My Story:
I fell in love with radio back in the 90's when I competed in a local rap contest LIVE on 106.1 FM KMEL in San Francisco, CA. The show was called “Battle of the Rappers”, hosted by Evan Luck. The show was designed to showcase the best of local Bay Area rappers. At the end of 5 consecutive nights of "wins", you'd receive cash prizes and studio time. Evan Luck, would call your landline (re
member those), put you hold while he endorsed sponsors and played music in the background as you waiting nervously for your chance to "spit"! In a matter of seconds, he was back on the line and the only thing he would say is, "You're on!" The competitor would battle first and then the champion would come out blazing. After each rapper showcased their skills, Evan Luck would open up the phone lines, so the listening audience could call in and VOTE for their favorite MC. The first time I competed, I lost on my first night. However, if you know anything about me, you know I'm no quitter, so I decided to try again. My second attempt, brought me four victories, but sadly I lost on night five. I will never forget walking the campus of Armijo High School. My High School homies were and still are my biggest supporters. I remember passing out slips of paper with the station call letters, phone number , frequency, so everyone could listen in LIVE. To say, the least people really thought I had skills. Believe it or not, I still have a recording of one of my battles. I hope to play it for you one day. Why I LOVE radio:
Fast forward to 2006. I was in between jobs and ran into "Tristen Mays", a world renowned D.J. at 97.7, now 97.5 kdee-lp, owned and operated by the California Black Chamber Foundation (CBCCF). He needed a volunteer and I didn't want to sit idol while searing for a job. So, he gave me a shot. I didn't have daycare the day of the interview, so my 6 year old daughter had to tag along with me. He said, "Girl, I like you. You're bold, you actually brought your baby to the interview!" We laughed so hard that day, but I could tell he liked me. You probably guessed...I got the job. Within the first 30 days, the Vice President, Ms. Delores Thompson offered me a full time position at the radio station. During my tenure I was responsible for developing original content for the station, booking guests, building affinity relationships, mentoring youth, on air interviews and securing million dollar underwriting, sponsors and community support. With all that being said, I guess you can see why I LOVE RADIO!
