Brandon Combs works at Audacy as the Executive Producer at Bet MGM Tonight and previously served in the Marine Corps from 1999 to 2003, first as an Infantryman and then in administrative services. After the 9/11 attacks, Combs was preparing to re-enlist and deploy overseas when his daughter was born.
His newborn daughter had serious health complications, and Combs knew that he needed to get out of the Marines to be with his daughter during this time. Everything worked out in the end, though. His daughter had corrective surgery and now serves in the Army herself.
Meanwhile, Combs' career took a different track. For a couple of years, he worked as a manager at Dunkin' Donuts until one of his regular customers asked if he would like to apprentice under him as a carpenter. Combs jumped at the chance and learned finish carpentry. Unfortunately, his mentor died in a car crash just two years later, and Combs was left running the business himself for the next 15 years.
He then arrived at a point in life where he realized he needed a change and wanted to get into a field that he felt passionate about, which was sports media. He got his degree and then went to Illinois Media School, where all of his instructors worked in the industry and helped introduce him to Audacy. He started as a board operator, then a sound producer, and now an executive producer.
"The lessons that I learned in the Marine Corps was discipline and punctuality, always 15 minutes early, never miss a shift, always use the chain of command," Combs told Connecting Vets. "Just in general, being respectful of other people, their personalities, their religions, their political affiliations, whatever. It allows me to deal with a lot of different personalities in the radio industry."
And on Veterans Day, he reflects on his fellow vets.
"Veterans Day for me is a time to remember the times I had with people that I served with," Combs said, referencing many friends he lost who served in Iraq or were lost to their own demons later on. "It’s a time to reflect on them and remember them."