PRESERVING RADIO HISTORY ACROSS COLORADO

Archives: People

  • Dave Otto

    Dave Otto is a veteran radio personality who spent years waking up, and later riling up, Denver. If you listened to Y108 in the 80s or The Fan in the late 90s, you’ve heard him.

    Y108 mornings

    Dave became a prominent Denver voice in the 1980s as morning host on KRXY-FM (Y108). His 1986 morning show included Lee Ann Nye playing the character Iva B. Presley. He stayed with the 107.5 frequency as Y108 evolved toward adult Top 40 and became Mix 107.5.

    The Fan and Jammin’ Oldies

    In the late 1990s Dave co-hosted mornings with Craig Carton on KKFN-AM 950 (The Fan). After leaving The Fan, he moved to the Jammin’ Oldies format on 92.5 FM. His wider career also took him to big stations in Minneapolis, Phoenix, Dallas, Houston, Boston and San Diego.

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  • Garner Goin

    Garner Goin is one of the guys who shaped how Colorado rock radio sounds. If you’ve listened to 103.5 The Fox in Denver or 92.9 The Bear up north, you’ve heard his programming at work.

    Programming The Fox

    Garner became program director of KRFX (103.5 The Fox) in 2000, when Mike O’Connor moved into a bigger Denver programming role. Industry directories later listed him as both program director and music director of The Fox.

    The Bear and back

    By 2016, Garner was leading 92.9 The Bear in Fort Collins. He brought longtime Denver rock personality Gregg “Uncle Nasty” Stone to the station, then brought Stone back with him when he returned to program 103.5 The Fox. His later iHeartMedia duties grew to cover rock brands and Northern Colorado programming.

    Awards

    Garner’s work at KRFX shows up again and again in the Colorado Broadcasters Association awards. Credits include May the 4th Be With You (2020, station imaging), AXL Rose Is Late! and 27 Club (2021), 103.5 The Mullet (2022) and Summer Smart Speaker (2023).

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  • Kelly Michaels

    Kelly Michaels is one of the people behind the sound of Denver radio. If you ever heard Alice 105.9 in the ’90s or tuned in to 710 KNUS more recently, you’ve heard Kelly’s work, even if you never heard the name.

    Creating the sound of Alice

    Kelly was creative production director on the original staff of KALC-FM (Alice 106/105.9) when it launched its influential modern adult-contemporary format in 1994. After radio stops in Chicago, Baltimore and Milwaukee, Kelly came back to KALC in 2004 as director of creative services, handling on-air imaging for both Alice and sister station KQMT-FM (99.5 The Mountain).

    Salem Media Denver

    Kelly later became operations director and then operations manager for Salem’s Denver stations, including KNUS-AM, KRKS-AM/FM and KBJD-AM. That job has meant overseeing programming and production and helping shape the lineup at 710 KNUS.

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  • Jennifer Wilde

    Jennifer Wilde is a Denver radio voice who went national. If you woke up with Alice 105.9 in the mid-2000s, she was the “Jennifer” in BJ, Howie and Jennifer, and if you ever caught The Wilde Ride on a syndicated station, that was her too.

    Mornings on Alice

    Jennifer was already a Denver-market veteran when she joined KALC-FM (Alice 105.9) in 2005. She replaced Shea Baker on the station’s morning program, which became the BJ, Howie and Jennifer Morning Show. The show was a regular among the market’s top programs with female listeners. Jennifer left the Alice morning show after turning down a contract renewal in late 2008. Before Alice, trade coverage places her at KQKS-FM (KS 107.5).

    Going national

    Jennifer later filled in for nationally syndicated host Charlie Tuna. After Charlie died in 2016, she took over the program through The Talent Farm and built it out as The Wilde Ride. She retired from radio in June 2021 after more than three decades in the business and turned to photography and personal-brand strategy.

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  • Zac Davis

    Zac Davis is a radio programmer whose Colorado résumé includes on-air and management work at several Denver rhythmic and Top 40 stations. If you listened to Hot 107.1 or Jammin’ 101.5 in Denver around 2009, you heard stations he was steering.

    Getting started

    Zac’s radio career kicked off in 1996 at WWLD in Tallahassee, where he handled promotions and pitched in on the air part-time. Next came a run of nighttime shifts at WVYB in Daytona Beach, and then a swing-shift gig at KQKS-FM (KS 107.5) in Denver.

    Back in Denver

    In 2009 he returned to Denver when Max Media put him in charge of programming at KDHT-FM (Hot 107.1). Down the line he also took on operations manager duties at its sister outlet, KJHM-FM (Jammin’ 101.5).

    Later programming work

    Once he left Denver, Zac ran programming for stations in Raleigh and Connecticut and took on leadership roles over multiple stations at iHeartMedia. In Connecticut he was responsible for the Top 40 outlets WKSS and WKCI, and he later came back to iHeartMedia as vice president of programming over its Greensboro cluster.

