We all know that MJ has been quite successful in his radio career. Now spanning 41 years since he first cracked a microphone in a broadcast studio at age 16, he has worked in New York City twice, Los Angeles, and Tampa Bay, all of which are major radio markets. In addition, his afternoon show has been on the air for over 20 years with syndication to dozens of radio stations around the country over that timeframe. Of course, the MJ Morning Show (and former MJ & BJ Morning Show) was also syndicated to big markets like Jacksonville, Atlanta, and St. Louis.
Throughout his success, MJ has kept a tight lid on how much money he has made in his career. He has mentioned that the Crotchety Old Man prank call CDs netted him a nice chunk of change, going toward the house he built and still lives in. But he has also openly disputed what the Celebrity Net Worth site says about his overall net worth. Surprisingly, he recently revealed a handful of salary figures he has earned at previous points in his career. This discussion cropped up on the show when a listener commented on one of his Instagram photos of he and Michelle, claiming his wife only married him for the money. Here is a recap of those figures:
- At 97 Star in the Virginia Beach, VA area, he took home just $17,500 per year. This would have been in the late 1980s.
- He was hired to work at Pirate Radio as a producer on its morning show in Los Angeles where he worked from 1989 to 1991. During this gig, he earned $50,000 annually.
- In 1992, WOVV-FM in West Palm Beach, FL brought him on board where he would host his first morning show. His salary for that role? $42,500 per year.
- Fast-forwarding to early 1994, 93.3 WFLZ-FM, a.k.a. “The Power Pig,” hired him to come to Tampa where he would team up with BJ to form the MJ & BJ Morning Show. His starting salary there was $55,000.
We may never know what he has earned since the mid-1990s, but clearly there has been a major shift in the radio industry with a shrinking number of job opportunities and far less pay than radio personalities used to make. Because of this, it is pretty obvious that MJ and the entire crew are doing the current incarnation of the MJ Morning Show because of their passion for being part of an ensemble morning radio program. In addition, they each have other forms of income streams.