Peter Elliot Rosenberg (born July 23, 1979)
[Chris Richards]
''Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...
'', May 31, 2013. is an American radio disc jockey, television show host, and professional wrestling personality, who is signed to
WWE where he is a one-time
WWE 24/7 Champion. He is a co-host of two
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
radio programs: ''
Ebro in the Morning'', the weekday morning show at
hip hop radio station
WQHT ("Hot 97"); and ''
The Michael Kay Show'' on
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN ...
affiliate
WEPN-FM, which is also simulcast on the
YES Network.
Early life
Rosenberg was born and raised in
Chevy Chase, Maryland, to
M.J. Rosenberg, a
Capitol Hill
Capitol Hill, in addition to being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues. It is one of the ...
staffer father and public school teacher mother, and he attended
Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School.
[Matthew Shaer]
"Hot 97’s Morning Jew,"
''Tablet Magazine, Tablet'', May 28, 2013. He describes his upbringing as "a very Jewish, upper middle class, regular suburban life."
[http://podcastone.com/Steve-Austin-Show-Clean?showAllEpisodes=true] He was introduced to hip hop by his older brother,
and has also cited popular songs such as "
Parents Just Don't Understand" by
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince as early influences. Visiting his grandparents in
Rockaway Beach in
Queens, New York
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
, US, he was influenced by radio shows hosted by
DJ Red Alert and
Marley Marl. He obtained his first set of turntables at the age of 14 years.
[J. Pablo]
"Q&A: HOT 97’s Peter Rosenberg Talks ‘Minor League Rappers’ and Ebro,"
''Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...
'', July 20, 2013.
Career
Radio
In the summer before his freshman year at the
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of ...
, Rosenberg started hosting a late-night underground hip hop show, ''From Dusk 'Til Dawn'', on campus radio station
WMUC-FM. His initial DJ name was "PMD," an acronym for "Peter From Maryland" (a name given to him by Marley Marl while winning a contest on Marl's radio show). After graduating from college, Rosenberg performed as a DJ at a variety of radio stations in the DC area, including
WPGC,
WHFS and on talk radio at
WJFK-FM. He began making online parody videos, which were seen by the soon-to-be program manager of New York's
Hot 97 Ebro Darden, and these led to his 2007 hiring at the radio station.
Rosenberg co-hosts the weekday morning show, ''The Hot 97 Morning Show'', on Hot 97 from 6 to 10 a.m. with Ebro and
Laura Stylez. They play contemporary hip hop and R&B tracks, interview musicians, and discuss music, relationships, sex and race in a straightforward style. He also hosts ''Real Late With Rosenberg'' on Sunday nights on Hot 97, and he and Cipha Sounds co-host the podcast ''Juan Epstein'', which has featured guests such as
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one o ...
,
Eminem,
Rick Ross
William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper.
Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Diddy's Bad ...
and
Pusha T.
Hot 97 is the most listened-to hip hop station in New York City and Rosenberg has said that he dreamed of being on the station as a child.
Rosenberg is also known for supporting and introducing the public to up-and-coming New York rap artists.
[Andrew Marantz]
"Old School,"
''The New Yorker
''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'', April 7, 2014. He was the first media personality to interview rapper
Earl Sweatshirt
Thebe Neruda Kgositsile (born February 24, 1994), also known by his stage name Earl Sweatshirt, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Kgositsile was originally known by the moniker Sly Tendencies when he began rapping in 2008, ...
after he returned in 2012 from a nearly two-year hiatus in
Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...
. In an April 2014 ''
New Yorker'' piece on Rosenberg, he explained: "Since I have a foot in both worlds, an artist can play me three tracks, and I can go, ‘This one only hip-hop heads like me will appreciate. This one could be big, but it’s corny. But this one could reach a lot of people, without you sacrificing who you are’".
After becoming mayor of New York City in 2014,
Bill de Blasio
Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who served as the 109th mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he held the office of New Y ...
's debut traditional Friday morning mayoral radio interview was by phone with Rosenberg and Ebro on ''The Hot 97 Morning Show''.
He also hosts a number of podcasts including Bite the Mic with
Mike Tyson
Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is con ...
.
On March 6, 2020, it was announced Rosenberg had signed a deal with
WWE to host their monthly pay per view panel shows, as well as other related projects.
Professional wrestling
Since 2009, Rosenberg has hosted a
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
series called ''Wrestling with Rosenberg'' where he has interviewed professional wrestlers including
WWE Hall of Famers
Hulk Hogan
Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
,
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative. Widely regarded as one ...
