Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

More changes at FM-94/9

Cantore + Woods morning show is off the air

FM-94/9 jettisoned Chris Cantore (right) early Monday, but there was no mention of Woods (left) leaving. Late Monday Woods indicated on social media that he was a “former” employee of FM-94/9.
FM-94/9 jettisoned Chris Cantore (right) early Monday, but there was no mention of Woods (left) leaving. Late Monday Woods indicated on social media that he was a “former” employee of FM-94/9.

It’s been a bad month for San Diego radio veterans.

Mike Halloran, who started at 91X in 1986 and went on to work at four other local alt-rock stations, was dismissed as afternoon DJ and program director.

Today listeners discovered that the Cantore + Woods morning show was simply not on FM-94/9 anymore. Chris Cantore “did mornings” at 91X from 1996 through 2007. Steve Woods came to San Diego in 2009 at the request of Mikey Esparza who was assembling an all new morning show cast for his "Mikey Show." When Esparza was fired in 2012, Woods, Mikey’s former sports guy and sidekick, went on host mornings by himself.

Video:

Roast of Cantore + Woods

...on <em>Tonight in San Diego</em> in October, 2016

...on Tonight in San Diego in October, 2016

Some insiders wondered if the Cantore + Woods exit signaled FM-94/9’s inevitable transformation to an all-sports station when the Padres play-by-play arrives in March.

Sponsored
Sponsored

But that does not seem to be the case. FM-94/9 jettisoned Cantore early Monday, but there was no mention of Woods leaving. Late Monday Woods indicated on social media he was a “former” employee of FM-94/9.

According to insiders, that would tend to indicate that Woods was not happy with the move to fire his morning show partner and decided to take himself out of the lineup.

“Sounds to me like Woods told them to go fuck themselves,” says one insider. “He has an emotional, volatile side to him.”

Woods responded Tuesday to a request for comment by emailing: “I can’t discuss anything right now.”

It seems Woods would have been the perfect bridge to help connect the Padres to the alt-rock crowd. Woods is a sports enthusiast, well versed in Major League Baseball, and pitches on an adult league team. “Big league baseball has an inferiority complex regarding millennials,” says one insider. “That’s why they want to get on FM radio and that’s why, I think, someone like Woods could have helped the Padres in San Diego.”

Woods and Cantore were paired as a team 15 months ago, after KPRI was sold and Cantore lost his morning show there. Not all seemed well with the morning team early last summer when FM-94/9 shortened the show, having it end at 9 instead of 10 a.m.

Many in local radio cringed at the “Roast of Cantore + Woods” special that appeared on the locally produced show “Tonight in San Diego.” The 90-minute segment taped in October featured current and ex-coworkers who gave unsettling digs about how the team sucked in the ratings, had no relevance to locals, and was about to get replaced by sports talk. Woods took it all laughingly but at the end Cantore lashed out against his roasters individually telling them that they are nonlocal San Diego newcomers.

After his morning show ended on KPRI in 2015, Cantore, a New York native who graduated from SDSU, outlined his radio career angst in an interview on Mighty 1090.

“When I lost my job at 91X I was this whiny little bitch," he said in the interview. "I lost my mind. I went on a sympathy tour. This time, my wife is healthy, my kids are happy, life is good.” Cantore said his own radio reality was tough. “My wife had breast cancer…we’ve lost our home, lost our savings. Until my late 30s I lived a privileged life. I didn’t struggle like I have for the past seven years.”

FM-94/9’s operation manager Kevin Callahan did not return a request for comment.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Ten women founded UCSD’s Cafe Minerva

And ten bucks will more than likely fill your belly
Next Article

National City – thorn in the side of Port Commission

City council votes 3-2 to hesitate on state assembly bill
FM-94/9 jettisoned Chris Cantore (right) early Monday, but there was no mention of Woods (left) leaving. Late Monday Woods indicated on social media that he was a “former” employee of FM-94/9.
FM-94/9 jettisoned Chris Cantore (right) early Monday, but there was no mention of Woods (left) leaving. Late Monday Woods indicated on social media that he was a “former” employee of FM-94/9.

It’s been a bad month for San Diego radio veterans.

Mike Halloran, who started at 91X in 1986 and went on to work at four other local alt-rock stations, was dismissed as afternoon DJ and program director.

Today listeners discovered that the Cantore + Woods morning show was simply not on FM-94/9 anymore. Chris Cantore “did mornings” at 91X from 1996 through 2007. Steve Woods came to San Diego in 2009 at the request of Mikey Esparza who was assembling an all new morning show cast for his "Mikey Show." When Esparza was fired in 2012, Woods, Mikey’s former sports guy and sidekick, went on host mornings by himself.

Video:

Roast of Cantore + Woods

...on <em>Tonight in San Diego</em> in October, 2016

...on Tonight in San Diego in October, 2016

Some insiders wondered if the Cantore + Woods exit signaled FM-94/9’s inevitable transformation to an all-sports station when the Padres play-by-play arrives in March.

Sponsored
Sponsored

But that does not seem to be the case. FM-94/9 jettisoned Cantore early Monday, but there was no mention of Woods leaving. Late Monday Woods indicated on social media he was a “former” employee of FM-94/9.

According to insiders, that would tend to indicate that Woods was not happy with the move to fire his morning show partner and decided to take himself out of the lineup.

“Sounds to me like Woods told them to go fuck themselves,” says one insider. “He has an emotional, volatile side to him.”

Woods responded Tuesday to a request for comment by emailing: “I can’t discuss anything right now.”

It seems Woods would have been the perfect bridge to help connect the Padres to the alt-rock crowd. Woods is a sports enthusiast, well versed in Major League Baseball, and pitches on an adult league team. “Big league baseball has an inferiority complex regarding millennials,” says one insider. “That’s why they want to get on FM radio and that’s why, I think, someone like Woods could have helped the Padres in San Diego.”

Woods and Cantore were paired as a team 15 months ago, after KPRI was sold and Cantore lost his morning show there. Not all seemed well with the morning team early last summer when FM-94/9 shortened the show, having it end at 9 instead of 10 a.m.

Many in local radio cringed at the “Roast of Cantore + Woods” special that appeared on the locally produced show “Tonight in San Diego.” The 90-minute segment taped in October featured current and ex-coworkers who gave unsettling digs about how the team sucked in the ratings, had no relevance to locals, and was about to get replaced by sports talk. Woods took it all laughingly but at the end Cantore lashed out against his roasters individually telling them that they are nonlocal San Diego newcomers.

After his morning show ended on KPRI in 2015, Cantore, a New York native who graduated from SDSU, outlined his radio career angst in an interview on Mighty 1090.

“When I lost my job at 91X I was this whiny little bitch," he said in the interview. "I lost my mind. I went on a sympathy tour. This time, my wife is healthy, my kids are happy, life is good.” Cantore said his own radio reality was tough. “My wife had breast cancer…we’ve lost our home, lost our savings. Until my late 30s I lived a privileged life. I didn’t struggle like I have for the past seven years.”

FM-94/9’s operation manager Kevin Callahan did not return a request for comment.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Gonzo Report: Kavana takes the stage at Navajo Live

Sparse crowd doesn’t lessen metal magic
Next Article

National City – thorn in the side of Port Commission

City council votes 3-2 to hesitate on state assembly bill
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.