DREW'S BIO:

 

Having been born in Far Rockaway, NY and moving to a suburb of Boston (Framingham) from ages 2-8, it's easy to see where Drew Garabo's smart-ass attitude and penchant for ball-busting came to life. Moving to Orlando in 1978 and residing in Florida ever since, Drew had many influences that shaped him into what you see and mostly hear today. From Howard Cosell to Mad Magazine (specifically "Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions"), Weird Al to the Simpsons, Howard Stern to Johnny Carson and so many more, an amalgamation of broadcasting, comedy, and music icons helped a short kid named Drew Raymond Garabo come into his own (socks and underwear). With parents who are slightly taller than your average pigmy, Drew was the brunt of many jokes while growing up. Add to that the oh-so-sexy combination of glasses and braces (with the panty-moistening headgear attached) and you've got yourself one big target. So, our antihero sharpened his tongue and wit and started to see the benefit and beauty of making people laugh. 

 

When he would come home from school around 14-15 years old, Drew would sit in the kitchen and pretend to do homework while his mom listened to Jim Philips on Orlando's WKIS 740 AM. Jim was the first talk show host since Stern that Drew heard using spicy language and ridiculing some of the duller callers who would weigh in on topics. Little did Drew know that a decade or so later, around 1996, he would be producing The Philips Phile and that Jim would become one of his closest friends and most valuable mentors. That's getting a little ahead of ourselves, though. 

 

One day, after leaving his girlfriend's house, Drew was listening to 91.5 WPRK, the Voice of Rollins College in Winter Park, FL. They made an announcement that they were looking for community volunteers to staff the radio station while the students were on summer break. A fan of the mostly-indie-rock music they played, Drew thought "wouldn't that be a trip?" On a whim, he called the number they provided and before you could say "Pavement was a tragically-underrated band," there he was in a studio for the first time. It was love at first sight. 

 

After closing in on his third year as a volunteer at the Rollins College (Mr. Fred Rogers is an alumnus), Drew got a call on the request line from someone claiming to be part of Real Radio 104.1 FM, the talk radio powerhouse in Orlando. Jim Philips had an afternoon drive-time show on the station and they had just started playing "alternative" music on the weekends. Certain that one of his idiotic friends was trying to pull a prank, Drew put the caller through the wringer with questions about the most minute details of Jim's show, "The Philips Phile." The caller, Rich Boerner (program director for Real Radio) asked Drew if he was trying NOT to get a job. Turns out Rich had listened to Drew on WPRK a few times, liked his voice, and offered him a part-time job playing music on the weekend. Already working a 50-60 hour week as a supervisor of restaurants, room service, and bar at an airport hotel, Drew didn't have much time to spare...but he did work Monday-Friday so why not take on a weekend gig? 

 

After a few months, in February of 1995, Drew met Ed Tyll, the midday talk show host at Real Radio. They bonded and Ed offered Drew a full time job as his producer/board operator/phone screener/whipping boy (that last part was conveniently left off). Despite the salary being about half of what he was earning at the hotel gig, Drew made the leap and took the job. Things quickly deteriorated with Ed and it was Jim Philips to the rescue. After about 2 years on Jim's show, Drew was given the chance to host the overnight show (midnight to six AM) when the host went on vacation. Again, love at first sight. The overnight host barely had time to unpack from his vacation before he was notified that there was a new sheriff in town and his name (given to Drew by Jim Philips) was Tombstone Durango. That name, thankfully, didn't stick and Overnights with Drew Garabo was born. Having had no formal training, no broadcasting classes, and very little guidance from management (who cares what's on in the middle of the night?), Drew had to find his own way by himself. He did midnight to 6am, Monday through Friday, for a few years and learned a lot while getting the station huge ratings (over a 20 share in a few books). 

 

Then, good ol' Ed Tyll got himself fired and there was a shakeup in the lineup. Drew went to evenings, 7 to midnight (later shortened to 7 to 11, mercifully) where he was paired up with the comedic genius known as Daniel Dennis (check out his podcast called A Mediocre Time with Tom and Dan) and the two became the best of friends. Sharing a love for edgy comedy, prank calls, rap music, and dancing all over the lines between bad taste and indecency, the two of them made radio magic that would get them canceled immediately in 2022. A crappy situation happened, their relationship fell apart, and Daniel went to another show while Drew carried on with other various producers. In 2005, after 11 years with the station, Real Radio made the decision to "go in a different direction" at night and The Drew Show was out. 

 

Fortunately, Drew had been talking to another radio station about what they were going to do when Howard Stern departed terrestrial radio (this station carried his morning show after Real Radio's parent company kicked Howard off their airwaves), and this station and management seemed interested in Drew hosting a local morning show. It took some wrangling and a waiting-out of a 3-month non-compete in his contract (still enforceable even if they fire you), but once Howard went to SIRIUS, The Morning After Show was born with Drew as host. Never really wanting to play music on the radio, it took some adjustment to share the spotlight with Breaking Benjamin and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but some decent radio was made. However, the "alternative rock" format was deemed unfeasible by someone at CBS Radio's corporate office, so they decided to switch the format to "adult classic hits" and fire everyone. Drew included. Bye bye, radio dreams. 

 

Thinking radio was done with him (and, to be honest, vice-versa), Drew started waiting tables the next night. His dad instilled in him a strong work ethic and there was no room for pride when it came to putting money in the credit union. This lasted a few months until Drew sat down with another mentor, Chris D'Orso, and talked about a job with his then-favorite sports team, The Orlando Magic. Chris got Drew an interview as a Ticket Sales Rep, an entry-level position that entailed cold-calling businesses and individuals in an attempt to sell them Magic ticket plans. Despite blowing the interview, Drew got the job and was soon promoted to Season Ticket Account Executive. After a few years of dealing with the constant rejection of sales, yearning to return to radio but with no opportunities on the horizon, Drew was lost. Shattered. Near broken. 

 

Then came a Facebook message from Stevie DaMann: "You ever think about getting back into radio? I saw an opportunity that you might be perfect for. Top 20 market needs a morning show." This led to a meeting with an old Orlando buddy of Drew's, Shark, about the chance to host The Morning X on Tampa Bay's 97X. Drew jumped at the chance, obviously, moved first himself and then his family to Tampa Bay, and the rest is just about history. The Morning X went away in 2012 but Drew had already been doing a shift on the new talk station 102.5 The Bone. He went from 10-noon, then noon to 3, and for the past who-knows-how-many years, he's been hosting the afternoon drive time spot. The very same one that his idol, friend, and mentor Jim Philips used to host! There have been different versions of the show, from In Your Face with Drew Garabo as a solo show to the ensemble cast of Drew Garabo Live, but Drew has finally found the best version of himself on the radio with his counterpart/soulmate/heterosexual life partner, John Senning. They are going on 3 years together with just the two of them and it's the most fun Drew has ever had. They coined the phrase "JADITA" so that John could have top billing (Drew's idea, John hated it) and it seems to have stuck. There, my friend, is the story of JADITA!