You may not know what he looks like, but you know his voice well. The Black & White chatted with HOT 99.5’s late-night DJ, Rob Kruz, about his radio career and some of his favorite memories on the air. Kruz, who graduated from the University of Michigan, hosts the Freek Show from 7 p.m. to midnight during the week.  

Black & White: When you started at 99.5 a year ago, did you begin with the same program you have now?

Rob Kruz: When I started, there was an opening taking over for the night show from seven p.m. to midnight and I came in, and it was just me. It was kind of scary.

B&W: What’s your favorite thing about working in radio?

RK: Anything relating to the phones. The best thing is that we can sit in there in a studio by ourselves, but when we actually get to talk to people who will tune in, listen,and have that interaction, that’s the coolest part.

B&W: Do you ever get to meet and work with celebrities?

RK: Not a ton, I mean I see some every now and then. [I got to meet] the Black Eyed Peas, which was very cool. I was face-to-face with Fergie, I was like ‘wow!’ And I just love music, so it’s really cool to work in a station that I think really has its thumb on the pulse with what’s going on in music and what’s going on in pop culture.

B&W: Do you like the music you play?

RK: I do. Most people think we wouldn’t because we hear it all the time, but I’m kind of a pop music junkie. So I would say a good 90 percent I like. There are always a couple songs that I could do without. I’m sure everybody feels that way.

B&W: What’s the weirdest thing a caller has ever asked you?

RK: One caller asked me if they could come to the station and beat me with a baby seal. I didn’t know if it was a compliment or not— or ethical to the baby seal, but certainly made me laugh. 

B&W: Do people recognize you or your voice in public?

RK: No one ever has! I wouldn’t really expect them to.

B&W: Is this your dream job? If you could work anywhere or at any station, what would it be?

RK: I’m lucky. I am working my dream job right now. HOT 99.5 is a station that I used to listen to and dream about working at. I got super lucky when they offered me the FREEK SHOW at night. I love going to work everyday. I’m also a huge fan of Z100 in New York, KIIS-FM in Los Angeles and Channel 95-5 in Detroit.

B&W: Do you choose each song that’s played or does someone tell you what/when to play certain songs?

RK: We have a music director that looks at pages and pages of research and decides what our weekly playlist should look like. Having said that, we are constantly taking requests via phone calls, emails, text’s, tweets etc. Listener feedback is extremely important to the success of HOT 99.5 

B&W: What was your favorite on air moment?

RK: I was on in Detroit. It was the night of an Eminem show and he came on stage very late. Fans called up after the show to complain about the delays. All of a sudden I got a call on our hotline: “Hi, This is Marshall, I wanted a chance to respond to what my fans are saying.” Sure enough, Eminem was listening and called up to explain the delays. He could not have been nicer on the phone. I was unbelievably star-struck.