,
Mick Foley and
Jesse Ventura.
On December 19, 2009, Rosenberg served as a guest
commentator for
Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011, when the promotion was s ...
's (ROH)
Final Battle 2009 pay-per-view. He has also appeared for
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment.
Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the prom ...
(TNA).
In late 2013, he began co-hosting a podcast called ''Cheap Heat'' with
Grantland wrestling journalist David Shoemaker.
In February 2015, he appeared on WWE Hall of Famer
Stone Cold Steve Austin's podcast.
On December 4, 2016, Rosenberg made his first appearance as a panelist on the
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pre-show. In January 2017, Rosenberg became the host of the
WWE Network show, ''
Bring it to the Table'', alongside
Paul Heyman and
John "Bradshaw" Layfield, with
Corey Graves
Matthew Polinsky (born February 24, 1984) is an American wrestling color commentator and retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler currently signed to WWE as a commentator and analyst for ''WWE Raw, Raw'' and ''WWE SmackDown, SmackDo ...
replacing Heyman in later episodes.
Since 2017, Rosenberg has also served as a panelist on numerous pay-per-view pre-shows as well as several ''Talking Smack'' and ''Raw Talk'' post-shows.
On January 31, 2021, at the
Royal Rumble, Rosenberg, who was serving as a pre-show panelist, pinned
R-Truth to win the
WWE 24/7 Championship. The following day, however, R-Truth snuck up on him live on
The Michael Kay Show and pinned him to win back his title.
TV/video
Rosenberg hosted ''
Hip Hop Squares
''Hip Hop Squares'' is an American television game show originally hosted by Peter Rosenberg, which debuted on MTV2 on May 22, 2012. The show is a licensed format of CBS Television Distribution's '' Hollywood Squares'' (King World Productions, CB ...
'' on
MTV2
MTV2 (formerly M2) is an American pay television channel owned by the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global.
The channel launched initially as an all-music video service, once the original MTV had started to shift its programm ...
for both of its two seasons. The show, which aired from May 22, 2012, to December 18, 2012, was based on the
tic-tac-toe
Tic-tac-toe (American English), noughts and crosses (Commonwealth English), or Xs and Os (Canadian or Irish English) is a paper-and-pencil game for two players who take turns marking the spaces in a three-by-three grid with ''X'' or ''O''. ...
game show ''
Hollywood Squares''. It featured a rotating cast of rappers, DJ's, comedians, and sports and TV personalities as the nine squares on the board.
Rosenberg is the host of ''Noisemakers'', a hip hop interview series that began in 2008. Past guests include
Nas
Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones.
Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to:
Aviation
* Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea
* National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia
** Nas Air ...
,
DJ Premier and
Diddy. Interviews take place primarily at the
92nd Street Y
92nd Street Y, New York (92NY) is a cultural and community center located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, at the corner of East 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue. Founded in 1874 as the Young Men's Hebrew Association, the ...
in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
. The series has been described as a hip hop version of ''
Inside the Actors Studio''.
In June 2013, he began hosting a new original video series on
Complex TV. On ''The Process'', he interviews new and established hip hop artists about their songwriting approach. The first episode's guest was
Raekwon
Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon The Chef, or simply Raekwon (), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream succes ...
. Other subjects include
Prodigy
Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to:
* Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer
** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess
Arts, entertainment, and ...
,
Schoolboy Q,
Azealia Banks,
Future
The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that current ...
and
Goodie Mob.
Concerts
Rosenberg throws an annual summer concert, Peterpalooza, in celebration of his birthday. The first took place at the
Best Buy Theater
Palladium Times Square (formerly PlayStation Theater, Best Buy Theater and Nokia Theatre Times Square) is an indoor live events venue in New York City, located in One Astor Plaza, at the corner of Broadway and 44th Street. It was designed by archi ...
in Manhattan in 2012, and featured performances from
Odd Future, Raekwon,
Asher Roth,
Nitty Scott
Nitzia Scott (born October 10, 1990), better known by her stage name Nitty Scott (formerly known as Nitty Scott, MC), is an American emcee from Brooklyn, New York. Her breakthrough came in 2010, when the video for her freestyle over "Monster" ...
and
Smoke DZA. The second, at Williamsburg Park in Brooklyn in 2013, featured performances from Schoolboy Q,
Meek Mill, Odd Future,
Fabolous and World's Fair.
Nicki Minaj controversy
After Rosenberg implied on the small stage at Hot 97's
Summer Jam 2012 concert that
Nicki Minaj
Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accents ...
