Justin Chase
Like so many, Justin Chase got the radio bug early, in 8th grade to be exact while working at his Christian school’s campus radio station KADV. At sixteen, he started an internship at Hot AC KOSO/Modesto-Stockton and just a few weeks later he was hired for part-time on-air work. He would join the station on a full time basis doing middays immediately after high school. He headed to CHR WFBC/Greenville to handle Production/Imaging Director duties for about a year, but soon realized he was a west coast guy. He hit Las Vegas in 2001 and became the Imaging Director for Hot AC KMXB and AC KMZQ. Four years and four promotions later, he rose to PD at KMXB and later Adult Hits KKJJ.
What are some of the challenges you face today as a programmer?
The biggest challenge in today’s radio environment is budgets and making them go further. With a down economy, it’s tough to convince corporate to spend money on research, marketing or badly needed additional employees for the digital departments. Another challenge is finding new young talent. I recently discovered that I have to go out and recruit in order to find the best up and coming stars. Just opening a position and accepting resumes will no longer cut it for this demographic. Radio is no longer a “sexy” job choice for younger people.
What key elements come into play when you are considering new music?
It’s a combination of a lot of things. I have one of the best Music Director’s in the business,Brandon Bell, and his opinion is HUGE. We look at charts (Hot AC/Alternative/Top 40/AAA/AC), research (local/national internet and callout), sales (digital albums/digital singles/traditional albums), what marketing projects are attached (TV/movies/commercials), what they sound like live, label track record (in other words, does the label have a hit making history?), local tour opportunities and of course gut instinct.
The highly successful “Mark and Mercedes in the Morning” has been in place for over ten years. Talk about what they mean to your station.
Mark and Mercedes in the Morning are the face of the station. They are clearly the biggest radio names in Las Vegas and we’re certainly lucky to have them on KMXB. It’s not bad to start your day with double digits shares to lead into middays. They’ve won the Las Vegas Review Journal’s “Best of Las Vegas” award for Best Radio Personalities nine years in a row!
How has the station evolved on the new technology front?
CBS Radio, with the leadership of Dan Mason and Andy Lindenauer, has done an amazing job of moving us into the digital world over the last year. The websites are more interactive than ever with awesome new streaming players, on-demand features and even a partnership with AOL. We see an all-time high on streaming numbers and web hits almost every week! The next phase will most likely be HD Radio. One of my two stations is already up and running with an HD2 channel.
Who would you consider to be your mentors?
Max Miller, Tom Humm, Charese Fruge, Gaylord Boyer, Dave Shakes.
What concerns you most about the format?
I guess what concerns me most is a lack of core artists exclusive to Hot AC. We’ve allowed Top 40 and AC to take ownership a lot of them. Hot AC PD’s need to do a better job of owning these artists and fighting for them when they come to town.
What’s the best way to promote Justin Chase on a record?
I like to see a story developing with charts, sales, fan base or research. At the same time, I like to be on the front end of any record project so my station can perceptually own that artist. I’m also a fan of seeing the artist in a live setting.
How active are you in the community? Have you seen the benefits of community involvement?
My station has a very small to no marketing budget and we consider community events our marketing. KMXB prides itself on being the biggest event station in Vegas. We produce many concert and content oriented events every year like Bite of Las Vegas (with national bands, over 50 restaurants and 35,000+ people), Pet-A-Palooza (a pet event with 25,000+), Kids’ Mix (children’s festival with 15,000+) and more. In addition, we produce several charity fundraisers throughout the year like Four Corners Food Drive, World Vision and a concert event for Make A Wish. Las Vegas locals have come to know KMXB for these events and they look forward to them each year. I’ve worked for stations in the past where we always worried about not enough people showing up for events. With KMXB, we worry about too many people showing up.
What is the formula for a successful radio/record relationship?
Just like any professional relationship, it has to be mutually beneficial. It’s pretty simple. We play the music… the label helps us market the music.
What makes a good promotion and what are some of the recent promotions you’ve done?
We know that a small percentage of our audience participates in our contests and promotions. So, I’ve always felt the best promotions are the ones that are fun to listen to even if you’re not participating. Personally, I love the on-air game shows. We just did the Million Dollar Deal where we gave away a Scion car and a chance at a million bucks. Caller twenty-nine instantly won a gas card. They could keep the gas card or exchange it for a case in which they could win something HUGE or something less valuable. For listeners not participating, it was still fun to listen to.
** QB Content by Mark LaSpina **
