Exclusive: The Dubai radio star who knocked back the coveted KIIS FM breakfast slot has broken his silence on why he walked away – and the chat he had with Kyle Sandilands when the opportunity came knocking.
Aussie-born broadcaster Kris Fade, 46, has locked in his immediate future by re-signing with Virgin Radio in Dubai on a one-year contract, turning down a chance to host ARN’s KIIS breakfast after The Kyle and Jackie O Show’s spectacular collapse.
Kris Fade has spoken out about his decision to stay in Dubai over moving back to Australia for KIIS FM’s coveted breakfast gig. Supplied
Speaking to nine.com.au, Fade said there were a number of reasons behind his choice, but emphasised he would “never say never” to a permanent return to Australia down the track.
“I feel relief,” he said after confirming his decision on The Kris Fade Show on Monday morning.
“It’s nice to publicly put it out there. I’ve called Dubai home for 19 years – I can’t just pack up my bags and go. There are things I’ve committed to that are starting in a few months, so that was one of the reasons.
“Another reason is – I love what I do on the radio here. I love my show, I love my team, I love the company I work for, and that’s a big part of it. My family are here as well; my wife, my kids, my two daughters are finishing off high school in the next two years. I think packing up our bags and going home now wouldn’t have been easy for them, either.”
While he is entirely at peace with his choice, Fade admitted that eventually returning home to Australia has always been his dream.
“I do miss home,” he said. “I’ve got my parents there, my brother and my sisters, and all that. But right now, the decision I made is 100 per cent the right one. Dubai has given me everything I’ve ever dreamt of, and I’m eager to keep going.
“Some of the things I’m working on over the next 12 months will be the biggest things I’ve ever done in my career.”
While pondering the decision, Fade decided to call his long-time friend and the one man who would understand it all – Sandilands.
Fade said he spoke to Sandilands after the opporunity came to light. Louise Kennerley/SMH
“Kyle and I, we’ve known each other for over 15 years,” he explained. “I think he’s one of the greatest radio presenters to ever go down. When I was coming up in radio, he was someone I looked up to, and he paved the way to showcase what talent can do for a radio station when it’s good.”
Indeed, when Sandilands secured his own multimillion-dollar contracts, he shattered the ceiling for what radio hosts could earn.
“I think that’s one aspect that we as radio presenters sometimes battle with programmers about is –what our worth is. I think he paved the way, and he opened up the doors for many other talents like myself to come through.”
The chat, he explained, was “very, very basic” but he wanted to ensure Sandilands knew what was happening amid the shock jock’s battle with ARN over his $100 million contract.
“We chat all the time anyway,” Fade said. “So when the opportunity came up, I just went, ‘Mate, you know, there’s an offer on the table. I don’t know where I’m at at this point, but I’ll keep you posted.’
“Then once I did make the decision, and it sort of already had gone public, I showed him a little message… again, we’re mates. When he came to Dubai, he stayed in my house. I wasn’t going to him for advice, I thought that wasn’t right.”
“But the thing with radio, it’s a very small community. I know them all in the UK, the States, Australia – we all communicate. Radio is a beautiful industry, so what I want to do going forward is keep pushing radio as a powerful source of medium.
“Even in a world of Instagram and TikTok, radio will always be there, no matter what. It will evolve, it will change. But when something happens, you go to it. You hear it live, you can call them live and millions of people can hear it.
Fade has interviewed many celebrities on his radio show, which reaches over a million listeners a day. Pictured with Noel Gallagher of Oasis (left). Instagram/@krisfade
“My show gets around 1.1 million listeners every single day, and we’ve been doing it for 16 years non-stop. It’s not an easy thing to do. I want to keep smashing radio, and that’s my first and foremost – whatever comes from it, comes from it.”
When asked if he’ll be tuning into Sandilands’ new subscription-based project, which was confirmed when he settled for $12.7million with ARN, Fade’s answer was simple: “Definitely”.
“Whatever he does it on – if it’s a streaming platform – it’s radio. I’m sure he’ll create it with callers, and it’s going to sound just like a radio station,” Fade said.
“The more, the merrier. A competitive market is so important; you don’t want just one show dominating, you really want it to be competitive. So I look forward to it.”
Fade is going to be very busy over the next year, continuing with his radio show and also hosting his podcast, One On One With Kris Fade. His protein bar company, Fade Fit, has just signed to Chemist Warehouse in Australia and will hit the shelves in the next six months. The former Dubai Bling star also teases a TV return in the near future, but won’t confirm what that is just yet.
“I’ve got one job at hand right now to deliver the best radio show for my network to bring in the most money from my network and deliver the ratings, so I’m going to continue to do that again,” he said.
“But I will never close the door [to Australia]. I’ll never say never. But right now, Dubai is my home, and I’m so happy with my decision.”