Angie Martinez is one of the best-known radio personalities in the United States. Besides that, she has also been everything from an actress and a singer to an author, an activist, and a spokesperson. Here are 10 things that you may or may not have known about Angie Martinez:
1. Cuban, Dominican, and Puerto Rican Heritage
Martinez can claim a mix of Cuban, Dominican, and Puerto Rican heritage. Most people in the United States shouldn’t need an introduction to Cuba, seeing as how it has been a fixture in its popular imagination for decades and decades. Meanwhile, the Dominican Republic occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean, while Puerto Rico is a collection of islands categorized as one of the United States’s unincorporated territories. It is interesting to note that Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico are located in the Greater Antilles, which to be fair, encompasses close to 90 percent of the land mass in the West Indies.
2. Became Familiar with Radio Because of Her Mother
It is interesting to note that Martinez became familiar with radio because of her mother, who was a program director. For those who are unfamiliar with the position, a program director tends to be responsible for choosing the content that will be broadcast to interested individuals, meaning that it is a position with considerable power and thus considerable responsibility. With that said, while Martinez is best-known for her association with hip-hop, her mother worked at a smooth jazz radio station.
3. Started Out As an Intern
When Martinez was still a teenager, she started her radio career by becoming an intern at a radio station. In said role, she did a lot of the stereotypical things that people associate with interns, with examples ranging from fetching coffee to driving the van for the radio station’s street team. Still, experience was experience.
4. Started Out At WQHT
As for the radio station, it was WQHT, which should be better-known to a lot of people as Hot 97. Said station started up in the late 1940s. Since that time, it has managed to become one of the most popular radio stations in one of the biggest markets in the United States. Format-wise, it is urban contemporary, meaning that it specializes in genres such as hip-hop, R&B, adult contemporary, Latin music, and Caribbean music.
5. Protégé of Funkmaster Flex
It was at Hot 97 where Martinez met Funkmaster Flex, who winded up taking her on as a protégé of sorts. In short, Funkmaster Flex is the professional name of Aston George Taylor Jr., a radio presenter who is famous for being the first host of a hip-hop radio show on Hot 97 in 1992. Since Hot 97 was still a pop radio station in those times, it can be said that he had a huge influence in changing its entire course of direction, which is just one among a number of impressive accomplishments in broadcasting as well as other aspects of the entertainment industries.
6. Quit Hot 97 in 2014
Over time, Martinez climbed the ranks at Hot 97, thus making herself a name of note in the world of radio. Eventually, she resigned from her position at Hot 97 in 2014. However, that was by no means the end of her radio career, as shown by what happened next.
7. Went Over to Power 105.1
Just a day after she announced her resignation, Martinez announced that she would be joining up with Power 105.1, which would be Hot 97’s main competitor for the New York City market. After all, both of the radio stations are situated in said city. Furthermore, both of the radio stations have an urban contemporary format, meaning that they are direct competitors for the same segment of radio listeners. It is interesting to note that Power 105.1 is speculated to have switched over to its format for the sake of eating into Hot 97’s market share, thus enabling its sister station 106.7 Lite FM to get a secure hold on the top spot with its adult contemporary format. Before that, Hot 97 and 106.7 Lite FM had alternated as the top radio station, meaning that their contest was very close.
8. Never Spoke About the Move Until the Last Day
Speaking of which, it is interesting to note that the move came as a huge surprise to just about everyone other than Martinez. This is because she managed to remain silent about the move until the very last day, meaning that there weren’t a lot of sources that could actually spread said information ahead of the announcement. Due to this, Martinez was able to keep it a surprise in a remarkable show of discipline on her part.
9. Was On American Idol
At one point in time, Martinez was going to be on American Idol as one of the judges. However, she had been involved with the show for just a few days before she decided to quit. Apparently, this was because Martinez was very uncomfortable with crushing the dreams of the people who auditioned for American Idol, meaning that she just couldn’t keep on going with the show in good conscience.
10. Has Had a Few Near-Death Experiences
Martinez has said that she has had a few near-death experiences. One example was the time when she had to escape a fire, while another example was when her Range Rover was totaled in a car crash. These incidents served as wake-up calls for her in the sense that they encouraged her to try new things as well as looking into new opportunities when it came to her career. As a result, it seems safe to say that they played a part in her eventual choice to make a career move from her original radio station to its main competitor in New York City.
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