Pérez Named PD, Philly’s Rumba 106.1

• Fernando A. Pérez has been named as the inaugural Program Director of iHeartMedia Spanish Pop WUMR (Rumba 106.1)/Philadelphia, which launched in mid-March. As PD, Pérez will be responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of Rumba’s music, programming, imaging, and branding. He will report to Derrick Corbett, SVP of Programming for iHeartMedia Philadelphia, who said, “It’s a privilege for us to be able to add a programmer with Fernando’s expertise to our team here in Philly. His incredible level of knowledge is exactly what we need to not only help grow Rumba, but to also utilize as a resource within our cluster.”

Fernando Arath Pérez brings with him over 20 years of experience programming multiple Spanish-language formats for US Hispanic audiences. Before joining iHeartMedia, Pérez helped top audio brands and personalities as a consultant, with clients that included Univision’s Uforia podcasts, the nationally-syndicated El Show de Piolín, and El Show de Omar & Argelia. As a former VP of Content at Univision, Pérez led programming operations for 20 stations across America. He also held management roles with Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS) and CBS Radio. Pérez is an alum of Harvard Business School through its executive education program.

“Fernando is a programming scientist, a formidable talent coach and carries extensive expertise in very competitive markets,” said PJ Gonzalez, SVP of Programming for iHeartLatino. “He is someone who welcomes challenges and will definitely go down as one of the best in the business in Philadelphia radio market history.”

Pérez remarked, “I’m thrilled to have the exciting opportunity to join the newly launched Rumba 106.1 and participate in this opportunity from iHeartMedia to serve one of the fastest-growing Hispanic populations in the country. I’m honored and grateful to be part of the talented team at iHeartMedia Philadelphia and iHeartLatino.”