Morning Pros In Motion

• With Windy City radio veteran Mancow set to debut in morning drive tomorrow on Cumulus News-Talk WLS-AM/Chicago, current wake-up personality John Howell will move to late afternoons — The John Howell Show will now air from 5-7pm weekdays, starting tomorrow.

Marv Nyren, VP/Market Manager of Cumulus Media Chicago, said, “As part of the new lineup at WLS-AM 890, keeping an experienced Chicago talent like John Howell solidifies the lineup and will give our audience a reason to stay tuned throughout the entire day. John has been entertaining Chicagoland for over 30 years and his program will be the perfect way to wrap up the day on your way home.”

Howell, a 30-year market vet, said, “I’m very excited about hosting the new afternoon show at WLS-AM 890. I intend to present Chicago with a quick-paced, informative, honest and intelligent summary of the day’s biggest stories; an afternoon wrap of the day’s biggest events featuring prominent newsmakers, reporters, experts and stars. Of course, our town’s most colorful characters will also be welcome. In addition, I’m looking forward to (finally) golfing when the sun’s in the east.”

• Dos Cruzes, Por Favor… Bonneville AC KOSI 101.1/Denver has promoted Jay Cruze from part-time to morning co-host, and he’s now comfortably plugged in across from current KOSI 101.1 wake-up personality Jenny D. Cruze (no relation, as far as we know).

“Jay’s experience, energy and authentic personality is exactly what we were looking for to create compelling content in the morning,” remarked KOSI 101.1 PD Jim Lawson. “Jay has been on our part-time staff and has been a tremendous asset. He’s a natural fit.”

Cruze’s previous Denver stops include KWOF and KALC, and he’s also worked at KRSK/Portland, WLTJ/Pittsburgh, the former WYNY/New York and SiriusXM. “Anyone who knows me is aware of how passionately I love Denver,” Cruze said. “It’s a passion that very much includes its radio listeners. I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am, not only to serve the largest amount of Denver’s listeners each morning, but also to do it on the most legendary station in Denver. On top of that, I get to broadcast aside a partner in Jenny D, who I respect as a person, a great mom and as a radio personality. A special thank you to VP/GM Bob Call, PD Jim Lawson and Bonneville for this wonderful opportunity.”

• Entercom Country WDSY (Y108)/Pittsburgh proudly announces the return of Stoney Richards, this time as morning co-host, beginning today. Richards (center) will co-host Y’d Awakealongside co-host Kristen Buccigrossi (left) and Producer Cowboy Curt (right), weekdays from 5-10am ET.

“Stoney Richards means Country in Western PA,” said Michael Spacciapolli, SVP/Market Manager of Entercom Pittsburgh. “He’s beloved by Pittsburgh Country fans and the Nashville hitmakers alike. We are thrilled to bring Stoney back home to Y108 every weekday.”

Richards previously did afternoons on Y108 and served as the station’s APD/MD from 1998 to 2014. Most recently he was doing fill-in on Y108 and sister KDKA (NewsRadio 1020). “I’m proud to be part of Entercom, a company that puts artists first,” said Richards. “It’s good to be back with Michael Spacciapolli, [Pittsburgh VP of Programming] Mark Anderson and this great cast of people in this house we all built at Y108.”

• Amanda Carroll and Darik Kristofer are the newly formulated morning team on Bonneville AC KYMX (Mix 96)/Sacramento, effective today. The announcement was made by Chad Rufer, Group Director of Programming for Bonneville Sacramento, who said, “We’ve been recruiting Darik for five years now, and to finally get him is a big win for our company and the Sacramento community. The first time we met Amanda we knew she was going to be a perfect for Mix 96, and to have the talent and passion of her and Darik together is going to make for a remarkable show.”

Carroll spent the past four years hosting The Amanda Carroll Show, syndicated nationally through Christian FM. She was previously the midday host on the K-LOVE Radio Network. Kristofer spent the past seven years in Washington, DC doing afternoons on Entercom’s WIAD (94.7 Fresh FM) — now Classic Hits 94.7 The Drive. However, he’s already very familiar with the Sacramento market — and vice versa — having most recently tracked nights on Hot AC clustermate KZZO (NOW 100.5).

“I’m excited to join Darik on Mix 96 in the morning,” said Carroll. “It’s a dream-come-true to be on the air and have fun with listeners right here in Sacramento.” Kristofer said, “This opportunity has been years in the making and I’m excited to say that it has come to fruition. I’m especially thankful to be working with a pro like Amanda. She is warm, kind, funny, talented and we have a natural rapport and it is sure to shine through the speakers every morning.” Carroll and Kristopher succeed married morning duo Dan and Michelle Arthur, who left in October.

• It’s  a whole new VOO Crew with Marty and Amber on Griffin Communications’ Country KVOO/Tulsa as Amber Glaze plugs in next to Marty Young weekdays from 5:30-10am, starting this morning. “From the moment I met Amber, I knew that she would bring a dynamic to the show that was amazing,” said Young. “After working with her for a week, I was SOLD. I cannot wait to get to work with Amber every morning on The VOO Crew.”

Ms. Glaze (left) got her radio start at KLAZ/Hot Springs, ARand later co-hosted mornings with Phil Thompson on Classic Rock KFXJ (104.5 The Fox)/Wichita, KS. Three years ago she moved home to Little Rock, AR to create and host Hot Mess in the Morning on Signal Media Country KHLR (106.7 The Ride).

“I’m honored to be given the opportunity to work with Marty and the KVOO crew,” said Glaze. “These call letters, and this audience, demand greatness and authenticity and I’m more than ready for the challenge. I had no idea when I made the move to Tulsa that the fates would lead me back to morning drive, but here we are and I’m beyond excited to see what 2019 has in store!” A woman of multiple talents, Ms. Glaze is also a stand-up comedian, songwriter and professional cake designer.

• After 23 years of doing the morning show at Entercom Country KFRG (K-Frog 95.1/92.9)/Riverside, CA, PD Scott Ward has made the momentous decision to sleep in a little longer and focus on programming.

To that end, Ward has moved to the slightly more civilized 3-6pm afternoon shift and has handed over the morning show keys to his current co-host Kelli “Green” Barajas (right), who is now teamed up with Anthony Donatelli (left), K-Frog’s former afternoon drive talent. Ginny Harman continues to cover morning traffic.