CLE Podcast Releases New Eps with TJ, David Junk, and Fred Bronson

26 November 2024

CLE Podcast Releases New Eps with TJ, David Junk, and Fred Bronson

LOS ANGELES, CA – November 26, 2024 — Benztown, a global leader in radio imaging, voiceover, programming, podcasting and jingles, announces the release today of two new episodes of Chachi Loves Everybody, an original podcast produced by Benztown and hosted by Benztown President and audio brand builder Dave “Chachi” Denes. The episodes feature Chachi’s special guests, music executive David Junk, author Fred Bronson, and nationally syndicated radio personality, TJ Taormina, host of “The TJ Show.”

To listen to the new Chachi Loves Everybody podcast episodes, visit: https://bit.ly/ChachiLovesEverybody.

Chachi’s first guest is David Junk, a music executive who became the first CEO of Universal Music, based in Moscow. Junk lived in Russia for 15 years, working to fight piracy and grow the legitimate music industry there. He is joined by author Fred Bronson, who co-wrote Rockin’ the Kremlin with Junk.

On the first new episode of Chachi Loves Everybody, Chachi talks to David Junk and Fred Bronson about:

Growing up in Ohio during the Cold War and listening to rock radio to distract from fears of nuclear war.
Traveling to Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall to see Pink Floyd and being inspired by the onset of capitalism to move to Russia.
Moving to Moscow and gaining the trust of his Russian coworkers while working at a diamond company.
Facing investigation by Russian prosecutors for years for a crime he didn’t commit.
Getting his start in the Russian music industry where he witnessed rampant piracy and a lack of copyright protection.
Going from accountant to CEO of Universal Music in Russia.
Discovering and signing Russian acts like t.A.T.u. and Alsou and helping them gain global recognition.
Helping Alsou place second at Eurovision and tour Russia and America.
Introducing Eminem to Russia and his influence on the hip hop scene there.
The current political situation in Russia, including the invasion of Crimea and the war in Ukraine
And more!

On the second new episode of Chachi Loves Everybody, Chachi sits down with nationally syndicated radio personality, TJ, host of “The TJ Show,” which is heard on over 75 U.S. radio stations. TJ shares his journey from high school radio fan to successful radio host and more. Topics discussed include:

Becoming obsessed with radio while growing up in New Jersey and working at his first station, WFDU.
Getting to intern at Z100 in New York right out of high school and what he learned at the biggest CHR station in the U.S.
Getting to produce and co-host with Elvis Duran and how his production experience translated to on-air success.
How Elvis saved his job, inspired him, and taught him the value of positive relationships in broadcasting.
Making the leap to launch his own show in Boston on AMP and what the transition was like.
The impact of COVID and remote broadcasting on his life, career, and the radio industry.
Finding strength in faith and humor after being laid off.
How he built a great team and created his successful syndicated show.
His thoughts on the future of radio.
And more!

Chachi Loves Everybody takes listeners with Denes – better known as “Chachi” – as he sits down for candid conversations with broadcasting legends, master brand builders, up-and-comers, and media innovators, revealing the true stories behind their successes and their insights into building iconic brands.

About David Junk

After the fall of the Soviet Union, David Junk was one of the first idealistic young Americans to move to Russia to live, work and build a cultural bridge between former superpower enemies. He eventually became the first CEO of Universal Music, based in Moscow. For a decade, he promoted international artists in Russia, including such huge names as Elton John, U2, Sting, and Bon Jovi. He introduced hip-hop music to Russian youth. David also discovered and signed multiple Russian artists to Universal, including t.A.T.u, who would become the biggest-selling Russian act in music industry history. David also did some things that no other music executive in the United States has ever done. Music piracy in Russia was rampant, and the market for cheap, counterfeit compact discs was so pervasive that it threatened the legitimate Russian music industry’s ability to gain a foothold. So on behalf of Universal’s stable of artists and the Russian music industry, he participated in law enforcement raids of pirate factories and testified in court against the criminal gangs who operated them. David has been extensively interviewed about this subject on television, radio, and print and wrote an editorial about it that appeared in the Wall Street Journal. He also wrote about it for the American Chamber of Commerce and submitted written testimony to the US Congress on the topic of piracy and intellectual property rights in Russia.

David is an authority on this topic because of his deep understanding of Russia. He lived and worked there for 15 years and raised a family in Moscow. In addition to starting the record label in Moscow, David opened the first showroom in Russia for the iconic American brand Gibson Guitars. David has extensive knowledge of Russian-Ukrainian relations, having opened the first Universal Music office in Kyiv and having developed music reality shows for Ukrainian TV.

