'They're trying to kill us': KFAN's Power Trip Morning Show team rips iHeart changes

The Power Trip Morning Show got off to an explosive start Tuesday morning at a new start time, with one of its lead hosts suggesting the station's owner is trying to fire them by making a series of changes to the format.

One of the highest-rated morning shows in the country, listeners were confused when they tuned in as usual at 5:30 a.m. only to realize that the show wasn't starting until 6 a.m.

That wasn't the only change either, with co-hosts Cory Cove, Chris Hawkey and Paul "Meatsauce" Lambert revealing the apparent station-wide end to the use of licensed music, while also lamenting the number of commercials that play in the podcast versions of the shows.

As always with KFAN, there is every chance that Tuesday's display was an extended version of the station's ongoing "bit," and after the outburst, the Power Trip returned to the air as normal at 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday.

"We're back on the air at 5:30, look at us, here we are," Hawkey said Wednesday. "We had some discussions and it worked out just fine, right? Did you guys have any discussions or was it just me?"

"No, I did, too," Cory Cove replied.

"Props to [KFAN Program Director Chad Abbott] for coming to our defense yesterday. Thank you, Chad, for being our guy," Hawkey said. "He's always our guy. I like Chad."

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Hawkey in particular seemed unhappy with changes to the format, suggesting on Tuesday that higher-ups (the station is owned by audio giant iHeartMedia) are trying to drive the ratings down so they have an excuse to fire the Power Trip team.

"It's the beginning of the end. I tell you why ... they took away our music, they're playing 700,000 commercials during each podcast," he said.

"I think they're trying to kill us so they don't have to pay us anymore. And I mean that. I'm airing my dirty laundry on the air, I think that's what's happening. I've been puzzled about this since they talked to us about it, I think they're trying to fire us without having to fire us, because if they fire us they have to give us [severance pay] but if they just drive our ratings into the ground then they don't have to fire us."

He then continued to say he was told that the reason for the show being reduced by 30 minutes was because the station couldn't afford to raise their salaries this year.

"Remember why they told us they were doing it ... want me to say it on the air? They said they couldn't give us raises this year so they were going to do this instead," Hawkey said.

"Wow they actually said that to you?" Cove responded, with Lambert then saying: "Yeah, to both of us."

Cove then said that the shift from 5:30 a.m. to 6 a.m. "was our choice," saying: "I voted yes immediately when it was offered.

"If we don't want to do it at 6 we can go back to 5:30, but it was our choice."

But Hawkey and Lambert were not convinced, with Hawkey saying: "No I think they would have told us we had to do it, and you saying yes was very convenient for them."

The conversation continued with the trio complaining about what Cove described as "indiscriminate" ad breaks on the podcast version of the show.

"We should bring this up: If you're mad about all the commercials on the podcast so are we. We have nothing to do with it. If you think that the Power Trip is getting paid because of all the commercials you're hearing on the podcast: guess who's wrong?" Hawkey said.

"What was it Zach [Halverson, KFAN producer] said, there were six commercials in a row the other day? We have nothing to do with that."

Cove added: "There are indiscriminate breaks. It's not like the commercial breaks for the podcasts happen when we throw it to break, it's just thrown indiscriminately anywhere. People are going 'It's hard to listen to Initials when halfway through question three you go on a 60-second commercial break, by the time you come back I forget what the clues were.' We have nothing to do with that."

"I would rather burn this building to the ground and stand in the middle of it as it burns than have that happen," Hawkey said. "I hate it. They're trying to kill my baby."

Note: Bring Me The News co-owner Joe Nelson is a former KFAN employee. He played no role in the writing of this article.