TORONTO – CHFI put a letter to its listeners on chfi.com today that says June 20th will be the final morning show for Jay & Billie.
Such a warning is a bit of a departure for radio, since host changes are usually done without any listener warning at all – the DJs are just suddenly gone one day – so kudos to CHFI for that move.
One could surmise CHFI might have learned a lesson from 2003 when it let long-time morning host Erin Davis go in June of that year to make room for Jay & Billie. One day she was just gone after 15 years there and listeners and others in Toronto media clobbered the radio station in letters, e-mails and on-line.
Which brings us to Jay and Billie’s potential replacement. While the Rogers Media-owned station has not said who the new morning show will be, speculation is that Erin Davis will reunite with Mike Cooper to form the new CHFI team.
While no one will say for sure that Davis and Cooper are going to CHFI, Davis has this to say on her web site: “On Monday, April 25th, Mike Cooper resigned from EZ Rock. According to his contract, he’s required to give six months’ notice of his intention to leave, so that’s what he did.
“I had a contract with EZ Rock to fill in for Christine Cardoso while she was on maternity leave. That was to run until the end of June,” wrote Davis.
“When it became apparent that Mike and I were planning to reunite on another radio station, the management at EZ Rock decided to take me off the air before my contract ends. I would have done the same thing if I’d been in their shoes.
“So, that’s the situation. I’m enjoying my third summer off in a row while Mike finishes his time with EZ Rock. I’m sorry I’m not allowed to say where just yet, but I can tell you that I’ll be back on the air in late summer and he and I will be together again in the fall.
I’ll tell you where as soon as I can and, believe me, we can’t wait.”
Davis spent some months as a maternity fill-in for Cooper’s former partner Christine Cardoso on Standard Radio’s 97.3 EZ Rock and the Davis-Cooper pairing won ratings for the station. In fact, EZ Rock ended the last ratings period in the top spot in Toronto (8.5), a position often held by CHFI during the Don Daynard-Davis pairing in the 1990s.
Below is the CHFI letter to listeners.
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Dear CHFI Listener,
I want to make you aware of some programming changes that are happening on CHFI. On Monday morning (June 20th, 2005); “The Jay and Billie Morning Show” will air its final broadcast on 98.1 CHFI.
To recognize this, we will air a “best of” morning show, featuring three hours of favourite moments from the 98.1 CHFI Morning Show over the past 2 years. It will air from 6am – 9am.
I’ve had the pleasure of working with Jay and Billie for almost six years. They are both terrific people, and we’ve shared many good times together.
Jay and Billie are in the process of deciding what to do next and are going to take some time to reflect upon their future. They intend to continue their careers in radio and television, and, as many of you know, Billie is in the middle of planning her upcoming fall wedding to Pete.
As for the CHFI Morning Show, the current CHFI on-air staff including Darren Osborne, and our latest addition Tish Iceton, will take turns filling in on the show. Later this summer we will be making an announcement regarding a new Morning Show.
This is a very competitive business and a business that requires change on occasion. As the station goes through Morning Show changes, we promise to continue our commitment to be a community-minded station in Toronto that plays “Lite” music, and we thank you for being patient with us while we adjust our morning show programming.
Thank you for being a CHFI listener. We are confident that you will continue to find CHFI informative and entertaining as we enter our next phase.
Thank you for listening to CHFI,
Julie Adam
General Manager/Program Director
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– Greg O’Brien
