André Gardner has been enthusiastically ushering Philadelphia’s music fans to classic rock’s door for a little over 22 years at 102.9 WMGK, a milestone that’s only the latest in a storied broadcasting career. From his beginnings as a teenage on-air personality in New Jersey to spending entire days with his finger hovering over the “dump” button for Howard Stern, Gardner’s experiences have given him unique insight into the value of music radio that hasn’t lost its local charm.
Many in longtime careers are inclined to say they discovered their passions early on, but for Gardner, this rings particularly true. He explains that his love of radio began while he was growing up in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, recounting, “I had fallen in love with the business at age 9 – my brother took me to WIBG [currently serving classic hits to South Jersey] on a Saturday in 1970, and that was the day I decided, ‘that’s it…this is what I’m gonna do for the rest of my life.’”
Gardner managed to test the broadcasting waters by creating a makeshift radio station of his own with the help of his family. “My brother being in radio and my dad being a TV engineer at [Philadelphia’s] KYW for many years, they built me this pirate radio station that actually broadcast around the neighborhood,” Gardner shares.
Gardner’s pilot run with a stopgap on-air gig put his favorite tunes at the forefront as he looked towards a career in broadcasting: “My pirate station was a Top 40/AOR hybrid – that would’ve been my dream. As it turns out, that was the exact format of the first station where I worked, which was WPST in Trenton, NJ.”
Dream formats aside, Gardner’s priority was (and continues to be) bringing a knowledge of any music genre to the listeners who trust him. He explains that his excitement just to be on air meant that he “would have worked in virtually any format” as long as he “had some modicum of knowledge.”
Despite landing his first on-air role at just 16 years old (and having an abundance of stories to show for it), what was perhaps Gardner’s favorite career moment happened just two days into his MGK tenure.
“The highlight for me was my second day on WMGK, April 16, 2002, when I sat down face-to-face with Paul McCartney, my hero. I couldn’t believe I got to interview my man, the guy who has shaped my musical DNA for my entire life. There I am with a microphone asking this guy questions…literally, a little kid’s dream come true,” he shares, adding, “I barely remember the interview. Thank goodness I recorded it.”
It’s no secret that Gardner is a McCartney devotee, as he created over 1000 unique installments of his Breakfast with the Beatles show, which delighted fellow Beatles lovers with crowd pleasers, lesser-known tracks, and everything in between – some of which had never been played on the radio before Gardner got his hands on them.
With nearly 50 years of experience spanning states, stations, roles, and formats, Gardner believes there is a distinct challenge plaguing the industry: “Staying local.”
“We’re losing so many staff members left and right,” he says. “More and more air shifts on radio stations across the country are pre-recorded and tracked in, either from another market or pre-recorded at a previous time. There’s starting to be a decline in local outreach to the audience you’re trying to serve, and that’s the intrinsic point of good radio – your ability to reach out to the community whether it’s through events, whether it’s through charity, whether it’s finding out someone’s in need…and you help them…that’s all disappearing because we’re not serving the community with live [local] DJs.”
With large-scale syndication and broadcasting giants in mind, Gardner adds, “The vibe and the personalities of the radio stations are going away.”
Still, Gardner hones his craft by focusing on local wins through Beasley Media Group without being shy to admit the struggles that the entire industry faces. Of WMGK, Gardner says, “We can interact with the community, and we can give back to the community, and we can really talk and have fun with our listeners.”
Gardner goes on to note that this focus on community is what he believes will bring in and retain a younger audience of listeners going forward. Currently, “DJs mean nothing to [young people] – there’s no local outreach,” he explains, pointing out a key point of connection in radio listening that sets the experience apart from streaming services.
With the future of radio top of mind, what does the future hold for André Gardner? “Who the hell knows? My plan is to come to work, put my key card to the door, and when it beeps green, I’ll smile and walk in. When it beeps red… I’ll turn in my stuff,” he quips.
The larger goals are clear for Gardner. He says of his next chapter, “I want to stay healthy. I want to spend more time with my wife and my daughter and travel.” But Gardner doesn’t have any plans of dropping the mic just yet.
“I love what I do so very much,” he continues. “I still get jazzed every day. I get that rush of adrenaline when I’m driving in. I’m coming up on what will be 47 years in the business, and every single day when I walk in, I get excited.”
Gardner’s contagious adoration for music radio highlights the value of a community-centric, music-passionate approach to the industry, made apparent by his base of devoted listeners. He hopes that stations of all formats can continue to create those spaces for its local music lovers.
“I’m hoping that radio continues to be local, continues to be entertaining, continues to be hosted by music lovers who live and breathe the music that they play and can talk about it with passion and love, like I try to do every single day. That would make me very, very happy.”
Jacquie Cadorette is a music features reporter for Barrett Media with over 10 years of experience crafting and managing digital editorial content in the broadcast media space. Her radio career began at Philadelphia’s 102.9 WMGK where she assisted with crafting copy for promotional materials before moving on to blogging for Elvis Duran and the Morning Show, writing prep copy for iHeart, and ultimately becoming a senior editorial content producer on Audacy’s central team, where her work was syndicated to over 250 station sites nationwide. After bringing the company’s podcast editorial brand to life as the Head of Content, Jacquie dove into freelance editorial work alongside her other endeavors.
A PA native, Jacquie spent 9 years in New York City and then a few years in Portland, OR to continue her writing career and indulge in great coffee on the west coast. She now lives in South Philly and can be found enjoying live music, looking at the world through her Canon camera, or diving into a project she’s never tried before with unfounded confidence. Jacquie can be reached at jacquiecad.media@gmail.com.
