Bronx-born comedian and media personality The Kid Mero officially takes the helm of HOT 97’s morning show, HOT 97 Mornings with Mero, starting Tuesday, January 13. The program airs weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. ET, marking a major shift in the station’s lineup following the exit of Peter Rosenberg, Laura Stylez and Ebro last month.
On today’s Ebro, Laura, Rosenberg Podcast, the trio praised the hire by HOT 97 as Rosenberg and Stylez shared detailed reactions to Mero’s new role, balancing support for their former colleague with candid reflections on their own departure.
“He’s a great guy,” Stylez said. “He’s with a great team. Our team is a great team. Mia Bell is amazing, of course, Shawnee Juanito, people we absolutely adore. We don’t know if they’re gonna stay, but I hope they do.”
Rosenberg also praised the hire, saying, “The most perfect and apt phrase for me when it comes to this is a broken clock is right twice a day. The powers that be, I think this is a very good hire. Mero is entertaining, super New York, super good dude, has four kids, family dude. It’s great.”
However, both hosts emphasized that their issues were with management, not staff nor Mero on his entry into the fold with the New York City radio station.
“Our issues were never with the people there. We love the people there. Even HOT 97 as a brand, we just didn’t… we hated the company that runs it,” Stylez said.
Rosenberg says there is a lingering frustration over the rollout of Mero’s hire which utilized an elaborate social media campaign.
“The one thing that is hard not to feel a way about it is to see the rollout and the excitement and the posts and the production around it… The only reason that I’m left with the nasty feeling is that our exit was plain old nasty. There’s just no way around it,” said Rosenberg.
He added that the station could have handled their departure more professionally.
“Had they reached out to us and said, ‘Here’s the deal. We can’t come to terms. Y’all are unhappy. We understand. We’re going a different direction. Let’s wrap this thing up nice.’ They absolutely could have done that,” he elaborated.
Mero, known for his sharp humor and cultural commentary as one-half of the comedy duo Desus & Mero, has hosted Victory Light with The Kid Mero and co-hosted 7PM in Brooklyn with NBA star Carmelo Anthony. His hire represents HOT 97’s continued effort to feature personalities deeply connected to New York’s cultural scene.
In mentioning the hire by his former station, Rosenberg hints that there would likely be more cast members added to the program. HOT 97 has not officially announced any additional contributors to their new morning program. HOT 97 Mornings with Mero premieres Tuesday, January 13.
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