MD of the Month :
Austin Di Pietro
CJAM 99.1 FM
How did you first hear about CJAM? How long have you been involved there, and when did you become music director?
I first heard about CJAM as a local musician. Around the time I started playing gigs around town, the station was very active in the local scene and had just published Bringing the Noise, a zine-style guide for indie musicians on how to get airplay and promote their own music. It covered everything from registering your music and booking gigs to running a radio campaign and touring the U.S. as a Canadian band. I attended a workshop hosted by the MD at the time and took the book home for further reading. I wish I’d taken that as a sign to get more involved with the station, but I was focused on making music and didn’t really see myself as a radio host. Over the years, I crossed paths with the station several times, performing live-off-the-floor sessions in the CJAM studios and playing CJAM-organized events like the Higher Ground Music Festival. Still, becoming MD never crossed my mind until I saw the job posting.
I graduated from Wayne State University in Detroit with a degree in Jazz Performance just as the pandemic was shutting the world down, and my career prospects in music dwindled. I took a position at the local international film festival, where I spent just over four years in operations and event planning and learned a ton about the film industry. But my heart was always with music. The MD role at CJAM was a combination of good timing and a perfect fit, and it felt too good to pass up. It’s hard to believe I’ve been here less than six months, considering how much I’ve learned about both the music industry and campus radio, but I’m so happy to be at CJAM.
Describe your job duties. What part of your job do you love the most and what do you find to be the most challenging?
We’re a small team at CJAM, as is the case at most community and campus radio stations. With just three staff members, we share many of the day-to-day responsibilities of keeping the station on air and relevant in the community: recruiting volunteers, producing several original shows each week, managing social media, and occasionally organizing community events and recording live in-studio sessions with local and touring acts.
My weekly tasks range from producing our “Stagediving” concert listings segment and two music shows (shft and late shft) to reporting our weekly Top 30 and Specialty charts, keeping in touch with our contacts at labels and promotion companies, conducting CanCon audits (as a Canadian station, we’re required to play a certain amount of Canadian content), and responding to submissions from independent artists. Lately, much of my time has gone to helping my colleagues plan CJAM’s annual Higher Ground Music Festival, which is coming up on November 13 and 14.
Bar none, the part of this job I love most is discovering new music. Each week, I sift through hundreds of submissions from promotion companies large and small, as well as independent DIY artists, and add 50 to 100 new releases to our digital library. They span a wide range of genres, from jazz and electronic to rock, heavy, experimental, and the harder-to-categorize. As a musician myself, I find it incredibly inspiring to hear such a range of sounds from all over the world. The most challenging part is finding the time to get to all of it! The station’s MD inbox is like a family heirloom. It has been passed down through generations of CJAM MDs, along with countless mailing lists that send an overwhelming amount of new music every day.
A word of advice to independent artists submitting their own music: if at first you don’t hear back, try, try again! A follow-up email or two never hurts.
What is the process for reviewing new music and what sort of commitment does the station have to exposing your listeners to new releases?
CJAM is strongly committed to championing new and independent artists and giving airtime to the voices commercial radio leaves out. Several of our programs rely heavily on our “Currents” library (our new-music library, which contains only releases from the past six months). That’s reflected in our weekly charts, which are ever-changing and packed with indie artists and bands.
As a Canadian station, we prioritize Canadian releases, so I’m always on the lookout for those early in the process. The Currents library is organized into nine genre categories: indie/rock/alt/pop, folk/blues/country, electronic, hip-hop, funk/soul/R&B, loud, world, jazz, and classical/OST/experimental. A set of content tags lets us easily filter for CanCon, FemCon, local music, and more. Some categories are naturally fuller than others, but I usually start my review by making sure there are enough Canadian releases in each genre for our programmers to meet their CanCon requirements.
We also prioritize local releases. Our broadcast area reaches across an international border to more than a million people, so “local” doesn’t just mean Windsor and Essex County. It also includes artists from Metro Detroit. I always say Windsor punches above its weight musically, thanks to the influence of Detroit’s musical history.
After checking for Canadian and local Windsor-Detroit releases, I filter my inbox by promoter or label. I start with the companies and frequent contacts who send the most new music each week or have built solid reputations in the industry. I keep a list of them at my desk, and my email automatically sorts messages from each company or label into its own folder.
Then there’s the general inbox and the “Miscellaneous Submissions” folder… These fill up the quickest and are the hardest to stay on top of. Still, I make a point of checking them regularly to give every submission a fair shot. I’ve done things the DIY way with my own records, so I hold myself accountable by remembering who’s sitting on the other end of that unread email.
Who is an artist or band that you’ve discovered in the past year or so that has become one of your favorites? What is it about their music that you love?
So many! Before I started at CJAM, I was in a bit of a musical rut, but not anymore. If I had to pick just one artist I’ve discovered since becoming MD, it would be Dana and Alden, the nu-jazz duo from Oregon. I first heard them through the lead single from their new album back in May, the same month I started at CJAM. As I dug into the seemingly endless stream of submissions in my inbox, their song “Lee’s Greenhouse” stood out immediately as something worth remembering. The full album, Papa’s Boat, didn’t come out until August, so I had to wait a few months before making it an official add at the station.
