The Sound Off Podcast

Raina Douris has spent her entire career working in Toronto, and it has served her well. When you love music, Toronto is a great place to live work and breathe your passion. From her radio beginnings at 102.1 the Edge, to upstart Indie 88 and now working mornings at CBC Radio 2 nationally, Raina shares her music and radio experiences with us. She also talks about her love of Twitter, her favourite albums and what needs to change in the music business.There are few Sound Off firsts on this episode: We had our first discussion about Cancon and Raina is our first CBC personality on the show.This episode is powered by Promosuite. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steve Jones is the VP of Branding & Content at Newcap Radio. (Now Stingray) He knows a thing about branding having penned two books including "Brand Like a Rock Star" and "Start You Up". His career has taken him in an east-west direction as much as has north-south to places like Boston and the Cayman Islands; and two of the most competitive markets in the country in Halifax and Edmonton where he worked with great rock brands like Q104 and K97. We spent time discussing some of the great promotions, great imaging, and talent that all combine to make a notable radio brand.Steve also told us about the August 2014 controversy about Quick Hitz on Amp 90.3, and how he sees the whole thing in the rearview mirror.This episode is powered by nLogic.   See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chantal Desjardins is a television and radio personality, stand-up comedian, voiceover actor and event host. Those are actually the words used in her bio and it's all accurate. What's not in the story is how she got there. Credit her marriage and ensuing divorce for the getting her to where she is today, one of Canada's top up and coming comedians. She is often recognized locally as a radio personality, filling in on Virgin Radio Montreal; nationally as a former host of the venerable Hockey Night in Canada, and internationally as a comedian.In this episode, we talk a lot about moving from hometown Winnipeg to Montreal, writing comedy, her divorce, and how comedy entered her life.This episode is brought to you by Promosuite. If you work in radio, check out all the great products they have for your station. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jean-Marie Heimrath became interested in podcast sometime in November 2016. He has always been fascinated by the business side of the entertainment industry he has worked in. Whether it be the record industry when he worked for Island Records, the business of radio syndication when he worked for the Sound Source Radio Network., or being at the forefront of streaming with Iceberg Radio. His knowledge of monetizing content is incredible and will have you re-thinking exactly what business you are in. Earlier this year, alongside Jeff Ulster and Bob Kane, he has formed The Podcast Exchange, A new company that uses market research, advanced metrics, and geo-targeting to give advertisers better access to the Canadian podcast audience. The name Jeff Ulster has appeared before in our podcast series (Episode 72) when he explored the Canadian Podcast Listener - a Landscape Study with Jeff Vidler. (The study is again, available on the show page for this episode)This episode is powered by Lens for Radio. http://bit.ly/2oLHQmQ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Art Vuolo was radio's best friend long before Scott Shannon knighted him with that legendary slogan. Throughout the decades, Art has been a mainstay at conventions andin the hallways of radio stations with the latest video technology ready to capture incredible radio moments. From the early days of Vuolo Video Airchecks for the radio programmers and performers, to the Radio Guide for travelling radio listeners, Art is radio's biggest advocate. In this episode, we talk about how both those ventures came together, and how his cherished work made its way into the digital world; culminating with what Art calls the greatest moments of his life: Getting a home in the Nation Radio Hall of Fame in Chicago.This episode is powered by Promosuite. http://www.promosuite.com/soundoffA few show notes:Art's latest video release features the WRKO 50th Anniversary Reunion. Five dollars from the sale of each double DVD will go to the Broadcasters of America Fund. http://vuolovideo.com/reunions/His website is http://www.vuolovideo.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sharon Taylor's radio career has criss-crossed the country from Moose Jaw, Winnipeg, London, Ottawa and Toronto. Her love and passion for radio programming has made her one of my calls I make when I need an opinion. This includes the time we worked at competing stations in the same market. Between our stations, we had the top 4 morning shows in the city and loved to have to odd conversation about the market Last July, I had a chance to connect with her again and I regretted not having my podcast recorder with me in that moment. We spent some time talking about her trip through radio, women in the workplace, the #MeToo movement, and some of the great morning personalities she has worked with. This week's episode is sponsored by NLogic http://bit.ly/2yn3uCo   See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Actually, he never went away, but it's great to catch up with Bruce! After a 2017 that featured a health setback, Bruce joins me to talk about his path from Ontario to Alberta and back again twice. We catch up on his career and talk about his 2 loves, radio and sports. And yes, these two Buffalo Bills fans used the occasion to acknowledge their first trip to the playoffs since 2000. Bruce's path from CJAY 92 in Calgary, to Toronto's Mix 99.9, CFRB, and later MOJO Radio, has coincided with relationships with local sports teams. Whether that's working as the in-house announcer for the Toronto Rock of the National Lacrosse League, doing play-by-play for the Camrose Kodiaks of the AJHL, or hosting the "Bills in Toronto" series at the stadium formerly known as Skydome, Bruce brings his A-Game to the rink and the radio. Bruce has also released a new e-Book which is FREE and can be accessed via Steve Kowch's website. http://kowchmedia.com/talent_consulting/sports-radio-play-by-play-announcing/ On that site is information connect with Bruce for a free one-on-one coaching section for play-by-play callers. This episode is powered by Promosuite http://www.promosuite.com/soundoffSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Drake Donovan's path to becoming the voice of great radio stations across North America went from the on air studio, to the production studio, and then to his home studio where he manages Drake Donovan Creative Services. The thing with Drake is that it is not just the voice; it's also the writing, creative concepts and the swag. Yes, the swag. Drake is making the radio Tee great again. (We have posted some examples on our website)If you are headed to CRS or Conclave, be sure to say hello to him and that you heard him on the podcast. This is a great episode to listen to if you are thinking about freelancing your creatives services.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chris Scheetz spent his first 18 years in Edmonton radio as a dedicated listener. He spent his hours on his family farm in Thorsby, Alberta listening to CISN country 103.9 while driving tractor. He was hooked. In 1989, he started working overnights at CISN country 103.9. He has never forgotten about what makes the station tick. The listeners, the sense of community and lending a helping hand when it is needed. In this episode, we spoke to Chris about why Edmonton continues to be the leader in radio driven charitable initiatives, his decision to not pursue a position in management, and his relationship with family and his co-workers.This episode is brought to you by Promosuite - http://www.promosuite.com/soundoff See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Karen Steele is the new Program Director at 99.9 Virgin Radio in Toronto. She has worked in radio for over two decades and in this episode, she walks us through her impressive career, from small markets to big ones, from radio to film and back to radio again. She even throws out a couple dollops of advice along the way, so stay tuned, this one's a keeper! Over two decades of hard work, running compelling campaigns all the way along, Karen climbed the ladder from intern, to assistant program director, to director of promotions. She worked with all the biggies, from Corus Entertainment, to Standard Broadcasting, to Astral Media, to Rogers, and now to Bell. She tells us about staying, moving, and the experience of being let go, rehired, and rolling on and bouncing back.Speaking to the loss of social currency that comes with a career shift, to soul searching, and hustling for the next opportunity, Karen provides some seriously candid gems about her experience in the industry. She even tells us about what led her to return to radio following her work as the National Director of Publicity & Promotions at Warner Brothers Pictures Canada.The episode is brought to you by NLogic! http://bit.ly/2yn3uCo   See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.