APPLETON - After being asked about it on a daily basis for the last five months, KatieSchurkand NickVitranoare finally able to tell listeners when they’ll hear their voices — and their laughs — on morning radio again.
Otis Day shared the news during Wednesday morning's show that all three co-hosts of the new “KISS-FMMornings with Otis, Katie and Nick” will be on the air together beginning June 10.
"And now the countdown is very, very, very short. We're almost there," Day said.
Woodward Radio Group station 95.9KISS-FMofficially announced Jan. 3 thatSchurkandVitranowere joining Day as morning show co-hosts 5-9a.m. weekdays. While they’ve been able to work behind the scenes on the show since then, anoncompeteagreement with their former employer, Midwest Communications’WIXX-FM, has prevented them from being on the air until it expires, the terms of which had not previously been disclosed.
To say they’re eager to get back behind the mics in the studio together may be an understatement.
“It’s rejuvenating, because I didn’t know I would miss it this much,” saidSchurk, who spent 20 years on the air with the “Murphy in the Morning” show onWIXX.
She andVitrano, who was a co-host for 12 years along withSchurkand the show’s longtime namesake Jim Murphy, left Dec. 8 after Murphy’s retirement in late November. Woodward announced it had hired them less than a month later.
Vitranosaid the anticipation of getting back on the air feels a little like baseball spring training after theoffseason.
“You sort of settle into that routine, but you’re not really comfortable in that routine. It’s not a routine that you want. It’s not a routine that you truly desire in your heart,” he said. “You want to get back to what you do, and I’m really, really excited to get back to what I do. I can’t wait.”
“It’s very reaffirming,”Schurksaid. “You always think, ‘What would I do if I walk away?’ and we kind of got to see what our options were if we walked away. It’s nice to see that we made the right choice for us by not walking away.”
One of the toughest parts about being sidelined has been seeing headlines, stories and social media momentsgo by and not being able to weigh in on them in real time with listeners. They’re both excited to get back to that.
“Literally bursting,”Schurksaid.
“The things that are important tonortheast Wisconsinare the things that are important to us, and the topics people are talking about today are the same things that we love to talk about and discuss with people," Vitrano said. "That’s the really difficult part to having to remain silent. You miss that moment.”
“KISS-FMMornings with Otis, Katie and Nick” reunites the three longtime friends and formerWIXXcolleagues. Day, who started as the new morning show host at KISS in December, worked for24 years atWIXX.
"There's a chemistry that we have and a friendship that we have that is just going to be really, really fun to explore on the air," Day said during the Wednesday announcement.
They have been working closely to come up with an outline for the show once they’re all on air together. They’ll be bringing back some segments longtime listeners know from Schurk and Vitrano's previous stint, including What Would Katie Do? (with a new title) and Missed Connections, as read fromCraigslist.
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Day has already been doing Holler at Your High School, a chance each Friday for listeners to call, text or email in with a local sporting event, play, dance competition or other happening to get a shout-out on the air.Schurkhas missed the feel-good vibe of being able to participate in that.
“I did not think I would miss Holler at Your High School so much,”Schurksaid. “I didn’t realize how much I loved being a part of that and just literally getting to cheer for all the kids ... how much that means and how much time and energy our community puts into those events.”
Vitranois ready to get back to the business of laughing along with listeners about daily life.
“I can’t wait to laugh with northeastWisconsinagain. I think life is so funny and it is so ironic. It’s such a sharedexperiencefor people to sort of be in this together, and I can’t wait to tell stories and hear stories and relate and just laugh with people again and say, ‘Oh my gosh, dude, I totally getit’ or ‘Oh, if you think that’s bad, wait until you hearthis’ or “Oh my gosh, my kid does that.’”
As excited as they are to get back on the air, they say they'll miss all the people who have been regularly filling in for them on the air with Day while they’ve waited it out.There have been more than 35 guest hosts.
‘These six months would not have been possible without them ...”Schurksaid.“They’ve been doing this just literally out of thekindnessof their hearts, and like we’ve been saying this entire time, this has been incredibly humbling.They’re like the true heroes of this story.”
KISS had asked listeners to guess the date of Schurk and Vitrano's return for the chance to win a 75-inch TV. Out of a couple of thousand responses, 164 people guessed correctly. Day hid clues in a series of social media videos, including references to "The Sopranos" finale, the opening of Mount Rushmore and National Egg Roll Day — all things that happened on June 10.
Kendra Meinertis an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 or kmeinert@greenbay.gannett.com. Follow her on X @KendraMeinert.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: 95.9 KISS-FM's Katie Schurk, Nick Vitrano will go live on air in June
