Vic Latino: From Sachem to World Famous DJ

To think that Vic Latino's radio career may have never happened. Had he not developed a small infection after having his wisdom teeth removed things could have been very different.

It's a rare story of fate that forced one of the world's premier DJs and radio entrepreneurs from one course of life to the next with one slight decision.

Having worked at Fox Hill Golf Course at the Baiting Hollow Club for four summers, Latino – then known just as Victor Canales – was about to spend the rest of his life maintaining courses. He was an assistant superintendent there, and figured a degree in horticulture from SUNY Plattsburgh would help sure up his chances of running a golf course one day. He was even toying with the idea of transferring to the University of Massachusetts for its golf maintenance program since it's one of the best in the northeast.

"Part of me wanted to be a chiropractor as well," he said, sitting in a conference room at the Party FM offices on Veterans Memorial Highway in Ronkonkoma. "I was taking pre-med courses for that."

Then came the toothache.

He never made it back to school to sign up for a chiropractor summer clinical because of the three days spent nursing his teeth. Not wanting to waste the summer and not so anxious to get back on the golf course for a fifth year, he was left with an empty plate and did the next best thing: take an internship with MTV.

"I knew if I went back to the golf course again that was it," he said. "That was destiny." 

Not only did Latino jump full force into his Yo! MTV Raps gig, where he was awestruck working with entertainment personalities like Dr. Dre and Ed Lover, he never even returned to Plattsburgh.

"I think I'm three credits shy of graduating," jokes Latino, who graduated from Sachem in January 1993 when the district offered split sessions and early graduation to deserving students.

This was a young man that hosted radio shows on Sachem's 91.9 FM-WSHR (now known as The Arrow), but admits he had no aspirations to be involved with entertainment, television or the radio air waves. He recorded his show in the morning and listened to it when he got home around 3 p.m.

He listened to Judy Torres, Stevie B and other freestyle dance artists, but primarily because that genre of music was exploding in the early 1990s. Latino wasn't envisioning a career where he would one day change history because of his own flare for the dance and house generations.

Working in New York City at the internship he met a handful of celebrities and caught a glimpse of the nightlife that surrounds party music and big personalities. He liked it … a lot.

Latino hooked up Bill Terry, the promotions director at WBLI, and eventually started working for the station, which for years has had the reputation as the biggest and best on the Island. He worked nights with Al Levine – who he credits as a mentor along with Broadway Bill Lee – did overnights by himself and by 1997 he was approached by Jed Morey and John Caracciolo about building up stations with Jarad Broadcasting on the Island.

Latino did that for a couple years before Cox Radio approached him about starting a party station in Orlando. Within a few months that station went No. 1 and Latino – who picked up the on-air Latino name in Florida – was headed to Miami to start WPYM.

"Then Clear Channel said what is this guy doing," he said, occasionally looking at his BlackBerry during the interview; his mind running everywhere.

So it was back to New York where Latino was tasked with helping bring WKTU back in the fold. It worked. Latino was a radio king, reaching No. 1 in the biggest radio market in the world.

"That's when it all kicked into high gear," he said. "It's the Big Apple, the big city. If you're going to do it, that's where you do it. Every door was opened once I started there."

From doing network news on ABC, FOX and NBC to releasing dance albums, Latino has built himself into one of the most well-listened to DJs in the world. He even landed a appearance on the Emmy Award winning Ellen show where he dee-jayed and performed the opening monologue with Ellen Degeneres.

In 2007, Latino returned to his roots on Long Island and again worked for Morey, this time at TMO Radio. In early 2009, Latino and Caracciolo formed JVC Broadcasting and bought out Morey, offering Latino his first chance to be an owner and vice president of a radio group.

Today they operate Party FM (105.3 FM), La Fiesta – Suffolk's first Latin party station - (98.5 and 96.9 FM) and La Fiesta (1490 AM) on the Jersey Shore.

Latino doesn't just have a managerial hold on Party 105, he's the main on-air talent, hosting Vic Latino's Neighborhood with Matt Goldapper – another Sachem graduate – from 3-6 p.m. It's a respite to push aside the corporate mangling of the day and focus on his listeners.

"I'll never lose that part of it," Latino said. "There are some days when I'm so stressed out with work, crunching numbers all day, that I look forward to going on the air for three hours."

He has a unique and friendly approach on air, spreading his passion for his listeners thin with every word. Millions enjoy his catchy voice and charismatic approach as a top notch radio man. He's built a cult following, especially on Long Island.

Outside of the station, his music tastes and DJ persona has landed him the ability to produce albums, several of which have come out under the Ultra Records label. He's also on tour with basketball superstar Dennis Rodman right now and gearing up towards their Asian set this summer. 

"He's the true meaning of celebrity," said Latino, who mentioned Rodman has a vast knowledge of classic rock. "He's not what everyone thinks he is. He's older than the Dennis Rodman that used to play for the Chicago Bulls. He loves music and knows music."

And Rodman is just the tip of the iceberg. Throw famous names out there and chances are Latino has worked with them, spoke with them, or has a close mutual friend. In the DJ world, Tiesto and Benassi are as big it gets and Latino spoke fondly of the two, who started their careers around the same time.

With JVC Broadcasting growing rapidly and Latino's name lifting off to new heights with entertainment projects worldwide, the surreal sense of it all surprisingly hasn't hit him yet.

"The surreal thing is that I grew up on Long Island, went to Sachem, did radio at Sachem and thought it was just a quick 45 minutes to pass the time in class," said Latino, who still lives in Holbrook because he wants his four daughters to go through Sachem like he did. "Growing up in Sachem there was nothing ever bad about it. There was no crime, no poverty, no segregation, it was a great community to grow up in.

"Seventeen years later I own radio stations on Long Island and still get to do what I want. When you're growing up the littlest things you take advantage of end up being the biggest things in life."