The Infinite Dial

Title: Assistant Program Director/Music Director/Night Personality, WKKT, Charlotte.

Who is Ryan? "I grew up in Aberdeen, WA, the oldest of two (brother, Jason). I was raised by a single mom. My dad is my best friend and was never far away growing up. He was and has always been there for me and anyone else that has needed his help. Radio was an accident. I grew up wanting to play professional baseball. I ended up refereeing professional wrestling for 3 years. I have been on the air for 8 years (Aberdeen, Seattle, Spokane, and now Charlotte). I love it! I never thought I could get paid to have so much fun!! My brother, Jason, unfortunately didn't get to see most of what I have been able to accomplish in my career. He died in a tragic accident on March 4th, 2002. The saddest part is... he died 5 days before HIS daughter was born. Luckily for my family, Jason left us with a beautiful little girl who just turned 6 years old. Her name is Taelor and I can help bragging about my niece. I am HER biggest fan! When I am not on the radio... I love golfing, playing baseball, and listening to ALL sorts of different music! I enjoy keeping up with sports from all over the country and COOKING!! I LOVE TO COOK!! Ask me what I've made lately...

I started as an intern at KXXK-FM in Aberdeen, WA in the winter of 2000. I worked my way into a fulltime position and from there into Afternoon Drive host. In June of 2004 I became the Program Director of KXXK, at 21 years old. Jumping back a little bit, in December of 2003 I began working weekends at KMPS-FM in Seattle. I commuted every weekend from my fulltime position in Aberdeen during the week, to work on the weekend in Seattle. It was 7 days a week for a long time. I was the PD at KXXK until April of 2006 when I left to accept the Middays/Music Dirctor position at KDRK-FM in Spokane, WA. I held that position until December of 2007. I started my current position, APD/MD/Night personality at WKKT-FM in Charlotte, NC in January of 2008. So far, my career has been one hell of a ride and I've loved every minute of it!"

What would your dream job be? "Programming WSIX or KMPS! ...really, just programming a great station in a competitive market."

Who has been your greatest influence? "I have had a lot of great influences from the beginning... Jaye Albright (Albright & O'Malley), Becky Brenner (KMPS), Cary Rolfe (KWNR), John Paul (KUPL), and most recently Bruce Logan (WKKT). I couldn't pick just ONE. They have all helped me mold my programming philosophies."

What is the one format that you can't believe nobody has done? "24/7 Requests and Dedications. I would love to see a station that had a 10,000 song library and was live 24/7. No real playlist... jocks wouldn't really know more than 3 or 4 songs ahead of time, what they'd be playing. The music wouldn't have to be genre specific either. It could be a request for the Bee-Gee's into a dedication of some slow Usher song. Not a high TSL station, maybe it's strictly a Cume station. Okay... maybe I'm wishful thinking! Hahaha..."

How could radio do a better job of attracting younger listeners? "I think the music is the fastest way to attract a younger audience. It's about benefits to them and/or their lifestyle. We are living in a "what's in it for me" world. We simply need to give them a reason to put the radio on. Creating compelling content, having a great music flow, and giving your station its own identifiable personality are all ways to attract a younger audience. We also need to be on top of the technology available to us. We need more than just web pages. In addition to the web, we need to get creative with the way that text messaging and ring tones are being used."

How will radio remain relevant in a digital world? "Again, I think we need to get beyond just having a website. What are you DOING with your site? Also, content on your website should extend past just your genre of music. We need our websites to be a place that listeners can go and surf around and check out; not just scope a jock bio a couple pics and leave. Ringtones are another way to reach people. Your morning show could have their own set of ringtones. You could have a ringtone page on your website. Text messaging is yet ANOTHER way to reach people. In the world of the Iphone and Blackberry... why can't stations send out traffic reports, weather reports, concert info, and contest info via text messaging? Text contests? Deal or No Deal does it... American Idol is all over the texting when it comes to casting a vote."