Hubbard has appointed Kris Valentine as General Manager of its stations in Alexandria and Wadena MN operations.
The move will also see the “Kris & Chelsea” show return to Country “100.7 Kik-FM” KIKV-FM Sauk Center for mornings where he and Chelsea Lee previously were based from 2020 to 2023. They have been heard in afternoons on Leighton Media’s trio of “Wild Country 99” KZPK Paynesville/St. Cloud MN, “KJ Country” 96.5 KJJK-FM Fergus Falls MN, and “97 KYCK” Crookston MN/Grand Forks ND since July 2024.
Since departing KIKV-FM the first time, Kris Valentine served as Program Director of KZPK from December 2023 until being promoted to Director of Country Programming at Leighton last November. He previously programmed KZPK from 2016-18 and has also held roles as afternoon host at “Buz’n 102.9” KMNB Minneapolis and “99.5 The Wolf” KWJJ Portland OR, and on-air at KYGO Denver, KEEY Minneapolis and KHAK Cedar Rapids.
He commented, “I’m incredibly excited to return to Hubbard and take on the General Manager role for Alexandria and Wadena. I’m very grateful to Dan Seeman, Ginny Morris, and the entire Hubbard team for believing in me and giving me this opportunity. I have a lot of history with these markets, and I’m excited to come back, build on what’s already there, and help take Alexandria and Wadena to new heights.”
Chelsea, who will also manage social media for the two markets, added, “Coming back to Hubbard feels incredibly special Alexandria is home, my roots here run deep, and returning alongside Kris to bring the Kris & Chelsea Show back to mornings feels like coming full circle. I’m also excited to serve again as a community ambassador and digital brand strategist. We’re grateful to be back as part of the Hubbard legacy and can’t wait to serve this community, grow these brands, and build an exciting future together.”
Hubbard President Dan Seeman commented, “Alexandria loves Kris & Chelsea! More importantly, Kris and Chelsea love Alexandria. They will bring their immense talent and creativity to serve the community and the region that is home to them. Kris is an incredible talent and programming mind. He has proved it with great success at every stop in his career. We are so excited to have him lead our heritage radio properties and 2060 Digital in Alexandria and Wadena.”
