Earlier this year, KDKA Brand Manager Dave LaBrozzi announced he would be stepping away from his duties at the Pittsburgh news/talk station.
The timing was slightly surprising for a pair of reasons.
First of all, 2024 looks to be a banner year in the news/talk format as another hotly-contested Presidential election is upon us in the all-but-certain Trump vs Biden rematch.
Additionally, LaBrozzi is in the 49th year of his radio career. And yet, with 50 on the near horizon, he told Barrett News Media the time is right — in spite of the milestone — to step aside in April.
“I’ve been doing this a long time. And I just felt that it was time for someone else to step in and try to create the journey that I created and am very grateful for,” LaBrozzi said. “It was time for somebody else to take the reins and have some fun with it.”
While admitting that getting to year number 50 was in the back of his mind, the longtime radio leader shared family matters made now the correct time to retire.
“I just felt with my kids getting older and then getting on with their life’s work, what time I had left with them — my son is still at home and my daughter is going to be moving to New York in a couple of months — so I just felt that with the time that my wife and I had left with them while they were still around, it would be it would be good for me to spend some time with them,” he shared. “And have some quality time, because this business is all-consuming at times. It was just time just spend some time with family. That’s all.”
The decision to call it a career is never an easy one, and LaBrozzi shared that he hasn’t been viewing the finish line for all that long before ultimately coming to the decision.
“I started (thinking about it) last summer. I started…kicking it around and talking to my wife about it. And we just felt it was time,” he stated. “I have my health and there’s not much else I can accomplish in this business. All my dreams have come true. And I’ve worked with some great people. This is one of America’s great radio stations. So it was like, you know, I think it’s time for somebody else to have some fun and take it over and build on what we’ve built here.”
Not only is KDKA in Pittsburgh one of America’s great radio stations, it was America’s first commercial radio station. You might think that distinction comes with some external pressure to live up to, but Dave LaBrozzi believes it’s the opposite.
“The people are spectacular. They have a real love for what these call letters mean and the city that they serve and they live in,” he said. “They understand what these call letters represent in the industry and the city they live in. Their passion is contagious.”
Later, he added “I think internally, we understand what these call letters represent. And I think we feel that pressure but we put it upon ourselves to be the best we can every day and strive for the greatness that these call letters stand for.”
Dave LaBrozzi came to KDKA in 2021 with an already stellar resume of leading news/talk brands. In addition to previously serving in a similar role at the legendary 77 WABC in New York, LaBrozzi spent 14 years as the Vice President of Programming for Infinity Broadcasting/CBS Radio in Baltimore. He has had numerous other stops in his radio journey, including a different stop in Pittsburgh and stations in Nashville and Dallas, among others.
Having that experience of being all over the nation provided LaBrozzi with the wisdom that not every market is the same.
“I learned this early on — that each market is different. I did music radio up until about 2018 along with the spoken word. I think you just have to look at each market individually and what best fits their needs, both musically and content-wise,” he said. “What worked in New York didn’t necessarily work in Pittsburgh. I think each market is unique, and you’ve really got to take your time and find out what works and what doesn’t.
“But the problems are all the same, it still comes down to managing talent and inspiring talent to do great radio on a daily basis. It doesn’t matter if it’s in Wheeling, West Virginia; New York City; or Pittsburgh, PA.”
Dave LaBrozzi managed hundreds, if not thousands, of employees during his 49 years in the business. And he took an individual approach to each of them during his managerial tenure.
“(My style was) more person to person because each person is different and an individual doesn’t react the same way somebody else would. So I tried to get to know them as best I could and manage them in a way that was appropriate for them, what motivated them what worked, what didn’t work for them,” the longtime leader shared.
“And, to me, that was the best way to approach talent on an individual basis.”
Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
