After graduating from Fairfield High School, and before she became a well-known disc jockey on San Francisco rock radio station 107.7 The Bone, Nikki Blakk was rather aimless and struggled to navigate a clear career path.

Two priorities she had for any career choice were: (1) not having to get up early, and (2) being able to go to a lot of concerts. Blakk got a job working at The Wherehouse Records stores in Solano Mall and in Vacaville and became adept at selling BASS tickets. She parlayed those skills to a job at BASS and worked her way up for three years, but when they were bought by a rival company, it was time to regroup.

"In 1998 I decided I was going to work for a record label, a radio station or a concert promoter and so I had to go back to college."

After a serious period of putting her nose to the grindstone, Blakk flung mortarboards in the air first at Solano Community College and then at San Francisco State and earned a degree in Broadcast Electronic Communication Arts. She also began working for Bill Graham Presents (BGF) doing security for concerts at The Fillmore and The Warfield theaters.

Blakk's radio career started with an internship at Rock 96.7 in Modesto as a weekend host and then doing the midday slot. Working at the two aforementioned San Francisco music venues for BGF coupled with a brutal commute to the Modesto radio gig equaled a few years of serious sleep deprivation.

Blakk started at KSAN in 2000 before it became The Bone and her audition shift as a full-time DJ was a memorable day. Not just for her, but for the entire world. It was September 11, 2001.

"I drove to the station and asked if we were still doing it. They told me to just run the board as they were going to run news all day. I came back on 9/12 and it was really awkward because I couldn't be all upbeat like 'That was Alice in Chains!' I just muddled through and did the best I could, but it turned out they wanted to give me the job anyway."

Blakk's on-air career had numerous fits and starts as the corporatization of radio drastically changed it since its heyday.

"Anyone who was on the radio in the 70s and 80s is happily retired and still living on what they didn't spend on cocaine."

At 107.7 The Bone, Blakk's career blossomed and she did live interviews and became assistant program director. She quit the station in 2015, but returned seven years later.

"I left radio for a reason and I came back for a reason. My current program director Chasta and I were working at The Bone when I quit and now she's in charge. She's been a large part of that corporation's culture changing enough for me to call it home again."

Blakk's career has resulted in her rubbing shoulders with Judas Priest lead singer Rob Halford, metal pioneer Ozzy Osbourne and others, but her celebrity shoulder rubbing actually predates her becoming a media personality.

"I met Metallica at the Cow Palace in '88. We went backstage and it turned out that (lead singer/rhythm guitarist) James Hetfield's girlfriend at the time used to babysit my friend Angie who I came there with. They put us on the list to come back the next night. I had to convince my mom to let me go back on another school night and somehow pulled it off."

Then there's the story that will be the lead-off batter if and when Blakk writes a memoir.

"In 2002, The Rolling Stones were playing at Oracle Park and I was working for a company that builds stages. After the stage was built, I was tapped to plan and throw a backstage party. I was told the band never shows up to them, which I thought was good because then we didn't need security. After the show the Stones got in multiple limos and for some reason half the band showed up to the party. I was serving drinks and next thing I know Mick Jagger is asking me for a water. I gave it to him and then he was out on the floor dancing. I said 'Mick Jagger is dancing at my party, I'm going to go dance with Mick Jagger' and I did. It was kind of insane. And yes, he dances exactly like he does on stage."

In 2022, Blakk added another notch to her resume by becoming Jackson Browne's road manager, an experience she describes as "fantastic."

While Blakk is most identified with hard rock/heavy metal, her musical tastes are varied.

"Hey, I'm a child of the '70s so I love me some Bee Gees and ABBA. I went to the ABBA museum in Sweden. You know what's crazy about it? Attached to the ABBA museum is the Swedish Museum Hall of Fame. It's like three stories of ABBA and this little gift shop-sized area with all the rest of Sweden's music (laughs)."

Blakk's journey from small town Fairfield to becoming a fixture on the Bay Area rock scene was not easy, but that's part of what makes it rewarding.

"So many people have jobs that don't contain an element of anything that makes them happy. I get to immerse myself in the music that I love as a job."

Fairfield freelance accidental local historian Tony Wade has a new book for The History Press, "True Crime Stories of Fairfield, California," coming out in August. He is the author of five other books. You can reach him at [email protected].