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PROFILES in style Z-107’s (late night DJ) Gina Hart
We recently caught up with Gina Hart, Z-107’s late
night personality, and found out there’s more to this radio personality than a pretty
voice. Born in Woodstock, Ill, Gina moved to Pennsylvania at the age of 8, and back to
Illinois 8 years later, and then back to Pennsylvania 8 years after that. The last move
was 6 years ago, and she says she moved back because of friends and family, and she just
loves the area. Gina told us that she has no plans to move back to Illinois in the
foreseeable future, lucky for us.
Gina wound up in radio by design, sprinkled with a little luck. Back a few years Gina
decided that radio was a field that she would love to get into, but she neither had the
time to learn the necessary skills, or the experience to get involved, but she knew she
wanted to give it a try. Luck would have it that one day, her favorite local radio
show’s co-host was out sick. Gina immediately called a friend at the station and in
just a few hours made her radio debut as a fill-in co-host. "It was a great time, and
after that I knew that radio was the field I wanted to be in." Gina told us. So off
to the Pennsylvania Broadcast Institute, and immediately after graduating, Gina started
working at WIOV in Ephrata as a part-time Country DJ.
Just a few short years later Gina joined the Z-107 team and has been excited about the
growth and upswing in popularity of Country music. We asked Gina what she likes most about
working at Z-107, and she told us that it was two fold: "First, I love Country music.
It’s songs that tell stories. Second, I have freedom here at Z-107, freedom to be
myself and to contribute on a personal level to the show." She continued: "At
10pm every weeknight we start ‘All Request Hot Country Nights’ which is our
call-in request show, and this show gives me a chance to meet and become familiar with my
listeners. There are always regulars, and I sometimes have long conversations with
callers." Gina is a dedicated DJ, dedicated to her listeners. She told us several
stories of callers who needed a friend, someone to talk to, and Gina filled that role.
Often she would help a caller choose a song or dedication that would be appropriate for
the occasion.
Gina told us there was a story she would like to share with you the readers, and she
related: "I participated in a fund raiser for the Heart Association that was a live
Z-107 broadcast. My contribution was my own hand-made heart-shaped dog biscuits complete
with doggie print, finely packaged with a label to boot. We sold a ton of those biscuits.
Listeners from all over brought pictures of their dogs. It was terrific, and I got to meet
many, many loyal Z-107 fans.
When we asked Gina if there were any Z-107 events in August that we may find her at, she
told us to check out the Z-107 TAZ (Total Access to Z-Country) line. The TAZ line number
is 1-800-447-4107, and it gives you everything from appearances and concert info to sports
updates, 24 hours a day.
In closing we asked Gina what she liked most about the area. Her reply: "The
influence of the city (Harrisburg) is great, you can see it in the people and the
businesses, yet I can live totally in the country (I have Amish neighbors) and not be out
of touch. The people are really friendly, I love this area." Gina told us that she
plans to stay in radio for a long time, and that she’s finally doing what she really
wants to do. She also wanted us to tell you: "Hey, for those of you who say you
don’t like Country music, I dare you to listen to it for a week. In that time I
guarantee that you’ll hear at least 5 songs that you can really relate to... so
c’mon give Country a chance!" |
