R.I.P.: Jed 'The Fish' Gould, Influential KROQ Personality

Jed Gould (1955-2025)

 Jed “The Fish” Gould, the influential KROQ-FM (106.7) afternoon DJ whose eclectic taste shaped Southern California’s music scene for 34 years, passed away on Monday, April 14, 2025, at 69.

Joining KROQ in 1978, Gould was a pioneer of the Second British Invasion, spinning punk and new wave from bands like Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, and the Pretenders. He interviewed rising stars like Elvis Costello and championed later acts like Trent Reznor and Katy Perry. “He played Katy Perry way back,” said fellow DJ Kat Corbett. “He was always hunting the next big thing.”

Known for his raucous, wheezing laugh—a hallmark of his quirky on-air persona—Gould’s humor endeared him to listeners. “It took years to learn to be myself on air,” he wrote on LinkedIn. “People liked the honesty. The laugh? They’d say, ‘Jed, do it!’ I’d say, ‘Say something funny.’”

Born July 15, 1955, Gould started in radio at 16 in Arizona. After graduating from USC’s journalism school in 1978, he joined KROQ, helping transform it into a cultural juggernaut. “KROQ was my buddy for most of my life,” he reflected, crediting the station’s influence on music, TV, and online culture.

Corbett recalled his chronic tardiness for shifts, chuckling, “I’d leave the studio if he was late—dead air was on him. But he was the best kind of crazy, what KROQ was all about: loving music and being a little off.”

After leaving KROQ in 2014, Gould hosted shows on KCSN-FM, KLOS-FM, and KROQ’s HD2 station. A visual artist, he lived in a historic Pasadena home with his dog, Alice. Recently diagnosed with lung cancer, he died peacefully at home.

“At 6 a.m. on April 14, 2025, we lost a brilliant soul,” read a post on his Facebook page. “RIP Jed, go be with Alice.”

Gould never took his career for granted. “Driving to work, I’d remember how lucky I was,” he wrote. “It could end any minute, like ‘The Sopranos.’”