By RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com, originally filed August 17, 2011
Leslie Fram has gone country.
Fram, who was part of the seminal Morning X team in Atlanta during 99X's rock heyday and ran the shop there for much of that time, has found a new job: senior vice president of music strategy at CMT.
Fram was most recently the program director at 101.9/WRXP-FM, the rock station in New York City, which is switching to a news format.
In the 1990s, she worked closely with current CMT president Brian Philips, who was her boss at 99X. So it's a reunion for those two. She starts Sept. 1.
She didn't waste much time between jobs. Her unemployment will end up lasting barely six weeks.
What does she know about country music? I have no idea. I tried to reach her via phone and text. No response yet. Ditto with Philips, who is out ill, a spokeswoman emailed to me.
“Leslie Fram is beloved throughout the entire industry," said Philips in the press release. "Everyone knows of her hard-driving passion for music, her unyielding integrity and her relentless work ethic. I have always believed that Leslie, in her soul, belonged at MTV Networks, and she’s finally here! Rolling Stone just named Nashville as the town with America’s˜Best Music Scene, and Leslie can single-handedly help us retain the title. She will lead the team, embrace the CMT culture, discover new stars and provide all of our artists with imaginative opportunities.”
"Leslie has a great ear for any kind of music," said Jimmy Baron, her former Morning X cohort. "Just because her career has been alternative music, the reality is she knows the business and she knows how artists are developed and how artists are marketed."
[UPDATE: 8/17 Fram didn't get back to me but she did post this on her Facebook page:
Thanks to everyone for the amazing outpouring of support! I'll be working at CMT in Nashville as Sr VP of Music Strategy in one of the greatest cities in the world-Nashville. New York will always be special to me-where else can you walk for 5 miles and hit a Chinatown and Little Italy in one day! I'm grateful for your friendship and love of great music! More adventures to come because the first order of business will be to find the best BBQ in Nashville-please weigh in!!!!!]
Join my Facebook fan page and Twitter.
By Rodney Ho, rho@ajc.com, AJCRadioTV blog
