January 6, 2026 News@CountryAircheck.com

Port Cohort: Connoisseur KUPL/Portland, OR will replace the syndicated The Bobby Bones Show (CAT 11/19/25) with a local morning show featuring Jeff "JR" Ramsey, Jake Byron and Mallory Santic, debuting Jan. 20. Ramsey previously hosted Townsquare Media's Portland, ME-based national The Drive Home With JR, heard in about 20 markets, following prior radio jobs in Denver and Nashville. It's a return to KUPL for Byron, who spent 16 years there in mornings before cutbacks in 2020, re-joining in 2021 and hosting the noon-3pm shift until he was laid off again by former station owner Alpha Media in July (CAT 7/15/25). New to radio, Santic is a social media influencer and former Love Island contestant who previously worked as a Talent Acquisition Administrator for the South Australia Police in Adelaide.

Brooks Out At iHeart: iHeartMedia SVP/Programming Joey Brooks has left the company where he held numerous roles, as reported this morning (1/6) via Breaking News. They included programming WBWL/Boston & WWYZ/Hartford, hosting afternoons at the latter, overseeing the company's eight Connecticut stations and serving as Dir./Brand Strategy & Programming for its Hot AC stations nationwide. Brooks was named SVPP/Connecticut in 2019, arriving from the PD position at the company's WMIA/Miami (CAT 9/9/19). No word on plans for the positions. Reach Brooks here, or by phone at 860-280-1997.

NRG's King Moves On: NRG/Lincoln and Omaha, NE OM Steve King is departing radio on Friday (1/9) to work with his wife at her mental health agency, Unity Youth & Family Services. His 12-station oversight includes KFGE/Lincoln, which he also programmed until handing that job to Cory Edmondson a year ago (CAT 1/6/25). King joined NRG in 2019 from the Titan/Burlington, IA OM & Country KBKB PD job (CAT 5/9/19). His previous experience includes stops in Helena, MT; Eugene, OR and Phoenix. Reach him here through Friday.

Melbourne To Fly: Australian radio vet Danielle Martin has joined Audacy's syndicated Katie & Company as Technical Producer. She previously served as Exec. Producer for national morning and afternoon drive, including NOVA Entertainment and Southern Cross Austereo, both in Sydney, as well as programming and production roles with Sea FM and Mix 92.7 (EON Broadcasting). Former Katie & Company Exec. Producer Brody Smith left the show last October (CAT 10/13/25).

Hotline Bling: Whitehead KTTX/Bryan-College Station, TX is looking for a full-time morning co-host to succeed Eilish Barker, who plans to leave the industry for personal reasons. In addition to co-hosting with PD/morning personality "Cowboy Dave" Bayless, the job includes assisting with promotions. Prior radio experience is a plus, but not required. Starting salary ranges from $40-45k, plus remote pay. Send résumé, references and aircheck here.

Know Vember: Here are select November Eastlan Ratings showing Country stations that are leading in the 18 markets measured monthly by the company, compared with September and October. Shares are Persons 12+, Monday-Sunday, 6am-midnight.

KSJJ/Bend, OR Gross: 13.0 - 12.7 - 12.3
KCTR/Billings, MT Townsquare: 14.4 - 12.8 - 12.3
WQBE/Charleston, WV Bristol: 15.7 - 14.4 - 13.8
WXBQ/Johnson City, TN Bristol: 19.1 - 18.1 - 17.0
KDBR/Kalispell, MT Bee: 13.9 - 13.8 - 14.3
WALS/LaSalle, IL Shaw Local: 12.3 - 12.7 - 12.8
WGTR/Myrtle Beach, SC iHeartMedia: 10.6 - 9.4 - 8.7
WBBS/Syracuse iHeartMedia: 8.6 - 8.3 - 8.5
KEZJ/Twin Falls, ID Townsquare: 14.1 - 13.9 - 15.1
WACO/Waco, TX iHeartMedia: 15.1 - 13.5 - 13.0

Starring Roll: Stoney Creek's Jelly Roll will serve as a judge on Star Search, alongside Sarah Michelle Gellar and Chrissy Teigen, beginning Jan. 20. The live series will air Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 8pm CT on Netflix and feature real-time voting. Each episode will spotlight performers across music, dance, variety, comedy, magic and juniors categories.

