Meet DJ Montana Ali | Radio Personality & DJ

We had the good fortune of connecting with DJ Montana Ali and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi DJ Montana, what’s something about your industry that outsiders are probably unaware of?
I’ll say the biggest thing that I feel like people don’t understand about radio is that we have a boss just like any other job. People think radio personalities have complete control over what’s played on-air and that we’re able to do whatever we want, but that’s not even close to true. Most radio stations have a Music Director who does all the chart research and puts together the music for each show. The host just walks in and handles the speaking part of things. So it does get annoying after a while when people constantly ask why a certain song is played so much. I just have to tell them that’s not on me, we have a director who handles all that. But don’t get me wrong, there are some Program Directors that are more laid back than others and they allow the host to mix in a few songs here and there to add that unexpectedness and energy to the show.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I host The Night Shift on 96.3 The Block in Greenville, SC (Monday-Friday, 7PM-12AM). I’ve been in radio for 6 years now, I first started out hosting weekday overnights. From there, I started hosting weekend afternoons and at one point, I was on-air seven days a week before the pandemic hit. But like most people, I was let go at the station for almost 2 years until recently when they brought me back to help get the station to a top spot as we were pre-pandemic. Radio was never actually a dream of mine and I’m not much of a people person, so to have a company see a hidden talent in me and give me an opportunity that I didn’t even know I was ready for, it’s an amazing feeling. I think me being an introvert has been the biggest challenge I’m having to overcome. It’s a lot of days where I’m not in the mental space or mood to be the “life of the party” or even be talkative/around people, but at the end of the day, I still have to give my listeners 100%. The most important thing I’ve been told by a radio peer of mine was “Always be yourself and make yourself relatable. Your listeners are always able to tell when you’re not being authentic, so get on-air and just be yourself”. I’ve definitely learned a lot over the years but I also feel like I’ve accomplished a lot. Starting out as the overnight show host to now being promoted as the host for one of the biggest shows on the station is huge. Back in 2019, I won DJ/On-air personality of the year in South Carolina; now as the night show host, I’m hoping to repeat and win even bigger this time around.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
One thing I’ll definitely say is, I love my city. Born and raised in Greenville, SC. So many people from up north and all over are starting to move here. So with that, of course they’re starting to invest more into the city. This year, we’ve been top ranked for a few different things, including our downtown area. We have one of the nicest downtowns and we have a river that runs through the middle of it, which is dope. Within these past 5-10 years though, they’ve been bringing a lot of the big attractions and restaurants that you see in bigger cities like Atlanta and Charlotte here. I like to look at us as a chill little city that still gets active, cause you’ll be able to relax and clear your mind but you’ll also have some memorable nights. One place we definitely have to hit though is Truth Grill and Chill. If you’re from the Greenville area, then you know about Truth. Dope vibes, good food, and the day parties gone hit every time. The owners and staff are good people all around too. It’s just a dope spot that I can vouch for and say they’re in the city and really for the community.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I definitely have to give a shoutout to my team, OnDemand. We’ve all heard before that one man can’t do it by himself, and it’s true. Having a strong and solid team around you is probably one of the most important things I’ve learned while building my empire. When you have multiple things, businesses, all going at the same time, it’s a lot on one person. So that’s where having a team comes into place. So many people complain about how 24 hours isn’t enough in a day, but it is. It’s the fact that you just need to plan better, value your time, and learn how to delegate. I couldn’t have accomplished some of the things I have, if it wasn’t for the team. Shoutout to them and shoutout to everybody that’s in my corner.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/djmontana_ali/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/djmontana_ali

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DJMontanaali/

Image Credits
Troy Williams