TORONTO – Alan Cross, the program director at 102.1 the Edge (CFNY FM) and host of Corus Radio’s syndicated program, The Ongoing History of New Music, will celebrate his 20th anniversary on October 3.
Starting on-air in October of 1986, Cross (profiled by Cartt.ca here) has enjoyed a long and varied career with CFNY, hosting overnights, mid-days and afternoons before establishing himself as Canada’s premier new-rock historian with the creation of The Ongoing History of New Music in February of 1993.
His many milestones, according to the Corus press release, include: being named Toronto Life’s Radio Personality of 1992, breaking the news of Kurt Cobain’s suicide to Toronto’s MTV generation in 1994 and authoring four new rock-based books, all before marking the 500th episode of The Ongoing History of New Music in October of 2005.
Cross took a brief hiatus from the Edge in 2001 as program director at Corus’ Y108 (then Y95) in Hamilton, but he continued to create and host The Ongoing History of New Music, now broadcast across Canada on Corus Radio’s new rock stations, before returning to the Edge as PD in January of 2004, a position that earned him the title of Program Director of the Year at Canadian Music Week in both 2005 and 2006.
“Congratulations to Alan on achieving this landmark,” said John Hayes, president, Corus Radio. “He has made significant contributions to the Edge over his 20 years here and we are proud to have him both as a program director and as a national on-air personality for Corus Radio.”
Now a Toronto institution in his own right, Cross’ first moments at CFNY coincide precisely with the sod-turning ceremony for the SkyDome.
“The SkyDome is now the Rogers Centre and the Edge now broadcasts from the 
Eaton Centre, and I’m still in the same place,” joked Cross in the release. “But in all seriousness, I feel honoured to, in this fast-moving business, have had such a long career at a station as world-renowned for new rock and as legendary for showcasing new talent, and particularly new Canadian talent, as the Edge.”
Originally from Manitoba, Cross (pictured) is the host and creator of Corus Radio’s syndicated series, The Ongoing History of New Music available on-air at 102.1 the Edge (Toronto), 99.3 The FOX (Vancouver), Power 97 (Winnipeg), FM96 (London) and Y108 (Hamilton) and online on The Ongoing History of New Music channel through the stations’ consumer web sites. In 2005, The Ongoing History Online Archive opened, offering listeners an opportunity to listen to any one of hundreds of past episodes on demand. Written transcripts were also introduced, with more being added all the time. The show has spun off nearly a dozen CD compilations since the mid ‘90s.
Cross is also the author of The Alternative Music Almanac (1995), The Making of Pretty Hate Machine and The Downward Spiral (a Nine Inch Nails biography in 1996), Over the Edge (1997) and 20th Century Rock ‘n’ Roll: Alternative Rock (2000), several of which were excerpted in international music magazines like Guitar World. He’s also written about music for TV, newspapers, magazines and web sites. Cross is also a fixture on Air Canada aircraft where he produces and hosts two in-flight audio programs.
