Some Cool Personal News
In journalism school, they teach you to never bury the lede, so here we go:
I’m moving.
I also got a new job.
Thus the reason why I’m moving.
I’m moving to Chicago to host a morning radio show on US99, an Audacy country music station. Random? Kinda. Especially considering I spent nearly ten years in the world of sports talk radio.
However, for many of you who know me and/or follow this blog, you know I also have an unhealthy obsession for the finer things in life: pop culture, music, and well, life. All of which will be the basis for the show we’re building in Chicagoland. Plus, living most of my life in Nashville has given me many ties to country music. I grew up down the street from Alan Jackson and Trisha Yearwood, going to elementary school with Dolly Parton’s niece, working at Fossil Jean Co. in the Cool Springs Galleria with Russell Dickerson, chatting with Ryan Hurd countless times on radio, podcasts, and social, and – of course – appearing in two country music videos should help, right?
It’s at the 1:42 mark. That counts, right?
For anyone who knows me, you know how much shooting a music video in a Waffle House meant to me. In the power rankings of best nights of my life it goes: 1. my wedding night, 2. this night.
Anyway, I wrote out some answers to some questions you may have:
What About That Radio Show?
We’ll be on every weekday morning from 6a to 9a in Chicago. If you’re outside the Chicagoland area, you can listen on the Audacy app, just search US99. This is the part where I hit you with the generic and overly cliché “We have a lot of cool things planned, and we’re gonna have a lot of fun.” But here’s the thing, we actually do have a lot of cool things planned and our main goal is to have as much as possible every single morning. We want to start everyone’s day (including our own) off right.
My co-host, Melissa, is awesome. She’s a radio staple in Chicago and is wildly talented. The two of us have meshed very well on the mic already and we see eye-to-eye on practically everything. Let’s go!
Here’s a promotional photo of the new show where Melissa looks great and I look like a complete doofus.
What Does This Mean For Korked Bats?
Don’t worry. Korked Bats isn’t going anywhere. A.D., myself, Sales Guy Jeff, the T-Rav Tasters, The Cineboiz, The Junk Drawer, the little bit Chris Rongey hops in… we’re not going anywhere. In fact, US99 was very open and extremely cool about allowing me to continue Korked Bats while I host the morning show. So the content will continue. The dumb tweets and memes on Instagram will as well. And we will continue to grow.
The content will continue to be majority national with little flares of our hometowns: Nashville, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and now Chicago.
Running a blog like this in a city like Chicago is absolutely perfect. They’ve got each of the major sports teams (including two of one of those sports), and there’s always something going on in this town. Well, not right now with COVID and stuff, but it’s opening up slowly but surely.
Is It A Lame Tactic To Ask Big, Bolded Frequently Asked Questions In A Blog?
Yeah, probably.
What The Hell Is Korked Bats?
You must be here because you live in Chicago and/or are trying to figure out who the morning show guy on US99 is. Korked Bats is our sports, comedy and pop-culture blog where we don’t take anything seriously, including ourselves. (Here comes the shameless plug…) You should follow us on social: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram (which is temporarily deactived thanks to the UFC), even TikTok and we’re working on growing our YouTube channel. Here are a few highlights:
Do You Know That You Spelled Corked Wrong?
Yes. I know.
Long story, but when we first launched a long time ago, corkedbats.blogspot.com was taken. Ok, maybe the story isn’t that long.
Are We Good Here? Can I Leave Now?
Yeah, sure. Unless You have any more questions?
I Don’t.
Ok. Bye.
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Here’s the official press release:
AUDACY ANNOUNCES DEBUT OF NEW MORNING SHOW ON US99 IN CHICAGO
Station Bolsters Lineup by Adding Longtime Market Veteran Melissa McGurren and Austin Huff as New Morning Show Duo
PHILADELPHIA, PA – May 6, 2021 – Audacy announced a new morning show for US99 (WUSN-FM) in Chicago, welcoming local media veteran Melissa McGurren and Austin Huff as morning show co-hosts. The duo will be heard on “Melissa and Austin,” weekdays from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. CT, effective May 10.
“We’re incredibly excited to be growing our US99 family and making mornings home for Melissa and Austin,” said Rachel Williamson, Regional President and Market Manager, Audacy Chicago. “This team will bring energy, positivity, chemistry, and a lot of fun to this fresh and dynamic local show to serve Chicago’s country listeners. Drew [Walker] returns to late mornings and middays and will continue to bring the energy and companionship country listeners have grown to love to get them through their day. Collectively, this roster will super serve Chicago’s country music audience as the standalone country station in the market.”
“I wish I could fully express my gratitude and happiness about joining the US99 team,” said McGurren. “I love Chicago and country music and I’ve never been more confident in an opportunity or my team. I know this is exactly where I’m supposed to be, and I couldn’t be happier to make this new move in my career.”
Melissa McGurren spent most of her career on WTMX’s “The Mix Morning Show” in Chicago as a traffic reporter sidekick turned co-host. She also previously spent time as a weekend traffic news anchor for NBC 5 in Chicago and parttime from the NBC 5 helicopter for breaking news and traffic.
“I can’t believe Justin Fields and I are moving to Chicago at the same time, especially considering he throws a much tighter spiral than me,” said Huff. “I’m honored to wake up with this city every morning, and I cannot wait to have a ton of fun in the process.”
Austin Huff is a Nashville native, and country music fan with over 10 years of radio experience both on air and in production.
