of N-E-W Y-O-R-K. Buck hated the spelling. He was like, "Listeners won't be able to find you if you spell it that way!" He was somewhat accurate, but 20k-plus followers later, that philosophy quickly died. Besides, I wanted to keep it simply because I liked pissing him off.

2) What do you think radio will be like in the future?

From a technology point of view, as far as having radios in vehicles ... I don't see that going away anytime soon. Part of the reason for that is that people like to know what's going on in their city -- and radio, in my opinion, is the best medium to get that information out and quickly. Not to mention, it's free ... hello, somebody! I do believe, however, that how radio reaches its listeners will change. Radio will eventually partner up with streaming companies on a larger scale and that towers will no longer be needed or necessary. Like a merger of some kind.

3) Would you name some of the influences in your life and career?

Growing up in New York, I considered Angie Martinez very inspirational. At the time I was too young to really appreciate the art of how she did things, but always felt like she was just dope. I believe that one of her best traits as a radio legend is her flawless, natural ability to disarm people and get them to open up in ways most radio personalities can't. There's a science to radio. She just ... gets it. Another major influence was my former uncensored, unfiltered but genius co-worker, Buckwilde. Working with him was like working in the military, going to boot camp every morning. You either loved him or you hated him but you couldn't deny that he knew radio. He taught me most of what I know today. He was the first morning show host that I saw run his own board. And the show was not an "open the breaks dry" kind of show. It was heavily produced with a lot of elements to it. He's the guy who told me to stop "puking" on the radio and to just be my natural self.

4) How did you get into radio?

My first introduction to radio was in high school. I was the chick you always saw backstage at every event. Not on no groupie-type-ish, I've never been impressed by celebrities, but particularly out of my fascination of the process of things. I wanted a deeper look into what goes on "behind the scenes" at events. Huntsville, AL was considered a college town, and during this time, WEUP was the only hip-hop station there so, most likely, if I crashed an event, it was theirs. After being sick of seeing me all the time and asking, "Who let her backstage?" the Promotions Director, Ghon Bomb, finally offered me an internship. I learned some tough and great lessons about the business there and after three years, left to host and DJ at a local nightclub. During my second year in college, I started working nights and weekends at WHRP, an Urban AC station, in Athens, AL for about two years. I later joined Cox Media Group as the co-host of the shows: The Buckwilde Morning Show, Roy Wood Jr. Show and Magic City Morning Show. After a company buyout by Summit Media, I was switched over to middays and soon picked up a second midday shift at WHZT/Greenville, SC. A year later I was promoted to APD and became PD three months later.

5) What do you think the key is to being an air-personality?

Overall, I believe it is the same thing that makes any person a valuable worker in their field of choice. Tons of knowledge followed by tons of practice. As a personality, you should know everything about everything that encompasses radio and the things related to it. Who are the artists of the songs you are introducing? What can you say about them that the average listener doesn't know? What type of mic are you using? How far away do you need to distance yourself from it for listeners to hear the best quality of your voice? What's the latest technology that your listeners are using? How does it work? How long does the average person listen to radio? What do you need to say to keep them around? It's not just about pushing buttons on and off. There really is no key to being a personality, but there is a key to being a great one. I once watched a football game where a quarterback caught a touchdown with his toes barely brushing the sidelines ... only to find out that he used to take ballet classes.

6) How important is streaming?

If you work in radio and you're not factoring in streaming, you should probably find another field to work in before streaming takes your job from you. Times have significantly changed and music is now accessible everywhere ... due to streaming. New music technology cycles about every two decades. From vinyl records to cassettes, cassettes to CDs, CDs to iPods, iPods to streaming. As a programmer, streaming reports are vital to my selection process of music for one main reason: I call it the radio cheat sheet. That's because it's one of the best resources that tells you what people like right now without you having to resort to older techniques of conducting pen to paper surveys. Like who writes anymore?

7) What are the challenges of working with new air talent?

It's pretty much the same problems PDs been having for years. If you're dealing with talent that's green, you have to deal with laziness and some irresponsibility. I mean, we live in a time of immediate gratification where no one wants to put in the actual work that it takes to succeed, but demands all the benefits of it. If you're dealing with older talent, but new to your station, you have to deal with egos and entitlement and some who don't keep up with the times. You have to keep finding ways to re-invent yourself with what's current. I've also dealt with talent overselling themselves. There's a lot of resumes out there of people who put down skills that they don't have, which can be misleading.

8) Do you think there is an ideal way to deal with music and your playlist?

Every station is unique and I don't think there is one specific way to handle music. You should program your station according to your target audience. With that said, you should definitely be in the know when it comes to new artists and new songs on the horizon and which ones fit your station. You should be up on the latest trends (musically) for your format. You have to utilize and understand every resource available. You can't cook a delicious meal using one ingredient.

9) What would people be surprised to learn about you?

In my free time, I produce music. After attending numerous studio sessions watching producers cook up some beats, I later discovered that I have an ear for making music as well. I have a few other hidden talents artistically but I don't always have the time to perfect them.

10) What would you be doing if you weren't in radio?

I really can't see myself working somewhere that isn't associated with music in some form or fashion but if music wasn't an option, I'd revert back to my days of studying psychology.