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Motor City, Thank You For 29 Years at WRIF – Meltdown

Author Meltdown
Meltdown

Wow! I can’t believe another year has ticked off. I started at WRIF on November 1st, 1995. My first break was shortly after 2 am, coming out of Alice Cooper’s “Elected”. Yes, election season was in full swing.

Chris Henderson and Brad Arnold of 3 Doors Down, with Meltdown and Toby Wright

I was so excited—just a kid in a new city. The only people I knew were my coworkers. Lots has happened in that time since I first cracked the mic on the almighty RIFF.

29 Years Of Detroit Sports History

The Red Wings won 4 Stanley Cups. Crazy to think that I’ve known Darren McCarty since before he won his first Cup. He treats me like a brother!

Detroit Red Wing
Dave Reginek

The Pistons won a championship.

The Tigers appeared in a World Series.

The Lions were mostly terrible, but are now a force.

None of the stadiums or arenas were in the city, except the Joe.

29 Years Of Music

Bands like Shinedown, Disturbed, Three Days Grace, Linkin Park, Seether, Foo Fighters, Godsmack, Five Finger Death Punch, Three Doors Down, Halestorm, and many more were yet to arrive.

“Hair” metal was gone but made a comeback.

Will Spurrier
Robert Trujillo and Meltdown before show one with Metallica at Ford Field.

Metallica has played on Bell Isle, The Joe, Comerica Park, The Palace of Auburn Hills, Ford Field, and The Fillmore (The State when they played there doing all covers)

Pine Knob went through a name change only to come back to Pine Knob.

On stage at Pine Knob trying to look tall.

We lost musicians like Chris Cornell, Chester Bennington, Eddie Van Halen, Neil Peart, Wayne Swinney from Saliva, The Abbott brothers from Pantera, Layne Staley from Alice in Chains, Peter Steele, Ronnie James Dio, and so many more.

This was the first time I interviewed Kid Rock. His sold-out show at the Palace of Auburn Hills in October of 1999.

Detroit has continued its musical dominance with acts like The White Stripes, Kid Rock, I Prevail, Eminem, and others.

CMFT

This is me giving Corey Taylor my extra copy of Under Lock and Key. Who doesn’t like to go Rockin’ with Dokken?!?!

29 Years On WRIF

I’ve had a chance to live out my dreams. I always wanted to be in the rock world, but I never imagined I’d be in it as much as I am. To know childhood rock heroes on a first-name basis is mind-blowing.

bob
Meltdown
Bob Seger dressed up like himself at Kid Rock’s Halloween party in 2019. I didn’t dress like him. 🙂

I just wanted to post to say Thank You for accepting a kid from the cornfields of Western New York as your own. I may not have grown up here, but I was Made In Detroit!

JMZ

Meltdown

Godsmack Brings RIFF Fest 2024 to Close with Epic Headlining Set

Godsmack closed out RIFF Fest 2024 at Pine Knob Music Theatre with an amazing performance. Sleep Theory, Wage War, Asking Alexandria, and Seether all help set the stage for an awesome night of rock!

The band led off with “Surrender” and “You and I” before playing fan favorites like “Cryin’ Like A Bitch!!!, “Awake,” and “Voodoo.” During “Batalla de los Tambores,” they even covered “Back in Black,” “Walk This Way,” “Enter Sandman,” and “Tom Sawyer.”

Godsmack was a great way to end the night for RIFF Fest 2024 at Pine Knob Music Theatre; see you next year!

Setlist for September 28, 2024

  1. Surrender
  2. You and I
  3. When Legends Rise
  4. 1000hp
  5. Cryin’ Like a Bitch!!
  6. Speak
  7. Straight Out of Line
  8. Awake
  9. Keep Away
  10. Voodoo
  11. Batalla De Los Tambores (With Back in Black, Walk this Way, Enter Sandman, Moby Dick, and Tom Sawyer snippets)
  12. Whatever
  13. Under Your Scars
  14. Bulletproof
  15. I Stand Alone

Meltdown started on the mighty WRIF on the evening of Halloween, 1995. Technically, his first on-air shift was the morning of November 1st. Moving to the Motor City from Buffalo, N.Y., he has built a career and family. Over his almost three-decade stint at RIFF, he's had the privilege to work with some of the biggest personalities in Detroit radio history. He boasts of being just the second-afternoon drive jock in the station's illustrious 53-year history. Along with his love for rock music and attending concerts, he's also an avid Harley-Davidson enthusiast and hockey player. He plays year-round and manages to squeeze in a few charity games throughout the year. Meltdown writes about the Detroit Red Wings, rock music, and Detroit concert venues.

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