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Angie Martinez Opens Up About Leaving Hot 97, Joining Rival Station

Radio host says signing on with Power 105.1 is about "growth potential."

Life has changed substantially for Angie Martinez in less than a week. It was only four days ago that she announced her departure from New York City's Hot 97, her radio home base of more than a decade. A day later, the Bronx native's new deal with rival Power 105.1 was confirmed. The deal will find Martinez back in her weekday afternoons slot, in addition to expanding her reach to sister station 103.5 The Beat in Miami. 

Martinez chose to leave Hot 97 in order to make the best decisions for her career and family, she shared in a Billboard interview. "I tried to really look at what's best for my career, what's best for my life, what's best for my family, for me," she said. "I had to take my emotion out of it. It was a decision that I felt was right for me."

The now 43-year-old mother of one started out as a Hot 97 intern at age 16. Over the years, she has cemented herself as a New York radio superpower, but it was time for a change, she went on to say. "It's not just going down the dial [to 105.1]. It's about joining a team and a company that really offers me all kinds of growth potential," Martinez noted. 

No matter how amicable the split from Hot 97, her current and former co-workers aren't on the same page. Funkmaster Flex kept his feud with DJ Envy going late last week, Instagramming a cease-and-desist letter sent to him by the Power 105.1 radio personality. The paperwork accuses Flex of making a "series of sensational and inflammatory" comments about Envy's personal life on-air. Flex captioned the flick, "McGruff the Snitch aka lil power ranger always talking to police and lawyers sending over paperwork!!! #stoptalkingtopolice."

Envy hit back by uploading the same letter on Instagram and calling Flex a "lying, worthless, jealous, pathetic old man."

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(Photo: Allison Joyce/Getty Images)

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