He competed against the likes of Scott Shannon, Don Imus and Howard Stern. And, he’s still at it, serving as the cornerstone of a radio station that was born out of a forlorn Classical FM as a hard rocker that today serves as the leading Classic Rock outlet for the New York Tri-State region.
You can count on Jim Kerr to continue greeting listeners in morning drive on the station through early 2031.
That’s because Kerr has signed a five-year extension on his broadcast agreement that has kept him at the helm of WAXQ-FM “Q104.3” in New York since January 2022.
Kerr has emerged as the longest-running morning radio personality in the nation’s No. 1 market, with his tenure at Q104.3 now 23 years and counting. At the age of 21, he took the morning host role alongside Shelli Sonstein at WPLJ, then an ABC Radio property transitioning from Album-Oriented Rock to Top 40. The Kerr-led morning show proved to be a worthy alternative to the “Z-Morning-Zoo” at WHTZ, with WPLJ vigorously competing as “Power 95” across the 1980s. He exited WPLJ in 1989, at a volatile time for New York Top 40 radio — Shannon had exited Z100 (ahead of his 1991 return to New York, at WPLJ), while WQHT’s move from 103.5 MHz to 97.1 MHz with morning host Howard Hoffman and Stephanie Miller made the then-Emmis FM a bigger force and more influential with its freestyle-fueled dance music.
Yet, Kerr’s time in New York dates to 1974, after stints at WLS-AM and then-Album Rock WDAI-FM in Chicago; WKNR “Keener 13” in Detroit; and the former WORJ-FM in Orlando. In New York, he also spent time at WPIX-FM, WYNY-FM, WMXV “Mix 105” and the late 1990s-era “Y-107” trimulcast owned by Big City Radio.
“Jim Kerr is synonymous with New York radio. His passion, his connection with listeners, and his unwavering commitment to excellence make him a true icon,” said Thea Mitchem, Executive VP of Programming for iHeartMedia. “We’re proud to continue this incredible partnership and excited for what the next five years will bring to Q104.3 and to New Yorkers who wake up with Jim every morning.”
For iHeartMedia Chairman/CEO Bob Pittman, keeping Kerr on the air is personal. He said, “Jim Kerr and I were young radio guys together in the 1970s, and we’ve been friends ever since; today, Jim is legendary as the longest-running morning radio personality in New York City history. We’re pleased and proud that he is staying with us at Q104.3, extending his deep bond with his audience as an iconic voice of New York City.
There had been discussions that the retirement in January of longtime on-air partner Sonstein could signal the end of Kerr’s time at WAXQ. That’s not the case at all, as Sonstein’s departure is linked to the death of her daughter, resulting in a leave of absence ahead of her retirement from radio.
Speaking of his time in radio, Kerr shared, “I’m so very lucky, my entire adult life, I’ve been able to do what I dreamt about doing as a little kid listening to the radio on top of the refrigerator before school. I decided then that I wanted to be that man on the radio in the morning. So every day, I get up, I come to work, and I spend time with my friends but also, most importantly, I spend time with my friends who are in their cars, or their trucks, or an Uber, or a taxi, or at the gym, or at their workplace, or at home in the kitchen, like I was.”
Outside of his on-air work, Jim Kerr is a 40-year board member of HeartShare Human Services of New York and a member of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation board. He’s also a Vice President of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.
