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Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Charlamagne ousted from The Beat

After six months hosting mornings on The Beat (WPHI, 100.3), Charlamagne was shown the door Monday.

And since his termination came two days after he interviewed rapper Beanie Sigel -- who had just released a Jay-Z diss track called "Average Cats" -- hip-hop message boards lit up with rumors that Jay-Z (Sigel's onetime mentor) had Charlamagne riffed.

Both Andy Rosen, who runs the Radio One stations in Philadelphia, and Charlamagne himself deny the link..

Reached by cell in a cab in New York, Charlamagne scoffed, saying: "They [WPHI] wanted to move in a different direction."

Rosen said Charlamagne left "on the best of terms."

Best assessment: Charlamagne's ratings didn't budge, except among men 18-34. But six months is not exactly a long trial.

He is expected to be paid off for the remainder of his two-year contract.

Rosen said the station would continue to play music in the mornings and would entertain the idea of hiring a new morning show.

(If you have 50 minutes to kill, hear Charlamagne's interview with Sigel here.)

Posted by Michael Klein @ 3:49 PM  Permalink | Post a comment
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About Michael Klein
Michael Klein chronicles local people, places and things (in easy-to-digest portions) three days a week in his Inquirer column "INQlings." He also covers the restaurant scene in his Thursday Food column, "Table Talk." See his work at http://www.philly.com/inquirer/columnists/michael_klein.
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