10 Questions with 95 WIIL Rock's Tom Kief

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: NAME: Tom Kief : TITLE: APD/Morning Show Smart Ass : STATION: WIIL 95 ROCK : MARKET: Chicago : COMPANY: NextMedia : BORN: Milwaukee, WI (that explains why beer and I get along so very well) on January 23rd, 1966. I came out feet first and face down (no lie), and have stayed true to such a start all my life! : RAISED: Burlington, WI : : 10 Questions with ... Tom Kief : BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS: : WJZQ/WIIL - Chicago: 85 - 9/97 : WRVE - Albany NY: 9/97 - 3/00 : WIIL - Chicago: 3/00 - Present : : 1) What was your first job in radio? Early influences? : WBSD was my High School radio station. Terry Havel, my High School broadcasting teacher was inducted into the Wisconsin Broadcasters Hall of Fame last year, and no one deserves it more. I also met my current PD John Perry when we both were on WBSD as kids. Who else can say they have worked with their PD since before either person had gone thru puberty?!?! Randy McCarten (WRVE - Albany) gave me my first morning show when he was the PD of WIIL. He is one of the best people I have ever worked for. He had to deal with me when I was young, and stupid... ... ... which was a lot more intense than my current state of just stupid. Lorna Ozmon (Ozmon Media) is the person who taught me the most about how to do a morning radio show. She not only knows the nuts and bolts of radio better than anyone, but also knows how to make a station connect with the listeners. : : 2) What led you to a career in radio? Was there a defining moment, which made you realize "this is it"? : When I was five I would talk into my thumb as if it were a microphone, and the other kids would laugh. I liked the way that felt. : : 3) What makes your station or market unique? How does this compare to other markets or stations you have worked at? : Our tower is in Wisconsin, yet the majority of our listeners are in Illinois. So even though the station has good numbers in the Chicago Arbitron northern counties we have to explain to agencies, promoters, and businesses who we are, and where our listeners are. It is a daily battle. : : 4) How do you feel terrestrial radio competes with the satellite radio and Internet these days? : The biggest advantage terrestrial radio has is that it is the original social network. It has an advantage of being more local than satellite radio. People can listen to, and interact with not only the personalities they tune into, but also with the other fans of that show. Who has the best chicken wings in town? How was last night's concert? What kind of idiots would elect that guy mayor? These are all real topics from our show, and people love to give their two cents worth. With terrestrial radio people can connect about local shared experiences. If radio companies play to these advantages, as opposed to squandering them to save a buck, terrestrial radios future can be as bright as ever. : : 5) Who is your favorite air personality not on your staff? : Larry the Legend Johnson on WZUU in Milwaukee (circa 1970's). This is what I listened to when I was a kid, and it is a big part of why I am in radio. : : 6) What format does not exist that should? Would it work? : "Battlestar Galactica Talk"! Frak yeah it would work!!!! : : 7) Tell us what music we would find on your car or home CD player (or turntable) right now and what is it you enjoy about that particular selection? : The Alarm - Strength : Cowboy Mouth - Are you with Me? : Marshall Crenshaw - Marshall Crenshaw : Best of The Andrews Sisters : The Best of O.M.D. : I guess these are in the changer because we don't play any of these artists at the station, so it keeps me from burning out on our music. : : 8) What was the biggest gaffe you've made on air? (dead air ... forget a mic was still on ... etc.) : We used to give out "95 Bucks worth of groceries" once a week, delivered by the morning show. While doing the liner, I accidental said that it was "90 F____'s" that we were giving out. This was before we had a delay installed. My co-host was no help, as she was literally on the floor laughing. The five seconds between my error, and the next words out of my mouth lasted FOREVER, as I contemplated my options for recovery. Do I ignore the mistake? Do I apologize for it, and move on? Do I make light of my OBVIOUS mistake? I picked option number three, and just suggested that listeners claim one per week instead of all 90 at once as that might kill them, and reminded them that I would happily be delivering the prize to them myself : : 9) What's the closest you ever came to getting arrested for an on-air stunt? Or did you actually get arrested? : The only Taco Bell that is open in our area during the morning show is on a Navy base. I wanted tacos for breakfast one morning, and a caller offered to help my stunt monkey get on to the base to buy some tacos. The Navy was NOT happy with the idea of someone trying to sneak on the base. Our monkey ended up in the brig. However, like in any good sitcom he was let out just in time for the end of our show, so it all wrapped up nicely. It is however difficult to have to explain an angry letter from an Admiral to a station GM! : 10) What led to your station's recent ratings increase? : Our morning show has competed with some of Chicago's all time great radio talents (Dahl, Brandmeier), so it is an uphill battle. We beat them in the northern burbs by doing just that, "beating them in the northern burbs"! We press the flesh with our listeners every chance we get. Our listeners have access to us, so we are more than just voices on the radio. We are people they know, who just happen to be on the radio. We hang out with them, we vacation with them, and we help them when they need it. We make up for not having deep marketing pockets by getting out and getting involved with our listeners. We are accessible. Plus, the show is actually not half bad. Lisa Tyler my co-host is witty, smart, and the voice of reason! Our stunt monkey Michael Haro is NUTS! We also have a musical advantage in that we are the only true rock station in Chicago that is really paying any attention to current rock! : : Bonus Questions : As you look back over your career ... any regrets? Missed opportunities? : I would like to have told people that I worked with how much I appreciated them more often. Not to say that I didn't, but I didn't enough. People get so caught up in their own challenges that they don't take enough time to consider the challenges facing the people around them. : : Of all the skills you have gained through the years, is there an area you'd like to improve? : I got to pilot the Outback Steak House blimp once. I do wish I was a better blimp pilot, but hey who doesn't wish that, right??? : : How often do you air-check your own shows? Is it mandatory that you run tape everyday? Also, can you honestly critique yourself? : Every show is automatically recorded on hard drive and I can access it from home. I also do the editing for our Saturday "best of" show. So I listen to a large portion of every show. I am my own worst critic. : : How do you stay in tune with your audience? : I answer ALL of my E-mail. It takes a few hours each day, but it really helps keep the show on track with the listener's mindset. : : You just won the lotto and you have your boss on the line. What's the first thing that you would say? : Did you find what I left on your desk? Sorry about the smell. Kidding.... I'm not really sorry about the smell. : : (AA)

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