Damn Star! Power 105 radio host Star gets fired

Radio host Star, of Power 105's The Star and Buc Wild Morning Show, was terminated Wednesday following a news conference that blasted him for broadcasting sexual remarks about a rival host's 4-year-old daughter.

In recent broadcasts, Star threatened to track down his rival's daughter, offered money to anyone who would tell him where she attended school and repeatedly described the degrading sexual acts he wanted to perform on her. He also claimed to carry a gun.

"Where does this kid go to school? I got 500 bucks for that information," Star said. "Oh, yes, I'll come for your kids."

It was the latest salvo in the ongoing feud between New York City's two biggest hip-hop stations, Power 105 (WWPR/105.1 FM) and Hot 97 (WQHT/97.1 FM). Star, whose real name is Troi Torain, once worked at Hot 97, where his rival DJ Envy, born Raashaun Casey, is employed.

Star, who calls himself The Hater, has been in trouble before. In his Hot 97 days, he enraged fans of the singer Aaliyah by spoofing the plane crash that killed her. Last year, he drew fire after calling an Indian woman as a filthy rat-eater while doing a syndicated show on several Clear Channel stations.

Star's latest comments went largely unnoticed until Wednesday, when city council member John Liu (D-Flushing) and others arranged a last-minute news conference to call for Star's dismissal from the station, which is owned by Clear Channel.

Liu played a CD recording of Star's comments, which included sexually degrading remarks and racist slurs directed at DJ Envy's wife, Gia Casey, who is of Asian descent. Casey, who stood nearby, began crying part way through the playback.

"I'm wondering what it will take for some measure to be taken," she said. "Do I have to go down to the morgue and identify my child's body before Clear Channel says, 'You know what, maybe they've gone a little too far?'"

Her husband did not attend the conference.

Shortly after the news conference Clear Channel suspended Star pending and investigation, but hours later the company released this statement: "Power 105 finds recent remarks broadcast by Troi Torain of the Star & Buc Wild Morning Show to be wholly unacceptable. As of late this afternoon, he is no longer with Power 105.1 or Clear Channel Radio. We sincerely apologize to those who may have been offended by his remarks."

Liu and his fellow councilmen have sent a letter to the Manhattan district attorney requesting an investigation into the broadcasts. They say they have also already contacted the Federal Communications Commission and police in New York and New Jersey, where the Caseys live. Liu says Casey's daughter's school has already instituted additional security measures.

"You can't broadcast threats like this," Liu says. "And these are real threats.