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  • Senen “SLiM” Rodriguez

    Senen “SLiM” Rodriguez is a Denver radio programmer, production director and on-air personality, best known for his work at KFCO (Hot/FLO 107.1) and KJHM (Jammin’ 101.5). If you tuned in to either station in the 2010s, you were hearing his work.

    From San Francisco to Denver

    SLiM is a San Francisco native. KMEL and KYLD gave him his start on their street teams, then moved him up to afternoon drive, and he contributed to a morning show as well. Denver became his home in 2001.

    At Max Media Denver

    In 2010 he became the cluster’s production director at Max Media Denver. On the air, he covered every shift at Jammin’ 101.5, and over at 107.1 he held the afternoon-drive mic during its FLO days and its earlier Classic Hip Hop format. Following the departure of VP of Programming Rick Thomas, SLiM was promoted to program director of both 107.1 and Jammin’ 101.5, as reported in January 2021.

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  • Jeff Norman

    Jeff Norman is a Colorado radio executive who ran Max Media’s Denver stations. If you listened to Jammin’ 101.5 or Hot/FLO 107.1, you heard the results of decisions made in his office.

    Max Media Denver

    As president and general manager of Max Media’s Denver cluster, Jeff oversaw KJHM-FM (Jammin’ 101.5) and KDHT/KFCO-FM (Hot/FLO 107.1) through several major format changes. In 2010 he talked about the end of talk-formatted “The Truth” and the return of Jammin’ Oldies to 101.5, stressing how much local personalities matter to a station’s success.

    Jeff later recruited former KS 107.5 personality Kendall B for the Jammin’ 101.5 morning show. In 2018 he came up with a two-station plan that brought Larry Ulibarri and Kathie J back to Denver radio: their morning show aired live on FLO 107.1 and was replayed in afternoon drive on Jammin’ 101.5.

    Sean Rhoads succeeded Jeff as president and general manager of the Denver cluster in 2021.

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  • Sean Rhoads

    Sean Rhoads works in Colorado radio sales and management. He started as an account executive and eventually became president and general manager of Max Media’s Denver cluster. If you heard Hot 107.1 or Jammin’ 101.5 in Denver, he helped run the business behind them.

    Starting out

    Sean’s radio career started in Colorado Springs, where he was an account executive for iHeartMedia. In 2010 he came to Max Media Denver. Over the years there he moved up the ladder: first senior account executive, then digital sales director, then general sales manager, and then vice president of sales.

    Leading Hot 107.1 and Jammin’ 101.5

    Max Media made Sean president and general manager of KFCO-FM (Hot 107.1) and KJHM-FM (Jammin’ 101.5) in 2021. He took over from Jeff Norman.

    Pillar Media

    Pillar Media took over the two Denver stations in 2024, and Sean stayed on. He now leads digital sales across the whole company and is also local sales manager for the Denver market.

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  • Emily Makinzie

    Emily Makinzie is the upbeat voice a lot of Denver listeners have driven home with. If you’ve had KOSI 101.1 on in the afternoon lately, you’ve met her, and if you listened to Mix 100 in the past, you might remember her from mornings.

    From Mix 100 to KOSI

    Emily spent roughly a decade at KIMN-FM (Mix 100), where she was part of the Dom & Jane with Emily & Jeremy morning show and also did a midday shift. She joined KOSI-FM (KOSI 101.1) in early 2019 as a weekend and fill-in host, and was later promoted to afternoon drive. KOSI calls her its resident “Ray of Sunshine” and says she’s been heard on Denver radio for more than a decade.

    Beyond the airshift

    Away from her regular shift, Emily works as an imaging voice and event emcee. Her background in theatre and improv is a big part of the style she brings to the microphone.

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  • Erica Cobb

    Erica Cobb is a radio and TV host, podcaster and media entrepreneur whose Colorado story started on the morning show at Alice 105.9. If Alice woke you up around 2010, she was the “Girl Power” voice in your kitchen.

    Alice 105.9

    Erica built a radio career in Chicago before moving to Denver in 2009 to join B.J. Harris and Howie Drummond on the Alice morning show. She stayed at KALC until Jamie White returned in 2012. She went on to host other radio programs, worked as an in-arena host for the Denver Nuggets and was a lifestyle and entertainment contributor for KUSA-TV.

    Daily Blast Live

    After leaving full-time morning radio in 2016, Erica joined the nationally syndicated, Denver-produced talk show Daily Blast Live in 2017 and stayed as a host for seven years, mixing live commentary, interviews and entertainment coverage.

    Comeback

    Erica created Comeback with Erica Cobb, an interview and personal-development platform that grew into a podcast, live events and the production company Comeback.TV Presents. The podcast earned a 2023 NAACP Image Awards nomination for Outstanding Society and Culture Podcast and was still active in 2026.

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