's pop single "
Starships
A starship, starcraft, or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for traveling between planetary systems.
The term is mostly found in science fiction. Reference to a "star-ship" appears as early as 1882 in '' Oahspe: A N ...
" was not "real hip-hop", Minaj, the concert's scheduled headliner, withdrew from the concert.
[James C. McKinley Jr.]
"Nicki Minaj Faces Off With the Hot 97 D.J.’s,"
''New York Times'', June 5, 2012.[Latifah Muhammad]
BET
Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...
, May 28, 2013. Rosenberg declined to apologize, clarifying that his comments were not meant as an attack on Minaj, and that she is "inherently hip hop… it’s just that 'Starships' is definitely not."
Minaj was replaced on the bill by Nas and
Lauryn Hill.
On May 28, 2013, nearly a year after the dispute began, Minaj appeared as a guest on Rosenberg's Hot 97 morning show. The two made up, with Rosenberg apologizing and noting that he doesn't have anything against Minaj personally. Minaj said that she should not have canceled her performance, but was annoyed at the time due to her lack of familiarity with Rosenberg.
A week after appearing on Hot 97, Minaj joined
2 Chainz at
Summer Jam 2013, performing two songs with the rapper.
Discography
Rosenberg has released two official mixtapes. The first was ''What's Poppin' Vol. 1'' in 2011, more than half of the rappers on the tape were from New York. Artists include
Action Bronson, The Kid Daytona,
Skyzoo, Raekwon,
Kendrick Lamar,
Danny Brown,
J. Cole
Jermaine Lamarr Cole (born January 28, 1985) is an American rapper and record producer. Born on a military base in Germany and raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Cole initially gained recognition as a rapper following the release of his d ...
, Odd Future and Sugar Tongue Slim. In April 2013, he released his second official mixtape, ''The New York Renaissance'', with new music from
A$AP Rocky
Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper, music producer and record executive. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a membe ...
,
A$AP Ferg,
Joey Bada$$, Action Bronson,
Flatbush Zombies
Flatbush Zombies (stylized as Flatbush ZOMBiES) is an American hip hop group from the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York City, formed in 2010. The group is composed of rappers Meechy Darko, Zombie Juice and Erick Arc Elliott, with Elliott ...
,
Troy Ave, Smoke DZA and others. He voiced the intro for
Rick Ross
William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper.
Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Diddy's Bad ...
's 2012 mixtape ''
The Black Bar Mitzvah''.
[Seth Berkman]
"Peter Rosenberg, Hip-Hop’s Jewish Radio Star,"
''The Forward
''The Forward'' ( yi, פֿאָרווערטס, Forverts), formerly known as ''The Jewish Daily Forward'', is an American news media organization for a Jewish American audience. Founded in 1897 as a Yiddish-language daily socialist newspaper, ...
'', October 10, 2013. He also made an appearance on the track "Sincerely Yours" from
Little Brother's sophomore album ''
The Minstrel Show
''The Minstrel Show'' is the second studio album by hip hop trio Little Brother. It followed the critical success of their 2003 debut, '' The Listening''. The album was highly anticipated and touted as a probable breakthrough for the group, e ...
''.
Compilation albums
* ''Real Late'' (2021)
Mixtapes
* ''What's Poppin' Vol. 1'' (2011)
* ''The New York Renaissance'' (2013)
Personal life
Rosenberg is Jewish
and was married to sportscaster Alexa Datt until 2018. They lived on the
Upper West Side in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, where he currently resides.
In regard to his affection for hip hop music, Rosenberg stated in an April 2014 interview: "I will go toe to toe with almost anyone in terms of knowledge, trivia, and love of this music."
Since 2020, he has been in a relationship with New York photographer,
Natalie Amrossi. Rosenberg announced his engagement to Amrossi on the June 22nd, 2022 edition of the
Michael Kay Show.
Filmography
Championships and accomplishments
*
WWE
**
WWE 24/7 Championship (
1 time)
References
External links
RosenbergRadio.comPeter Rosenbergat
Hot 97
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosenberg, Peter
Living people
1979 births
American podcasters
University of Maryland, College Park alumni
Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School alumni
People from Chevy Chase, Maryland
Professional wrestling journalists and columnists
Professional wrestling podcasters
Radio personalities from New York City
American television talk show hosts
20th-century American Jews
Jews and Judaism in New York City
American sports radio personalities
American people of Arab descent
Celebrities who have won professional wrestling championships
WWE 24/7 Champions
21st-century American Jews