WTFX MD Frank Webb has been a fixture in the Louisville market for 16 years. Over that time, in addition to his MD and regular airshift duties, Webb has been hosting Attitude Network, the Metal specialty show that first exposed bands like Godsmack, Disturbed, Mudvayne, Slipknot, Static-X and many others. While The Fox is still one of the edgiest Active Rockers on the dial, the station has been broadening its horizons lately by dabbling with the Alternative side of Rock. This month, FMQB spoke to Webb about the station’s new philosophy.
Frank Webb
After working in markets as diverse as Chicago, Connecticut and Hawaii, WTFX MD Frank Webb found a home in Louisville where he has been rocking at The Fox for 16 years. In addition to MD duties, Webb is the afternoon drive personality and also hosts Attitude Network, the Metal specialty show he has been doing since 1993. Attitude Network was the first show to play Godsmack and Disturbed and has been the breeding ground for many other bands that are now staples in the Active Rock format, such as White Zombie, Slipknot and Mudvayne. While The Fox is still one of the edgiest Active Rockers on the dial, the station has been venturing into new territory lately.
eQB presents excerpts from the March FMQB magazine Rock Up Close with WTFX/Louisville MD Frank Webb
On making music programming decisions…
A lot of it is gut and a lot of it is based on a philosophy that we want to follow right now. We’ve been tinkering with the station a little bit. We had a competitor here, the Alternative station WLRS. When they discontinued the format, we came in and filled some of the void for Alternative music to go along with the Active Rock that we’ve always played. So we’re trying to fit that mold. We have a music meeting every week and we listen to a lot of stuff. We also look at research, and we look at the key markets that sound a lot like what we want to sound like, and we pay pretty close attention. We can be a little broader in terms of dabbling with Alternative stuff now and it has really paid off. Our cume and our ratings are on the upswing pretty strongly at a time when a lot of Active Rock stations are floundering.
On the most effective way for labels to work him on a record…
I work best with the labels that I have a good relationship with. A hit is a hit is a hit, and I’m going to play it whether I like the record rep or not. But, on those bands and artists that are borderline, it sure does help to have a good relationship with the record rep. A great way to have a good relationship with us is to at least make overtures like you actually care what our radio station sounds like and what we’re doing here and what our audience is looking for when they turn on our station. Those record reps tend to have the most success with us. It’s a relationship business – that’s a cliché, but we do best with labels that we have good relationships with. All they have to do is take the time. You can stream us at foxrocks.com. If you want to listen to our radio station, just go on and do it. I wonder how many record reps actually do that.
On the quality of music in the Active format right now…
I think the format was in a lull, but it can stay in a lull if you program that way. If you broaden the horizons of the station and go out and look at the Alternative charts and handpick some gold that they haven’t heard in a while that you know you can get a reaction to, you can make the format very fresh. The format is only as stale as you make it.
On the best advice he ever received…
When I’m on the air, I try to make it all about my listeners and not about me. For an on-air personality I don’t really do a lot of horn blowing for myself, I try to focus on what my listeners are thinking and what they’re doing, what their lifestyle is, and how I can best serve them. At the end of the day, it’s all about serving your listeners.
** QB Content by Mandy Feingold **
Also in the March Issue:
Artist To Watch Spotlight: Aranda
Brothers Gabe and Dameon Aranda have been playing music together since they were old enough to pick up a guitar. Over the years, their sibling rivalry – as well as their mutual respect for each other as musicians – has driven them to keep honing their skills and becoming the best instrumentalists and songwriters they can be. While they have always been in a band together in some form, Dameon also has dabbled in songwriting for others. Together with the writing and production team of Sam Watters and Louis Biancaniello, Dameon penned several songs that will appear on Kelly Clarkson’s new album. However, the Soul-infused Rock & Roll that he and Gabe make together under the moniker Aranda is a far cry from American Idol Pop fare.
