Charli McKenzie is leaving Y100's morning show after 20 years to return to her Yooper roots

The Yooper who Y100 listeners have been waking up to for the last 20 years is headed north.

Charli McKenzie is leaving the Green Bay country station to return home to be with family in Michigan, WNCY-FM announced July 18. Her last day on the air will be Aug. 1.

Charli McKenzie and Randy "Shotgun" Shannon are shown in 2017 for the debut of their morning show. McKenzie is leaving the country station after 20 years of being a morning co-host.

McKenzie, who is originally from the Escanaba-Gladstone area of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, has been co-hosting "Shotgun & Charlie in the Morning" with Randy "Shotgun" Shannon from 5 to 9 a.m. weekdays since 2017. Prior to that, she and Bear O'Brien were the morning team for 12 years until his retirement.

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McKenzie is also music director at the Midwest Communications-owned station.

McKenzie, who has two teen daughters, recently told Barrett Media that the move is a chance to get back to a small town.

"I’m being offered all these opportunities to do radio out of my house, which was always the end goal, and it’s already able to happen," she said in that interview. “I’m going to have a home studio, and I’ve got some things lined up already. It was just time for a different pace. That’s the long and short of it. I’m really excited. We’re building a house up there. I’m going back to my hometown and still going to be able to keep my toes in country music, which makes me happy.”

She called Shannon, who hired her at the station 20 years ago, her best friend.

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It's hard to imagine there's a popular country music performer McKenzie hasn't met during her time at Y100, from years at Country USA in Oshkosh to music row interviews in Nashville for the Country Music Association Awards to Resch Center concerts. In 2023, she and Shannon had some fun asking Jelly Roll to pronounce the names of Wisconsin towns like Manitowoc and Waupaca.

In a 2015 feature in the Green Bay Press-Gazette, McKenzie talked of getting to know Y100 listeners by name and the importance of getting out and meeting them. She described herself as a people person, a hugger, an animal lover, a big Elvis Presley fan and "a smart aleck in real life."

Kendra Meinertis an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 or [email protected]. Follow her on X @KendraMeinert.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Charli McKenzie of Y100 is leaving after 20 years as morning co-host