Cumulus Media is syndicating Tony Zazza and Cheree Carter’s morning show based at CHR “107.1 WA1A” WAOA Melbourne FL to sister stations “Z96” 96.5 WZNS Fort Walton Beach and 97.5 WABD Mobile AL.
“Zazza Mornings with Cheree” will debut on both stations on Monday, September 26. In both markets the current morning shows will move to another daypart. At WZNS Gilligan will move from mornings to 9am-2pm, with Hayden adding the 2pm hour to his afternoon show. In Mobile, John Marty moves from mornings to afternoons while Program Director Sid Kelly shifts from afternoons to middays. Both stations carry the syndicated Zach Sang Show at night.
Cumulus Media announces that Tony Zazza and Cheree Carter’s popular morning show, Zazza Mornings with Cheree, currently airing weekdays on WAOA-FM in Melbourne, FL, will air in Mornings on two additional Cumulus stations, WZNS-FM/Z96 in Fort Walton Beach, FL, and 97.5 WABD-FM in Mobile, AL. The show will debut in Fort Walton Beach and in Mobile on Monday, September 26, 2016, from 5AM-9AM.
Cumulus also announces that it is expanding WZNS-FM/Z96’s local on-air line-up in Fort Walton Beach to include a full-time local midday personality and a multi-personality morning show. Beginning Monday, September 26, 2016, on-air host Gilligan will move from mornings to middays in a new show that will air from 9AM-2PM weekdays. Hayden will kick off his afternoon drive show one hour earlier, airing 2PM-7PM weekdays, followed by The Zach Sang Show, syndicated by Westwood One, which remains in the night slot from 7PM-12AM Midnight.
Likewise, 97.5 WABD will expand its local on-air line-up in Mobile to include a full-time local midday personality and return to a multi-personality morning show. Starting Monday, September 26, 2016, former WABD morning host John Marty will move to afternoon drive, replacing Sid Kelly, who will move to middays from 9AM-2PM on WABD. The Zach Sang Show stays in the night position from 7PM-12AM Midnight.
Zazza, an 18-year radio veteran who spent the better part of 17 years on-air at Dallas stations KDMX and KVIL, joined Cumulus in July 2015 and moved to Melbourne, FL heritage Top 40 station WAOA (107.1 A1A), launching Zazza Mornings with Cheree to great response. Zazza is also the President of the Board of a 501(c)(3) non-profit The Zazza Community Foundation which serves children and families through events including last year’s “Trick or Treat on the Street”, which provided 100 costumes for underprivileged children along the Space Coast, and the Foundation’s flagship event, Jingle Jet™, which took five families to the North Pole aboard a real jet and surprised them upon their arrival with a greeting from Santa and Mrs. Claus, decorated trees and gifts from the families’ needs and wants list. It is this kind of community outreach that will help make Zazza Mornings with Cheree be more than just a regional morning show for each of the markets.
Carter is a 15-year radio veteran who has had successful on-air runs in San Francisco, Las Vegas and Harrisburg. She is a Melbourne, FL native and has had two stints at WAOA (2001-2003, and October 2013-present). A local high school graduate, Carter has deep knowledge of the area and has a major presence in the community.
Angel Brown, Market Manager, WABD-FM in Mobile said: “Tony and Cheree are amazing talents who bring a high level of enthusiasm and excitement to the Gulf Coast and we look forward to waking up with them every morning on 975WABD.”
Pete DeSimone, Regional Vice President, Cumulus Media said: “This is true collaboration for our Florida and Alabama markets. It’s an example of a talented morning show given the opportunity to grow within the new Cumulus. I worked with Tony and Cheree in Melbourne and I’m very confident they will bring the same successful listener experience to the Gulf Coast markets.”
Zazza said: “It’s truly a dream come true to see this come to fruition. I knew when I met Cheree over a year ago, she was the perfect co-host to hopefully see this evolve and it has, beyond our expectations. Having the support of an incredible company like Cumulus with leaders including Mary Berner, Mike McVay, Doug Hamand, Jeff Brown, Pete DeSimone and Gary Mertins is exciting. We’re looking forward to waking up the people in Fort Walton Beach and Mobile with an entertaining show, and to impacting those communities not only on-air but with the efforts of The Zazza Community Foundation. It’s a perfect match.”
Carter said: “Cumulus is a fantastic company to work for, and Tony is a fantastic partner and talent. It’s a win, win, WIN situation. The sky is the limit – Here we come!”
