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SUCCESS UNDER 45
Stacy Sturm
Co-Owner, URL Radio
DOB: May 20, 1974
High School: Bismarck High School
College: University of Mary
Family: Greg (Husband); Summer (12) & Ty (9)
Favorite Quote: “All the Woulda-Coulda-
Shouldas, layin’ in the sun. Talkin’ ’bout the
things they woulda coulda shoulda done.
But those Woulda-Coulda-Shouldas all ran
away and hid - from one little Did.”
-Shel Silverstein
Favorite Books: ”America’s Cheapest Family
Gets You Right on the Money”
by Steve Economides and
Annette Economides,
“Where the Sidewalk Ends” by Shel Silverstein,
“To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee,
“The Odyssey” by Homer
Hobbies: Digital scrapbooking, playing video
games (especially “Just Dance” on the Wii),
cooking, baking and listening to music.
To
look at Stacy Sturm, you would
never think she has nearly 20 years’
experience in the Bismarck-Mandan
radio market. But don’t let that
youthful appearance and demeanor fool you, she
actually has nearly 35 years under her belt. “I think I
had the radio bug when I was four. I used to host my
own radio show.” And she’s still doing the same thing
today at URL Radio, the Bismarck-based Internet
radio station she co-founded four years ago. “In fact,
some days, those shows are better than what I put on
the air today!”
URL Radio (www.urlradio.net) was born out of
a nostalgic conviction to local radio. Having worked
for local radio stations on and off from 1994 to 2009,
Sturm witnessed first-hand the shift from local to
corporate radio ownership. With a desire to open
their own station, but without the million dollars
needed to buy a traditional on-air signal, Sturm and
co-owner Nicole Morrison-Mathern decided streaming
Internet radio was the way to go. After getting
22 | THECITYMAG.COM | APRIL 2013
“ I thought;
‘This is fun!
People actually
get paid to do
this?’
”
some old equipment from The University of Mary
and business guidance from the IDEA center, URL
Radio opened its doors in April 2009.
Sturm credits a gregarious immediate and
extended family for her creativity, love of communications
and ability to laugh at herself. Watching her
father and uncles play in a band and interacting with
dozens of cousins, she honed her performing abilities
at an early age. “It was a big family reunion almost
every Sunday,” she said. When this self-described
‘over the top kid’ wasn’t directing games and productions
at family gatherings, she would hold court on
the 5th grade playground with a stand-up comedy
routine at recess.
While in college, that “radio bug” took another
small bite. When this U-Mary mass communication
major hit the radio lab, things began to click. “I
thought; This is fun! People actually get paid to do
this?” During this time, Sturm interviewed someone
at Y93 for a school project. That led to a job interview
with the program director and a part-time on-air
gig while still in college. Even after graduation,
through stints in newspaper and public
relations, she continued to keep one foot in the
door of local radio. “I just couldn’t shake it. I
loved it.”
Several years later, it was an unusual
encounter that led to Sturm’s first and most
memorable full-time gig. Driving home from a
part-time shift at Cool 98.7, she was “checking
out the competition” down the dial at Y93.
When Bob Brady couldn’t find a listener to
answer a trivia question, Sturm called. “But I
couldn’t say who I was because I worked for another
radio station!” The comical on-air banter
that followed led to a meeting out of which the
popular “Brady and Stacy in the Morning” was
conceived and began its seven year run.
As corporate radio took over, Brady and
Stacy were bought out of their contracts, with
Sturm returning to a “normal job” in public
relations and communications. But again, she
was bitten, this time after a conversation with
Morrison-Mathern, who shared a similar affinity
for local radio.
Getting back on air has been the easy part.
“Radio Stacy is super fun. Business Stacy is not
so much fun!” But so far, URL Radio has done
well, with growing and diverse listenership
from all over the world. They’ve also grown
their services because of their client’s growing
internet marketing needs. They now also blog,
dabble in video, podcasting and guide clients
on social media.
Sturm says her most memorable moments
so far are the personal stories she was able to
tell during a weeklong broadcast from Guatemala
and her coverage of the Missouri River
flood of 2011. “You know you are doing what
you are meant to be doing when you wake up
in the morning and go to work and it’s not hard
for you to go to work.”
A lifelong communicator and former reporter, Michael
Lindblom is a student of dynamics of human interaction.
Photo by Kristin Byram
CITY MAGAZINE SUCCESS UNDER 45
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