I wanted to answer a question that a lot of you have asked me, that being: How did you get into radio?
I LIED MY ASS OFF! That’s how. I was a rock n’ roll singer songwriter, and the front person of my band called Entourage. (we used to play in front of the Good Rats! LOL!) We played all over NYC, including TRAX and CBGB’s, out on the Island, US Blues, My Father’s Place, etc… We had a record and were trying desperately to get distribution on it. Had it played on WBAB’s Homegrown show too! Haha! What memories…
We came up with the idea, that because I had an ok voice, I should try and get a job on the air, so that we could sneak our record in!
I had my ‘pre husband’ write me up a fake resume on being an air talent, because years ago, HE had been on the air, and knew a bit about it. He wrote that I’d been a PD, MD, on air… I didn’t know what a PD was! I then went to Bob Shannon- yes, CBS FM’s Bob Shannon. He was from Pgh, so was I, and it seems that people from Pgh will do anything for another Pittsburgher… so he brought me up to his studio, and helped me to make a FAKE AIR CHECK! It was for B94 in Pgh! LOL!
Now! I was ready to do this! When you’re young, you think you CAN do this kind of stuff!
I walked in to WAPP right here in NYC with both resume, aircheck and short skirt, the day Mark Coppola walked out. Steve Ellis, PD, was stuck and needed someone right away, hired me on the spot! That night, while on the air for the first time EVER, I called my pre-husband, and he walked me through how to use the pots, (unit then, I thought pots were soley for cooking) talk into the mike, thread a reel to reel machine, OMG… when I think back, I was out of my mind.
Flash ahead 6 months, that’s when I told them I was a singer, and had a record. Needed to build credibility first, right? Well, they LIKED it! It was put on steady rotation for a while, but still no distribution. So that was the end of the band, but I stayed on the air!
Who else do you know that can say they STARTED on air in NYC, and STAYED on air in NYC for 25 years?
Moral of the story: (you know by now, I always have a moral) NEVER SAY NEVER. TEACH YOUR KIDS TOO!!!
You can be anything you want to be, when you grow up, as long as you think ‘outside the box!’
Robin/Jayne
What a great freakin’ story! I had no idea! It’s just another reason you are adored, by myself and many others..
Hahaha! Do you know I just saw this response to my blog? What’s it been, 9 MONTHS??? I could’ve had another BABY by now!
I think that if you have a blog, then it is what you need.
Tell people about something, someone is advertising, to somebody else for something else.
Personally, I think so.
Here I have a blog about my travels, but I can not share them with people, because somebody would write that this is spam.
A hoster will also kick 🙂