Jagger, KCHZ: I was there at the very beginning with Jason Derulo “What You Say” when I was at Z100. We got very excited about Cash Cash “Take Me Home,” we really helped get that one going. James Arthur “Say You Won’t Let Go” for both WKSS and WKCI.

Jonathan Shuford, WRVW: There’s been a lot of them. But there are a few I’m most proud of. Certainly Halsey, we were there on her Alternative projects and really proud how far she’s gone. Lewis Capaldi for sure. Lauv is up there, we picked that one out of thin air and just ran with it. We broke Charlie Puth, and most recently Tai Verdes, I like where that’s heading. My fun one is going back to my Louisville days and breaking Macklemore.

Fish, WKRZ: Big early believer in the value of BTS. We were one of the first stations in the country to expose BTS. I went to a Lewis Capaldi showcase in Chicago and came back declaring he was going to be a star. I put the first single right in and it turned out to be massive.

Rich Davis, KDWB: First one that comes to mind is Lady Gaga “Just Dance.”  I literally have audio of her thanking me from the stage at my Christmas show in 2008. Mercy Me “I Can Only Imagine” was a big one for me in Nashville. “Fireflies” by Owl City.  I was the first station to add “I Kissed a Girl” by Katy Perry.  In fact Radio 1 in England talked to me a few years ago on the anniversary of that song’s release just to get some quotes on how all that when down and how I played it, what the reaction was.

Guy Zapoleon, Zapoleon Consulting: I always used my ears to find and stick with songs I knew in my heart were hits even when the research was slow to come. I was early on a ton of songs during my day as a PD and throughout my career even though I was also a tough “add” on songs I didn’t believe in. If I found a great song happening in the UK, I’d play the import like “Rock This Town” Stray Cats and “Total Eclipse of the Heart” Bonnie Tyler. I helped break “Dance with Me” Peter Brown, The Go-Go’s “Our Lips Are Sealed,” “Walk Like an Egyptian” The Bangles, “Into The Night” Benny Mardones, “Heaven” Bryan Adams. Wilson Philips “Hold On.” Plus, two bring-backs, “Mony Mony” Billy Idol and UB40 “Red Red Wine” convincing Charlie Minor to convince the band to rerelease it. During Zapoleon Media Strategies, I got clients to play Savage Garden Aussie imports and support their other hits. “Believe” by Cher. Recently I’ve been a big fan of Dua Lipa and worked very hard to get programmers to have patience with “New Rules” support “Don’t Start Now” and “Break My Heart,” and to (after a short current life) bring back “Levitating” from recurrent to play as a current and help it hit #1.

Dom Theodore, Radio Animal Media Strategies: There have been a few through the years like Justin Bieber and Pitbull, and Sean Kingston (Tommy Nappi and I have lots of stories about Kingston). But one of my favorites was an artist named Iyaz who had the hit “Replay” a few years back.  When the label played the song to Rob Wagman and I in NYC, they prefaced it by saying they weren’t sure if they were even going to work it.  I looked up and said “Really, that’s a shame because I think it’s a #1 record.” Sure enough, we launched it, and it did end up #1 at CHR.  Going back a ways to the Tampa days, we found a ton of Dance tracks at FLZ like Alice Deejay “Better off Alone,” and Sonique “It Feels So Good.”

Kobe, WZNE:  At Syracuse we really supported MAX, and forged a relationship with him. Seeing him have “Lights Down Low” become a major hit was great to see. We also (not that they needed our help) went early on every Chainsmokers record since Drew of The Chainsmokers went to Syracuse University.

Rod Phillips, iHeartMedia: Some people claim to have played Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl” before we did at Y100, but we should look that up – ha. Also had fun finding and helping expose Scotty McCreery’s “5 More Minutes” which became a big hit for Country radio.

Matt Johnson, WPLW: To me it is more important to avoid the stiffs than to necessarily be early on the hits. To save face for a lot of label folks, let’s just say I’ve avoided a LOT of Jimmy Ray’s in my days.

Mike McVay, McVay Media: One of the joys of my career has been working with artists and their managers over the years. If we go old school country, Reba McIntire was a client of mine for several years and working with her and her team really fired up the second half of her career.  Hall & Oates were clients for nearly ten years. Do It for Love is a song project that I was proud of as it gave them #1 songs in multiple consecutive decades. More recently it would be Country, Pop/AC and Christmas projects.

John Kuliak, Night Castle Management:  Teaching Slipknot to write three-minute hits and then getting them signed to Roadrunner. Working with the legendary Al Bell to make “Whoomp! (There It Is)” into one of the biggest selling radio singles of all time. Breaking Greta Van Fleet‘s first single and thereby making them a radio priority for Universal. Getting TSO fangirl Lzzy Hale into the studio with Trans-Siberian Orchestra to record a song together.