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SPECIAL FEATURE DIGITAL DISCOVERIES Z100 PD SHARON DASTUR LEADS MULTIPLATFORM TEAM OF STAR -FINDERS Meet-and- greets:At top, from left: Nick A. it enters a fourth decade of playing "all the hits," WHTZ Norman (Z100) New York has more avenues to connect music with and Amy Heidmann fans than ever. No longer limited by the current music slots of pop duo on its broadcast signal, Z100's playground now encom- Karmin passes the Web, social media, HD digital radio, iHeartRa- celebrate their album dio and live events. release "As a programmer, you think about how to maximize those tools to make with 2100 your terrestrial station even bigger and more essential for what the audience PD Sharon Dastur and comes to you for," says Sharon Dastur, who joined Z100's programming de- morning partment in 1996 and was promoted to PD in 2006. host Elvis Digital platforms have made the brand a more potent driver of pop culture. Duran in May. At "When you talk to Sharon about music, it's a programming and 360 -degree bottom, marketing conversation," Republic Records executive VP Charlie Walk says. "It from left: involves so much more than just playing the record." Duran and Dastur The model for what later became Clear Channel's Artist Integration Program welcome originated at Z100 in 1997 out of a desire to give early exposure to acts that Arlene the station's programmers felt passionately about but weren't ready to put into Grande and Gary current rotation. Promotional ads spotlighting a new act directed listeners to Spangle Z100.com to see and hear more of the artist's music. By 2006 there was an to "Elvis entire HD radio side channel devoted to new acts, Z100 New Music H D2. Duran and the Morning Those early experiments have evolved into a fully integrated portfolio, as Show" in rising pop star Austin Mahone recently experienced. Mahone world -premiered March. his new single "What About Love" (Chase Records/Republic) on June 7 to a syndicated audience of 5.7 million (according to Clear Channel) on the Z100 - The station's airplay last summer of Ed Sheer- ing new pop artists, Nikki Williams, and turned based "Elvis Duran and the Morning Show." He returned later in the day to an helped set the stage for one of 2012's biggest Duran on to the project. When Williams came to blow "the 5 o'clock whistle" with afternoon hostil, then spent an hour on -air breakthroughs. Folky ballad "The A Team" was New York she performed "Glowing" on Duran's chatting up night jock Mo' Bounce. Mahone was later escorted downstairs to ill-suited for more rhythmic -leaning top 40s butshow-not the dance -pop arrangement heard on the iHeartRadio Theater where a couple of hundred screaming girls (and some fit Z100's pop -friendly palette. When other Clear the record but a stripped -back reading with piano guys) took in a live performance, streamed on the Web and repurposed as digi- Channel top 40 outlets saw how it was lighting and violin accompaniment. tal content for Clear Channel's roughly 80 other top 40 stations. up Z100's music research-the company allows its "The listener reaction we got was, 'What a voice. It was Duran who first tipped Dastur to Mahone, while hosting Spring le Ball stations to access each other's local research-it Oh, my God, I'm buying the single right now,'" Das- at sister station WIOQ (Q102) Philadelphia in May 2012. The morning host helped Atlantic Records cross over the record from tur says. "Those are the kinds of moments that sent Dastur a text after witnessing near pandemonium break out among Ma- adult top 40 to top 40. help us spread the word about artists we're pas- hone fans at a backstage meet -and -greet for the then -unsigned teen singer. By "We felt like we were sharing the word with ev- sionate about." the time the label played Dastur the RedOne-produced "What About Love" a eryone that the song could work on any station," The ability to put a face on an artist through in - year later, Mahone was a YouTube sensation. Dastur says. studio performances, interviews and contests helps "Once we knew he had a song that would be a game -changer, we decided By December, the singer/songwriter was on a Z100 stand apart from a growing pack of digital to do something we've never done before," Dastur says of Mahone taking Jingle Ball bill with One Direction opening, Justin jukeboxes like Pandora and Spotify. It's a product over the station. Bieber closing and Swift in the middle. Accompa- differentiator the station plays up with slogans like, Mahone is only the latest example of how Z100 uses equal parts emotion nied only by his guitar, Sheeran's emotional rendi- "All the hits and the stars that make them." and science to suss out the hits. Dastur, music director Jagger (who goes by the tion of "The A Team" brought shrieks from the crowd Community involvement is another way Z100 single -name moniker professionally) and assistant music director Trey Morgan that rivaled those generated by the headliners. continues to thrive amid growing digital competi- study digital single sales, scour social media and analyze internal research in "After he got offstage, I said, 'Ed, I'm not blowing tion. The station received praise for how it aided a constant quest for what's next. Listener requests sent through Twitter that smoke-you had louder screams,'" Dastur recalls victims of Hurricane Sandy last year, rallying listen- were fueled by their "X Factor" performances led to the station adding One tell ing Sheeran. ers to bring needed supplies to station -sponsored Direction and Little Mix. The passion Dastur and her team exude for mu- drives in the areas most affected by the storm. "Social media gives us an early gauge," Dastur says. "It's great seeing that sic has made fans throughout the music industry. More than a decade earlier, Z100 stopped playing early passion and excitement from the audience for someone before you even "What has really impressed me is the loyalty they've music for an entire week to help listeners cope with know about them." earned from the recording artists," Azoff Manage- the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. "Our DJs Z100 takes the lead on some acts and follows on others. In August 2005, ment president Richard Palmese says. "When I were pretty much therapists-the comfort zone to Jay -Z and Island Def Jam executives played Dastur and then -PD Tom Poleman have a new artist that I want to introduce, Z100 is the tri-state area," Dastur says. "They had a natural "Pon De Replay" from a then -unknown Rihanna, prior to its release as a single. one of the top stations I go to because they are so ability to know what to say when people called in to Dastur immediately drove a copy of the Caribbean -inspired jam to the station's welcoming and supportive." tell their stories." Jersey City, N.J., studios and put it on the air. In another example, early Z100 Dastur has become one of radio's most vocal A lot has changed in Dastur's 17 years at Z100, airplay for Katy Perry's 2008 breakthrough "I Kissed a Girl" spurred other top new -music supporters. "It's not just my job, it's my from music trends and the competition to how con- 40 stations to overcome their fears about the song's lyrics. passion," she says. Labels are keen to play music tent is distributed and the way audiences are mea- "When they commit to an artist early on, it sets the tone for their career," for Dastur early, hoping her zeal will become con- sured. But the essential mission remains the same: Republic's Walk says. "When they play an artist later on, it puts on the official tagious. Lava Records president Jason Flom played connecting with the audience and staying true to stamp that it's a certified hit." her tracks from Jessie J a year before the British the brand. During the past 30 years, Z100 has played a pivotal role in establishing the singer's CD was released stateside. Dastur pro- "Technology is constantly changing and we careers of Mariah Carey, Duran Duran, Whitney Houston, Sean "Puffy" Combs, nounced her a superstar and offered to champion have to go along with it," Dastur says. "There are Celine Dion, Incubus, Alicia Keys, Kings of Leon, Shakira, Colbie Caillat, Nicki the project. so many ways to put the Z100 brand out there. Minaj, Calvin Harris, Gotye, Jessie J and Taylor Swift, along with comeback She had a similar reaction after hearing a handful That's what makes being in radio and media so records from Santana and Enrique Iglesias. of tracks from one of Island Records' most promis- exciting to me." -Paul Heine 0 BILLBOARD I AUGUST 3, 2013.