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On Drop Of The World: ABC's Dick Clark's Primetime New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2026 topped the New Year's Eve ratings, peaking with 18.8 million viewers at 11:30pm ET. CBS's New Year's Eve Live: Nashville's Big Bash finished second in that window with 5.3m viewers according to TheTVRatingsGuide. CNN's New Year's Eve Live with Anderson Cooper & Andy Cohen peaked with 4.25m viewers.

Highway 61: Submissions for the 61st ACM Awards and Radio and Industry Awards are open here through Jan. 26; criteria here. The first round of voting opens Feb. 23. The show returns to Las Vegas May 17, airing live on Prime Video from the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Send questions about submissions here.

Bucket List: CRS doesn’t just happen. Last night's (1/5) Country Aircheck Weekly goes inside the planning process with the people building the agenda, including Agenda Committee Chair Shelley Hargis and Exec. Dir. RJ Curtis, who talk everything from panel strategy and topic buckets to the research shaping it all. Plus, industry news you may have missed during the break, including Connoisseur’s morning shakeups and Jay Cruze stepping into his new role at BMLG. Read all of it here.

Festive All: Nashville Songwriters Association International's 34th annual Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival is set for March 24-28 at 10 venues across the city. The lineup will be revealed Feb. 26; ticket sales begin March 3.

Contact Update: Former Redrock Media KUTQ/St. George, UT APD/MD and afternoon host Dale Desmond has joined Townsquare/St. George as Brand Mgr./morning host for News/Talk KDXU. He'll also be consulting the company's Country KCIN/Cedar City, UT and KIYK/St George. Desmond departed Redrock at the end of the year after a five-year stint (CAT 11/26/25). Prior to KUTQ, he was Cherry Creek/St. George, UT OM, with previous stops at KUPI/Idaho Falls; KBLL/Helena, MT; WCKN/Charleston, SC and KTHK/Idaho Falls. Reach him here.

ICYMI: Craig Morgan performed “God Bless America” at the NFL’s NFC West Title game.

Bobbii Jacobs has launched a new event series, Backstage Access Presents, kicking off in Napa Valley April 14–16; more info here.

“Jason Aldean’s debut didn’t just launch his career — it helped shape the sound of modern country,” BMG/Americas Pres./Frontline Recordings Jon Loba tells Nashville Lifestyles. "He’s stayed true to his style while constantly evolving, and that growth has kept fans connected.”

Crib Note: KSNI/Santa Maria, CA morning co-host Jessica Carroll and partner Justin Fuller welcomed son Austin Lee Fuller Nov. 18.

Matt Stell and his wife, Kasey Harvey Stell, are expecting their first child, a son, in May. The couple wed a year ago (CAT 1/7/25).

Country Aircheck Today Top 5: Here are the Top 5 songs for Jan. 5, according to Mediabase 24/7.

BLAKE SHELTON/Stay Country Or Die Tryin' (Wheelhouse) 4282 points
HARDY/Favorite Country Song (Big Loud) 3738 points
PARMALEE/Cowgirl (Stoney Creek) 3560 points
MEGAN MORONEY/6 Months Later (Col. NY/Columbia) 3215 points
RILEY GREEN f/ELLA LANGLEY/Don't Mind If I Do (Nash. Harbor) 3006 points

Country Aircheck Top Point Gainers: Here are the top point gainers for Jan. 4-5, compared with the same days last week, according to Mediabase 24/7.

BLAKE SHELTON/Stay Country Or Die Tryin' (Wheelhouse) +1275 points
HUDSON WESTBROOK/House Again (River House/Warner/WAR) +460 points
THOMAS RHETT f/JORDAN DAVIS/Ain't A Bad Life (MCA/Valory) +444 points
MORGAN WALLEN f/POST MALONE/I Ain't Coming Back (Big Loud) +440 points
CHRIS YOUNG/Til The Last One Dies (Black River) +417 points

Tomorrow's Birthdays (1/7): Rachele Lynae, John Rich, Lyn Daniels.

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Turnpikes Peak: KYGO/Denver's Tracy Dixon with the Turnpike Troubadours' Ryan Engleman, Hank Early, Evan Felker, Gabe Pearson, Kyle Nix and RC Edwards (l-r) in Mesa, AZ.

Cole Mining: Broke/Lyric Ridge's Julia Cole (c) with Lyric Ridge’s Chele Fassig (l) and WXCY/Wilmington, DE's Charlie Maxx.

Signage: Singer/songwriter Emma Lynn White celebrates her Ten Ten Music Group signing with the company's Barry Coburn (l) and Joe Luff.