About Fred Bronson

Fred Bronson has been called “America’s foremost chart journalist” by the editor of Billboard magazine and as an expert on music has guest-starred on American Idol four times. He was a guest judge, with Kristin Chenoweth, on the premiere episode of the TV series, CMT’s Next Superstar. He is the author of seven books: Rockin’ the Kremlin with David Junk, The Jacksons Legacy (with the Jacksons), Dick Clark’s American Bandstand (with Dick Clark), The Sound of Music Family Scrapbook, The Billboard Book of Number One Hits, Billboard’s Hottest Hot 100 Hits and The Billboard Book of Number One Rhythm & Blues Hits (with Adam White).

Bronson has written the annual television specials The American Music Awards and Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve. His other TV writing credits include George Strait: The Academy of Country Music’s Artist of the Decade All-Star Concert, Brooks & Dunn’s The Last Rodeo, Girls’ Night Out: The Superstar Women of Country Music, ACM Presents: Lionel Richie & Friends In Concert, Tim McGraw’s Superstar Summer Night, ACM Presents: An All-Star Salute to the Troops, ACM Presents: Superstar Duets, The 40th Anniversary of the Academy of Country Music Awards, ACM Honors, Motown 45, The Disco Ball, Live Aid, the syndicated TV series Your Big Break, two episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and an episode of the animated Star Trek series. He has written the annual six-hour live holiday special for the PBS station in Los Angeles and the Spotlight Awards hosted by John Lithgow. He was head writer on NBC-TV’s fund-raising special, Tsunami Aid, and co-producer of the Ovation TV music performance series, Notes from the Road.

For SiriusXM Radio, he has interviewed Paul McCartney, Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus from ABBA and the cast of the Mamma Mia! motion picture and created “Smokey’s Place,” a series for Smokey Robinson’s Smokey’s Soul Town channel where the legendary artist and songwriter recalls his Motown memories and plays Motown favorites.

He has programmed music channels for United Airlines and hosted his own internet radio series, Fred Bronson’s Pop Goes the World. With Dick Clark, he wrote the weekly comic strip, Dick Clark’s Rock, Roll ‘n’ Remember. Bronson also writes for Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter and Variety and has interviewed many musicians for those publications, including Keith Urban, Lionel Richie, Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart of Eurythmics, Carrie Underwood, Katy Perry, Pat Benatar, Ulf from Ace of Base, Mary Wilson of the Supremes, Lamont Dozier, Peggy March, Luke Bryan, Per Gessle of Roxette, Gretchen Christopher of the Fleetwoods, Mariah Carey and many, many others.

About TJ Taormina

TJ was the kid who walked to school with his headphones plugged into his radio. Having discovered morning talk shows as a 13-year-old while growing up in Hillsdale, NJ, he became hooked. In high school, he started working in radio as a volunteer. He held many positions at his first official radio job including answering phones, producing, and eventually becoming a co-host on Elvis Duran’s nationally syndicated radio show. TJ began hosting his own morning radio show (The TJ Show) in Boston in early 2013. He currently hosts the nationally syndicated radio program, “The TJ Show,” heard on over 75 radio stations across the U.S.

About Benztown

Benztown is a leading international audio imaging, production library, voiceover, programming, podcasting, and jingle production company with over 3,000 affiliations on six different continents. Benztown provides audio brands and radio stations of all formats with end-to-end imaging and production, making high-quality sound and world- class audio branding a reality for radio stations of all market sizes and budgets. Benztown was named to the prestigious Inc. 5000 by Inc. magazine for five consecutive years as one of America’s Fastest-Growing Privately Held Companies. With studios in Los Angeles and Stuttgart, Benztown offers the highest quality audio imaging work parts for 23 libraries across 14 music and spoken word formats including AC, Hot AC, CHR, Country, Hip Hop and R&B, Rhythmic, Classic Hits, Rock, News/Talk, Sports, and JACK. Benztown’s Audio Architecture is one of the only commercial libraries that is built exclusively for radio spots to provide the right music for radio commercials.

Benztown provides custom VO and imaging across all formats, including commercial VO and copywriting in partnership with Yamanair Creative. Benztown Radio Networks produces, markets, and distributes high-quality programming and services to radio stations around the world, including: The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 Countdown, The Todd-N-Tyler Radio Empire, Hot Mix, Sunday Night Slow Jams with R Dub!, Flashback, Top 10 Now & Then, Hey, Morton, StudioTexter, The Rooster Show Prep, and AmeriCountry. Benztown + McVay Media Podcast Networks produces and markets premium podcasts including: IEX: Boxes and Lines and Molecular Moments.

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Media Contact: Lisa Dollinger, Dollinger Strategic Communication for Benztown, 512.633.4084 or [email protected]