metro >> on the cover
On The Airwaves
Shelley Dube reprises her DJ job at Israel's
revived Voice of Peace radio, now an Internet station.
Don Cohen I Contributing Writer
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
A 1983 Israeli newspaper
profiles the Voice of Peace radio station
and its staff, including Shelley Sherman
(now Dube), center, the only woman then
broadcasting from the Peace Ship in the
Mediterranean Sea.
Now, instead of being the only woman
on the ship among a staff of 19, she
produces her show from a room in her
Farmington Hills home remodeled by her
husband, Otto, managing funeral director
at Hebrew Memorial Chapel in Oak Park.
Her small soundproof studio is where
she keeps "the music, the microphone and
the Mae
Early Start
Dube got her start at Southfield High
School's radio station, WSHJ, as a ninth-
grader in 1976. By the time she graduated,
she was not just a DJ, but also had become
the student general manager of the then-24/7
station.
"We were taught how to present ourselves
on air and were also trained in the 'behind
the scenes' portion:' she explained. "One day
when I was on the air, the owner of the now-
defunct WBRB in Mount Clemens heard the
show, contacted my teacher and offered me
my first job as a disc jockey on the week-
ends."
She took the job, but was let go when she
asked for time off to attend her prom.
"On the bright side, I learned a great
deal about Frank Sinatra and Perry Como:'
she says, adding that she was the youngest
female DJ on the air in the '70s and one of
the first woman DJs in Michigan.
After graduating in 1979, she was the
first woman DJ broadcasting on weekends
for WWCK-FM 105 in Flint, the No. 1 rated
AOR (album-oriented rock) station in its
market.
In 1982, she joined what was its sister sta-
tion in many ways: WWMN-AM was man-
aged and broadcast by women for women.
Off To Israel
The experiment lasted less than a year, so,
in 1983, Dube, then 21, left with her bubbie
(grandmother) Bessie Kutnick, then 70, on a
long-promised trip.
"She always said, when you turn 21, I'm
going to take you to Israel; Dube recalls.
"We were supposed to stay for a month. But,
after falling in love with our land, meeting
Abie Nathan and learning about the Voice of
Peace (VOP), I stayed for 31/2 years."
VOP had been founded in 1973 by Israeli
peace activist Nathan. He anchored the ship
just outside Israeli waters to avoid Israeli
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August 15 • 2013
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Shelley Sherman (Dube) in the early 1980s at WWCK-FM 105 in Flint, the No. 1
rated album-oriented rock station in its market
"We were very isolated," she says. "We got to
land once every three weeks for a couple of days.
But it was wonderful. I'll never forget being up
on deck and looking out at how beautiful the
Mediterranean was."
regulations and to show his Arab audience
his independence. His mostly British-born
staff broadcast primarily in English and
introduced Western pop music to its Middle
Eastern audience. It brought new music and
a new attitude as it promoted Nathan's politi-
cal and humanitarian activities and broad-
cast messages of peace.
It was reported at the time that ex-Beatle
John Lennon provided some of the financial
backing to launch the station. Whether true
or not, both Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono,
signed hundreds of posters for Nathan to sell
when he needed cash. And the Beatles were
always a mainstay on the air.
"When I met Abie, I had no idea who he
was:' Dube recalls. "He had an infectious
personality. You could see right away that he
was the kind of guy who got things done."
After they began to talk radio, she con-
vinced him she wasn't afraid to be the only
woman on the ship, and she was offered
a job.
"We were very isolated," she says. "We got
to land once every three weeks for a couple
of days. But it was wonderful. I'll never forget
being up on deck and looking out at how
beautiful the Mediterranean was."
After a year, she left the ship and spun
records at the nightclub in the Sheraton Tel
Aviv until 1986. She also hosted a series of
Israel-produced original programs, "Vistas of
Israel," that were broadcast on local radio sta-
tions throughout the U.S.
On Air Again
Fast forward 26 years to 2012. Dube is
keeping busy with Otto and their blended
family of four children — Danniell, Annie,
Yohnatan and Amichai. She was volunteer-
ing throughout the Jewish community and
doing voiceover work and other projects
when the VOP re-entered her life.
"I saw the Voice of Peace website and sent
an email; she says. "Some of the current
VOP staff said they remembered listening
to me when they were in the armed forces."
One thing led to another and last August
she started broadcasting her own show that
airs each Thursday at 8 p.m. Israeli time (1
p.m. Detroit time).
"It's an eclectic mix:' she says of her
show. "I can play anything I want, from
Ray Charles to the Allman Brothers." She
taps into VOP's huge music library via the
Internet to put it together.
Her shows are usually recorded in
advance, but she ensures they are topical
and current. For example, she had a July 4
program of American music, and she played
some Bob Dylan days before his mid-July
concert at DTE Energy Music Theatre. But,
just as it has always been, all VOP DJs play at
least one Israeli song each hour. Hers comes
on the half-hour.
"We are delighted to have Shelley back
with us at the Voice of Peace says Mark
Hanna, VOP's program and music manager.
He, too, is a former VOP DJ. He says that of
the 21 current DJs, 10 worked on the Peace
Ship, and eight of them, including Shelley,
comprise 90 percent of the broadcast day.
"After Shelley's return on her weekly
`Smooth Sounds' show, her unique voice and
style were so popular with our listeners that
in June we offered her the weeknight [in
Israel that is Sunday through Thursday] late
show. 'Midnight Sailing!'
Dube says, "Broadcasting has changed
tremendously over the years. Whether you're
listening via Internet, radio or satellite, it's
a treat to provide people with music they
enjoy. I am very excited being back on the
Voice of Peace, which can now be heard in
Israel and overseas.
"The ship may have sunk, but the Voice
of Peace and her universal message remains
inspiring:' Dube says. "I still get a thrill every
time I open the microphone — ifs as much
fun at 51 as it was at 15."
❑
Listen to Shelley Dube's weekly "Smooth
Sounds" program at 1 p.m. EST each Thursday,
and "Midnight Sailing" each weeknight at 5
p.m. EST at www.thevoiceofpeace.co .iL Reporter
Don Cohen clearly remembers first hearing Bob
Dylan's classic "Masters of War" on VOP at about
3 a.m. when he was living in Israel in 1980.