-
Charese Fruge’ (@MCMediaonline) Talks To Corey Foley
October 18, 2022
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. -
“I’m one half of the cleverly named ‘Marcus & Corey’ show at iHeartMedia Hot AC KIOI (Star 101.3)/San Francisco” says Corey Foley. “In addition to the morning show and all the socials, we (Marcus and I) also produce the ‘Marcus & Corey Off the Air’ podcast. You can stream it for free anytime on the iHeartRadio app,” she says.
Here’s how it all started for Corey in radio: “After setting the world of kindergarten naptime theatre alight, starring as The Turkey in the big black hat in a production of ‘Chicken Little,’ I discovered I loved entertaining people,” she says. “I landed my first morning show in Gainesville, Florida then later worked in AM Drive at Wild 94-9 Tampa Bay, 101.3 KDWB/Minneapolis, KWVF (The Wolf)/San Francisco, KILT (100.3 The Bull)/Houston, 101.9 KINK/Portland, and now at Star 101.3 back in the Bay Area. If my radio career could be summed up in a single word, I’d go with ‘Stable.’”
“The accomplishments I’m most proud of from over the years are the ones where I’m able to use the mic and my platform for good,” says Foley. “I lost my mother to breast cancer in 2003; and she was only fifty-seven. So, raising awareness for breast cancer prevention, treatment, and research are causes that are dear to my heart.”
“Over the past couple of decades, I’ve teamed up with our wonderful listeners across many different markets to help raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for organizations like 3 Day, Susan G Komen, and the American Cancer Society. I’m all about the funny, but giving back in a meaningful way is really where a morning show can have the most direct and positive impact with our listenership.”
While Corey is in a great situation, she’s very proud of, things aren’t always easy in the radio business. “Right now, my husband and I are doing the long-distance thing. He’s still living in Portland where he works for Nike, and I’m on the air Monday through Friday here in San Francisco,” Foley explains. “We’re giving the airline mileage plans a workout. He plans to move down here eventually, but it can be tough at times. Though on a positive note, I now know all the TSA agents by name at SFO.”
“I feel like whatever the professional challenge, I’ve just always tried to address it head on and with a positive attitude,” says Foley. “Having a good professional support system, including both other on-air personalities as well as current and former program directors and managers can be incredibly helpful, too. Mark Adams tried to lose my contact information, but I found him again anyway. Who says stalking doesn’t work?”
Over the years, and many impressive call letters Corey has collected for her resume, she’s learned a few lessons and has some great advice for women looking to get into the business. “Having a good mentor is very helpful,” she says. “As I mentioned, networking to create professional connections with other women in different professional roles can be incredibly valuable as well. There are successful female market presidents, directors of sales, programmers, and of course air talent across our industry.”
“In my experience, most people I’ve reached out to have taken the time to respond and are eager to pay it forward. I should also add that I’ve been fortunate to have worked with many male managers and co-workers who value female voices and experience and are intent on making certain they’re prominently heard,” Foley adds. “As for actionable advice, I’d say ‘be true to who you are.’ Being a female morning show personality doesn’t mean you need to be stuck with the gossip news or the reality TV recap report. Strive to be authentic, have fun, and be the kind of person you’d want to hang out with.”
We’ve acknowledged on more than one occasion in this column that the biggest challenge and priority for the radio business is attracting and connecting with a younger audience. It’s necessary for the evolution and survival of the business. So, I asked Corey the “Million Dollar Question.” How can we capture loyalty, engagement and growth among Millennials and Gen Z? “I honestly don’t know that there’s one simple answer to that, but I think a lot of it may come down to trying to be active in all the same spaces that our audience is engaged. I’ve been coached to think of all our various social tools as a brand extension of our on-air shows. We need to put on a great daily show, and then we need to break it up into easily listenable and digestible podcast elements that listeners can interact with on demand. We need all our socials to supplement our on-air content, and those social channels in turn are using embeds and links to drive listenership back to websites, podcasting, or benchmark features back on the morning show the next morning. We’re trying to make sure our show has a presence on the radio, on the website, on TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, podcasting, and on and on. When I used to work with Dave Ryan in Minneapolis he would say ‘Keep up, or you will get left behind.’”
“Again, I think you must try to be everywhere that they (Millennials and Gen Z) are,” says Foley. “When it comes to the show, you must try to give them something they can’t get anywhere else. Hey, that’s me! And you! And all the great radio personalities. We can provide great content, laughs, sometimes tears, emotional connections, local information, and are also curating pop culture along with the music we play. You can’t get that from a digital streamer.”
As far as diversity, equity and inclusion in the industry, Foley agrees there is work to do. “We probably are not nearly as far as we need to be,” she says. “I know there have always been fewer women in radio than men. It’s certainly gotten better, and speaking only to iHeartMedia/San Francisco for a moment, the women on-air personalities greatly outnumber the men. Which, I have to say, is cool.”
“Being in a market like San Francisco we also strive to be as inclusive as possible as it relates to the show as well. As one example, our Second Date Update benchmark feature includes dating stories from people of every kind of background. My partner Marcus is very open about his Mexican heritage and speaks fluent Spanish. His wife Jen is Japanese/Filipino. We make a point to celebrate the diversity of the Bay Area at every opportunity.”
As far what Corey thinks people would be surprised to know about her? “I went to Catholic school for eight years. Now, I have a lot of tattoos. Those two things may be somehow related,” she says laughingly.
As for what keeps her up at night. “What doesn’t?” she asks. “I have a really hard time turning my brain off. I think about the show. I think about my husband Jeff and our dogs. I think about climate change. I think about everything bad I ate that day and then mentally punish myself and swear tomorrow will be different.” Sounds like a lot of anxiety…but Corey has a cure for that. “I love to just walk around the city. I love being out and about exploring the Bay Area as a whole. It’s such a fascinating place. I also love Dateline and the ID Network. Plus, I’m addicted to Candy Crush. Yup. I’m still playing Candy Crush.”
As for what we have to look forward to from Corey: “Since I just got here in May, we didn’t have time this year to go big for “Breast Cancer Awareness Month.” Since that is a passion project for me, it’s definitely something I want to continue to represent. So, expect us to go BIG moving forward. Follow Corey on: Instagram: @corey.foley, @marcusandcorey_ Facebook: coreyfoley, marcus and corey Tik Tok: marcusandcorey
-
-