I’ve always been a big fan of Brazilian jazz. The track clearly drew on some of those same influences, but it paired them with a modern sensibility and production that sounded fresh. Their sound has been described as a mix of jazz and indie, which really resonates with my personal taste.
The new record has been on repeat since it came out, and I caught them live a few weeks ago when they came through Detroit. It was a great show and only cemented my love for the band.
Do you have an all-time favorite artist or album you never get tired of listening to and find yourself always going back to?
Jeff Tweedy’s 2020 album Love Is the King is up there for me. I might credit it as the reason I made it through the pandemic. Endlessly inspiring.
As a trumpet player, I also have to mention John Coltrane’s Blue Train. Trumpeter Lee Morgan in peak form alongside Coltrane and a phenomenal band, playing some of my favourite jazz standards? Say less.
Are there any upcoming releases you’re most anticipating?
I’m still trying to keep up with what’s coming out this week! Nothing in particular, just the next thing that makes my ears perk up.
Who is an artist or band (or a few) you first heard as a kid or young adult that sparked your love of music and made you want to get involved with music at the level you are now?
Again, Blue Train deserves a spot here as the reason I wanted to play jazz trumpet. A high school friend gave me a burned copy of a Blue Note compilation box set. I had no idea what the track listing was, since the CDs just had “Blue Note 1, 2, 3 and 4” written on them, but I listened to them so much that I eventually wore them out. I later learned that track one was “Blue Train.”
Even before that, I was always surrounded by music. My dad had a huge collection of records, stereo equipment and (believe it or not) 8-track tapes. I had a player for each format in my childhood bedroom and worked my way through whatever records and tapes he’d let me have.
If you had the power to instantly change one thing going on in the world right now, what would it be?
An easy one: the whole Canada-U.S. political divide that’s taken shape over the last year! I’m border-city born and raised, so it all feels a bit ridiculous. In Windsor, so many of us grow up crossing the border regularly for concerts, food, ball games and more. We’ve formed friendships across the border, and many of us have family on both sides. We go to the same shows and listen to the same radio stations. It feels more hostile in cities farther from the border, but we still feel it here. I think those folks should relax and turn on the radio – less hostility, more music.
What event in your life would you say has shaped you the most as a person?
Probably picking up the trumpet in middle school. I didn’t know it then, but that instrument sparked a curiosity about and love for music that has been the guiding light for most of my career. It also brought me the great friends I’ve made through all my musical exploits.
If you could choose one, what time period in the past would you most want to travel back to visit and why?
1950s and ’60s New York! I’d love to be a fly on the wall at those legendary jazz clubs and rub shoulders with the music’s early innovators.
Do you have a favourite restaurant you’d recommend people try if they’re ever in the Windsor and/or Detroit area?
This is a tough one because there are so many great spots, so I’ll give one for each side of the border.
In Detroit, my favourite place to eat is Supergeil. It’s in the heart of Corktown, a neighbourhood that’s become a foodie’s paradise and a great spot to grab drinks. Supergeil serves Turkish fusion inspired by Berlin’s Kreuzberg district. I’ve had dreams about their eggplant döner, and their hummus is to die for.
First-time visitors to Windsor will probably hear about “Windsor pizza,” and yes, it lives up to the hype. Its distinguishing features are shredded pepperoni, canned mushrooms (trust me) and locally made Galati cheese. Windsor has the most pizzerias per capita in Canada, with roughly 200, so it won’t be hard to find one near you. Professor Zaaa’s Pizza in the east end is a standout, with a fully vegan menu alongside its regular one. For something more traditional but distinctly Windsor-style, try Antonino’s Pizza or OG Pizza.
What in your life brings you the most joy?
My wife and our two cats, Louis and Gigi (plus a good cup of coffee in the morning).
Lightning Round:
Dog or Cat?
Cat.
Morning Person or Night Owl?
Aspiring morning person, but forced to be a night owl (musicians will understand)
City or Country?
City
Beach or Mountains?
Mountains
Watch TV or Read A Book?
Read a Book
Sunny or Rainy?
Depends where I’m standing
Restaurant or Home Cooking?
Depends on the day…
Pants or Shorts?
Pants, always
Warm or Cold drinks?
Warm, preferably caffeinated
Do you have any current favorite shows you’re enjoying/binging? How about a movie (new or old) that you’ve watched recently that you loved?
I’m eagerly awaiting the next season of Severance. My wife and I binged the first two seasons and were on the edge of our seats.
I recently watched Wim Wenders’ 1984 film Paris, Texas and loved it. I’m a fan of slow-burn films and have been working my way through Wenders’ filmography since watching Perfect Days a couple of years ago. It’s not for everyone, but I’m into it.
Finally, if you could have a lifetime supply of anything, what would it be?
35mm film. It’s gotten so expensive!
