V-103 has been Atlanta’s top-rated radio station for years, with a morning show regularly drawing 1.3 million listeners a week. The R&B/hip-hop station takes its “Big Station” moniker seriously.
Frank Ski and Wanda Smith have been at the helm of that top-rated morning show for 14 years. With Thursday’s news that they’re leaving, will V-103 also lose its top-of-the-heap luster?
“No,” said Mike Roberts, at one point the station’s longtime morning host before being replaced by Ski and Smith in 1998. “They’ll be fine. It’s a monster station that has been successful for many years because they are truly connected to the community. And they always seem to know when to make changes.”
Rick Caffey, market manager for V-103 since 1994, said Ski wanted a syndication deal to expand beyond Atlanta, but the two sides couldn’t agree to a deal. “We want to stay local,” said Caffey.
Ski, with stand-up comic Smith, created a morning show that blended the serious, the silly and the sublime. They could be interviewing reality stars from “Love & Hip Hop Atlanta” one moment, then switch to talking budget issues with Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. Each day at 9:50 a.m., Ski would read a Bible verse and play a gospel tune, something he’d call the “Inspirational Vitamin.”
Ski’s replacement is Atlanta native Ryan Cameron, host of V-103’s afternoon show since 2004. Cameron started his radio career at V-103 in the early 1990s. He then competed against Ski during morning drive time on rival R&B/hip-hop station Hot 107.9 until V-103 wooed him back.
“They have such an incredible bench of talent there,” said Bert Weiss, host of Q100’s popular Bert Show. “For a station to invest in talent to that degree is rare, given all the cuts in the industry.”
V-103 was able to walk away from Ski because its audience knows and loves Cameron. Based on polls over the years on ajc.com’s Radio and TV Talk blog, Cameron is actually more popular than Ski. On Thursday, more than 70 percent of poll takers were happy Cameron is moving to mornings. Nearly 60 percent said they wouldn’t miss Ski and Smith, whose last day on the air is next Thursday.
Although Ski and Cameron are both in their late 40s, Cameron seems much younger, relying more on goofy comedy than Ski.
“Frank comes across as your uncle,” said Joe Taylor, a performance drag queen who goes by the name “Miss Sophia” in public. “Ryan is more like your silly older brother,” added Taylor, part of the “Frank and Wanda Morning Show” from 2005 to 2010.
Ski, who opened Frank Ski’s Restaurant and Lounge last year in Buckhead, told listeners Thursday he plans to stay in Atlanta, though his Dunwoody mansion is listed for sale at $2.2 million. He didn’t specify his future plans, saying, “You will hear me again on radio.”
Likewise, Smith wasn’t specific about her plans but will continue to host a stand-up comedy show every Friday at Uptown Comedy Corner in Atlanta.
“Radio years are measured like dog years,” said Gary Abdo, who runs Uptown and knows both Smith and Cameron well. “Frank and Wanda have had an amazing run. I don’t think people appreciate how hard the two of them work behind the scenes. And my audience loves Wanda. She’s going to be missed on the radio.”
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