Zach McCormick is the new midday host at 89.3 The Current.

“The bloom is still very much on the rose,” McCormick said with a laugh. “It’s a little intimidating joining a station full of such experienced DJs. It’s been a blast so far.”

Zach McCormick (Sara Fish / Minnesota Public Radio)

McCormick, 33, replaces Jade Tittle, who left the station in October after 15 years due to issues with a stalker who had also harassed former Current DJ Mary Lucia.

As a teenager in Minneapolis, McCormick was already active in the local music scene, volunteering at the youth music venue TC Underground, attending all-ages punk shows with his dad and landing a gig as a youth host at the University of Minnesota’s Radio K. He continued to work on-air at Radio K while he attended the U.

After graduating in 2013, McCormick spent three years covering music for the now-defunct City Pages. He later returned to radio part-time doing weekends and overnights on the late Go 96.3. He was hired in early 2023 to fill a similar role at The Current. McCormick said he never thought he’d go into radio full time.

“Honestly, I kind of thought radio was something I did for fun,” he said. “It’s a really tough industry and there’s not a ton of jobs out there.”

McCormick began the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. shift on Monday.

“I’ve got some great feedback from people at the station and listeners,” he said. “Someone compared me to (former Current DJ) Sean McPherson, which was great.”

McCormick’s hire is the latest move in a near-complete overhaul of the Minnesota Public Radio station’s weekday lineup. Two of The Current’s original DJs left abruptly. Evening host Mark Wheat departed in June 2020 while in the middle of a vacation. He wrote he was going to “take the plunge and follow my dreams” in a message posted to the station’s website.

Lucia left the evening drivetime shift in April 2022. In a Facebook post, Lucia wrote that she was “concerned with equity and fair treatment of all of my sisters at the station.” She took several shots at management during her final on-air shift, soon after which the station fired program director Jim McGuinn.

McCormick joins late afternoon host Jessica Paxton and evening DJ Ayisha Jaffer along with “Morning Show” host Jill Riley, who stands with Bill DeVille as the final two remaining DJs who’ve been at The Current since it debuted in January 2005.

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