Sandy Stec and Marcus D co-star at 101.3
by Ben Fong-Torres,
San Francisco Chronicle
Sunday, May 11, 2014
Sandy Stec and Marcus D’s new partnership on the KIOI morning show is a hit with the listening audience. Photo: Tony Ng, Stock Options
Despite his name, Marcus D is not a hip-hop artist. He did spin a lot of it, in his earlier years as a disc jockey, but his real name is Marcus Daniel Najera. After trying “Mark Daniel” for a while, he settled on Marcus D. And it’s served him well, through stations in Salinas, Fresno, Seattle and San Francisco.
Here, after six years at KLLC (“Alice”) as afternoon DJ and assistant music director, he was hired by KIOI (“Star 101.3”) in August to join the morning show, replacing Frosty Stilwell as Sandy Stec‘s co-host.
It was an adjustment for Marcus, who’d been a solo act since his first radio gig in 1992, at age 18 in Salinas (on KDON). Stec, meantime, had to connect with a new partner.
“We met for the first time two weeks before we went on together,” she said.
“We were both … concerned,” Marcus D said.
That’s history.
“It’s gone from two people trying not to step on each other,” Marcus said, “to kind of a brother-sister thing.”
And the radio siblings are doing well. A year ago, Stec and Stillwell, a talk show veteran who has moved over to KKSF (910 AM), were ranked eighth in Star 101.3’s core demo – women age 25 to 54. Now, says Program Director Cat Collins, the show swings between third and fourth place. “It’s phenomenal,” he said.
“We saw instant reactions,” Marcus said. “Every single person I know is rooting for the show.”
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