HISTORIC TRIANGLE — “Ten Questions with” is a series that allows readers to get to know local business leaders, volunteers and community members in the Historic Triangle.
This week, meet Andy Harris.
1. What is your job title and description?
Communications Director and Morning Show Guy for Tide Radio. As the host of Tide Radio’s morning show, I’m live on the air weekdays from 7-10- a.m. During that time I’m spinning music, talking about the songs and artists, sharing details about local news and events, getting the word out about the station’s latest contests, and talking about whatever else I think our listeners might be interested in that day. After my on-air shift ends at 10 a.m. each weekday I do all sorts of other things for the station. That includes managing the Tide’s social media accounts, preparing for the next day’s show, tracking down new music, helping the radio engineers with various projects, collaborating with my colleagues on content, and trying to check things off my to-do list more quickly than I add tasks to it.
I’m the producer for William & Mary Football and Men’s Basketball broadcasts for the station. That means I operate the board in the studio while the play-by-play announcer (Jay Colley or Andrew Phillips) is calling the sporting event. I help make sure the broadcast stays on track while also cracking jokes during the commercial breaks.
I’m also the guy who’s designated to bring in the office mail each day. Depending on who you ask, that’s my biggest responsibility.
2. Who do you interact/work with regularly?
We have a great team here at the Tide and WYDaily.com and I collaborate with everyone to some degree. I work pretty closely with our marketing reps to help make connections within the community. I also tag along to many of the fun events they help plan around town. Sometimes I’m a pack mule, other times I’m an emcee, but it’s always so fun to get out in the community. Keep an eye out for the blue Tide tent!
Of course, our programming director Kevin is always improving our station, whether it’s adding new music, tinkering with the logs, writing scripts for our voiceover guy, or finding the right balance of different genres of music. I’m grateful that he lets me help out.
I used to be a reporter at WYDaily.com for a couple of years, and now I have the opportunity to share the WYDaily team’s news coverage on the air each morning. It’s engaging and relevant information for the people listening on their way to work. When big news drops it’s a thrill for me to share the WYDaily team’s reporting with our radio listeners.
I also work with the voices you hear on the Tide, including our other DJs (Lisa, Maze, Chantal and Hansen — they’re all awesome, and they each have been in the industry longer than me, so I’ve learned a lot from them. You’ve certainly heard Tommy and Amber in many of our commercials and we work together behind the scenes throughout each week — and I think it’s so cool when I hear the finished product on air. Our Senior Director of Client Services, Sarah, keeps projects on time and organized, and our office administrator Terry makes sure we all have what we need to succeed. It’s a great group that I’m lucky to be a part of.
3. How do you/your organization interact with the local community?
Everything we do at the Tide is community-oriented. We play great music that many people within our listening radius love. Our commercials promote locally-owned businesses. We participate in countless events throughout the year and we host the region’s largest free networking event, Strictly Business. The Hometown Radio Interviews I host shine a light on the people who live and work in the area. The WYDaily team is always covering the latest news in Greater Williamsburg, and their editor Chris Six shares some of the top headlines in a daily newscast for the Tide.
4. What is something about your job most people wouldn’t know about?
People often ask me if I pick all the music for the Tide. Nope! We have a music director and he works hard on our playlist every day. He does let me drop in a DJ’s choice every now and then. For every one person speaking on air, there are several other people working very hard behind the scenes making it all possible.
5. How do you define success?
I came across a great line recently, and I wish I knew to whom it should be attributed. “If you don’t enjoy what you do, then the worst thing that can happen to you is success.” If you have a career that pays the bills and makes you feel happy to go to work most days then you’ve found success in my book.
6. What is your most successful accomplishment to date?
Well, I’ve wanted to break into the radio industry since I was in high school. It was a long and winding road to get here, but if someone had told 16-year-old me that one day I’d be hosting my own morning show and using my platform to highlight the hardworking people in my community, I think that I’d be pretty happy with that.
7. How long have you lived/worked in the Historic Triangle?
I moved here in the summer of 2016, and Virginia greeted me with a 97-degree day while I lugged furniture up three flights of stairs to my new apartment. The Commonwealth might not have made a great first impression that day, but moving to Williamsburg was absolutely the right decision and I’ve never looked back.
8. What is your favorite part of being in the Historic Triangle?
The people and the sense of community. People here are friendly, generous and take pride in their hometown. I love getting to talk to people from all walks of life in the course of my work. Oh yeah, every time I host out-of-town company I’m reminded of how many terrific restaurants and breweries we have. Living between two beautiful rivers is a blessing, too.
9. What do you do for downtime/to relax?
I love to read books, but I don’t do that nearly as often as I should these days. Spending time with friends and family is always good for the soul. I also like to play video games, board and card games, ride my bike, and (as you would expect from a DJ) listen to music. I watch a ton of sports, too, but the teams I root for never make it easy for me to relax. #FlyEaglesFly
10. What is the next step in your journey?
I’m not too big on making plans, but rather making the most of opportunities. If you work hard and you’re kind to people then I like to think the journey is one you’ll look back on fondly.
Do you want to learn more about your community and the people that live and work in the Historic Triangle? We are looking for people with interesting jobs, super volunteers, or community leaders to showcase. Reach out to let us know if you (or someone you know) would like to be considered for Ten Questions.
