Virgin Radio has signed a virtual unknown to present a daily new music show – 26 year-old DJ Kelly will host the new show dedicated to breakthrough bands and cutting-edge music. Insiders hope the recruitment of a relative unknown and the inclusion of a new music programme on their schedules will help them shift their reputation of only playing classic rock.
Announcing the show a spokesman for the station said: "We hope this will finally convince people we're not all about Genesis and Fleetwood Mac. We're focusing our commitment on new bands, something we've been doing for some time but we don't get the credit we deserve for that. People don't realise we were the first to play bands like The Coral and The Thrills before they became known."
Kelly, currently a presenter on Century FM in Nottingham, will host a two-hour show between 7pm and 9pm, but Virgin’s new music show up against the Zane Lowe’s new Radio 1 show, also charged with the task of championing new music.