Julie Bruno, '85. on Reconnecting as an Alum

Julie Bruno, '85. on Reconnecting as an Alum

Author: WJPZ September 18, 2023 Duration: 30:09
WJPZ at 50
HistoryEducation

A few days before Banquet 2023, Jag sat down with fellow Massachusetts Native Julie Bruno from the Class of 1985.   Julie's from the small town of Mansfield, and was the first in her family to go to college, and quickly went from being a big fish in a small pond to the opposite.

She met people from the far away lands of Long Island and New Jersey, and learned that she (gasp) had a wicked accent.   But she had the good fortune of being friends with the coolest girl on her floor - Merry Mary Mancini.  It was easy to follow her over to WJPZ.

To use Julie's own words, she was a "tertiary player" at WJPZ, but when she returned from a semester in Italy and the station went on FM, she saw just how popular WJPZ was getting.   She looks back at what that group accomplished, getting the station on FM, and can't believe what that team pulled off.

Following graduation, Julie worked briefly at WXXX in Burlington, Vermont before deciding the on-air route was not for herShe went home and worked at her home town's new outdoor concert venue, Great Woods.  From there she got connected to media sales where she sold television and then radio in Boston, culminating as national sales manager for legendary rocker WBCN.

Julie spends some time talking about how unique and special the WJPZ bond is.  The Banquet has reconnected her with so many classmates and helped her form relationships with folks who came up through the station after her.

The WJPZ at 50 Podcast Series is produced by Jon Gay, Class of 2002, and his podcast production agency, JAG in Detroit Podcasts.

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Want to be a guest on the pod or know someone else who would? Email Jag:  jag@jagindetroit.com.

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Want to be on the show? Email JAG at jag@jagpodcastproductions.com

Connect with the WJPZ Alumni Association: https://wjpzalumniassociation.org/


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For fifty years, the student-run airwaves of Syracuse University's WJPZ at 50 have been more than a radio station; they've been a launchpad. This oral history project captures that legacy not through dry facts, but through the voices that built it. Each episode is a conversation with a different alumnus, from the pioneers of the 1970s to recent graduates, tracing how their hands-on experience in what's called the "world's greatest media classroom" shaped careers in broadcasting and far beyond. You'll hear personal stories of late-night broadcasts, technical mishaps turned into triumphs, and the forging of lifelong bonds that created a unique professional family spanning generations. This podcast digs into the real, often messy, work of learning by doing, revealing how a campus station became an enduring institution. Tune in for a collection of fifty interviews that together form a living archive, celebrating the people, not just the programming, behind five decades of student-led radio.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

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WJPZ at 50
Podcast Episodes
Hall of Famer "Neon" Dion Summers, Class of 1995 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:30
For most of our alumni, today's guest needs no introduction. He's a WJPZ Hall of Famer, he's the VP of Urban Programming for SiriusXM, and he's got as charismatic an individual as you'll find in our group. From the Class…
Happy/Father Dave Dwyer, '86, Hall of Fame Inductee [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Today's guest will be inducted into our Hall of Fame at this year's Banquet. His classmates know him has "Happy" Dave Dwyer, but now his listeners on SiriusXM's Busted Halo show know him as Father Dave Dwyer. Before he g…
Imaging Guru Maureen "Mo" Cooper, Class of 1999 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Liz (Doyon) Gupta, Class of 2014, on Rebuilding The Station [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:30
Liz Gupta (nee Doyon), always knew she wanted to be an attorney. And when she learned that an undergraduate degree in journalism would provide her a great foundation, she headed off to Syracuse. And while she knew what s…
Kendall B, Class of 1992, On 30 Years in Radio [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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"If you stay ready, you ain't go to get ready." - Sugar FreeThat lyric is a mantra that Southern California native Kendall B has lived by ever since he got to Syracuse University and WJPZ. When a morning show co-host did…
Hall of Famer Bill Bleyle and Carol Mason, Class of 1976 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:55
Hall of Famer Bill Bleyle is liking a name you know as synonymous with the founding of WJPZ in 1972-1973. Today he's joined by another trailblazer, his classmate Carol Mason, to take us back to the very beginning of WJPZ…
Hall of Famer Greg Hernandez, WJPZ Class of 1976 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:56
In the first of two episodes featuring original JPZ'ers from the 1970's, we sit down with Greg Hernandez. In addition to being one of the key figures at the start of WJPZ, he's had a fascinating career since, working wit…
Hall of Famer Larry "Rocket" Ross, Class of 1992 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:44
Today's guest is Hall of Famer Larry "Rocket" Ross, from the Class of 1992. He was at the station when WJPZ-FM was really coming into his own, but we start today by hearing about the one air shift he'll never forget. He…
Hall of Famer Danno Wolkoff, Class of 1986 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:01
How does a goofball from the Crazy Morning Crew end up building a massively successful syndication company? You'll find out in today's podcast, with Hall of Fame guest Danno Wolkoff from the Class of 1986.This Cleveland…

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