Dave always knew he wanted to be in radio and launched his career in 1980. By the time of his arrival at Q105 WRBQ to do afternoons, he had worked at stations not only in his home state of New York, but also North Carolina, Michigan, and Indiana. 

 

In 1992, he switched from pop to country and left Q105 to join country market leader WQYK, co-hosting afternoons with Randy Price and then mornings with Veronica (‘Dave & Veronica’). 

 

Over the years, Dave picked up some nice awards for his efforts, including being named a finalist four times for On-Air Personality of the Year from the Academy of Country Music. In 2008, he and Price won the same honor from the Country Music Association. 

 

On August 3, 2016, the popular morning man failed to show up for work and a co-worker who lived in the same St. Petersburg apartment building went to check on him. When he got inside, he found McKay deceased. The medical examiner's office later determined that the cause of death was an accidental cocaine overdose.

 

Dave, whose real name was Steve Ehmke, was 55.