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10 Questions with ... Elliott Wood
November 17, 2020
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. We stay on brand and don’t try to be any other station. My vision for what The Buzz ‘is’ has always been clear, and I keep focused on that, pandemic or not. I say No to a lot of things that don’t benefit us. And about ratings: they are necessary, and we have to court them. I always think to keep having fun, radio is a business first, and a cool-job second.
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Started in radio in 1989. Lots of odd jobs. Gravitated to Radio research for 15 years – “I was research when research wasn’t cool.” Been with KTBZ since 2014.
1. 2020 has been a challenging year. You told me over the summer that you, Tessa Barrera (morning co-host), and Karah Leigh (nights) all had the COVID virus and have recovered. First, how are you and everyone feeling and what was the experience like for you programming 94.5 The Buzz during a pandemic?
Everyone is fine, thank you. All recovered and we mostly had mild cases compared to some who had real issues. I have been working from home and able to VPN into the station so there is no disruption. There are many pluses to work productivity at home versus the office. For me, it was stripping away the clutter and noise that comes with the day-to-day office scene. It helped to reallocating my time to more productive duties and really have a deeper focus on the station. All in all, I miss the vibe being at the station.
2. How much has the COVID pandemic impacted The Buzz in 2020?
Same challenges as all radio. We were dealing with personalities needing to work remotely and figuring out how to navigate home-life and kids along with doing their job. Also keeping masked up at the station and sanitizing surfaces at the station. A few tense moments when someone got sick. Finding ways to get stuff done. Different dynamic to accomplishing the things that need to be handled with a 24-hour operation. All the on-air staff are back in the building, yet I am still at home.
3. Despite COVID, 2020 has been a remarkably strong year in the ratings – where The Buzz has led in Houston across many demos. Give us the latest ratings highlights for the station.
KTBZ October 2020 Book: #1 18-34, #1 M18-34, #1 18-49, #1 M18-49, #1 25-54 and #1 M25-54.
Q3 2020: #1 P18-34, #1 M18-34, #1 P18-49, #1 M18-49, #1 P25-54, and #1 M25-54.
4. Why do you feel The Buzz is doing so well in the ratings and what are you most proud of?
Many Rock and Classic Hits stations have done well and jumped ahead of the “At Work” stations. We are surfing that same wave and dropped in at a good place in the beginning of the year. We stay on brand and don’t try to be any other station. My vision for what The Buzz “is” has always been clear and I keep focused on that, pandemic or not. I say No to a lot of things that don’t benefit us. And about ratings: they are necessary, and we have to court them. I always think to keep having fun, radio is a business first, and a cool job second. Ratings are for advertisers to find value in what we are doing.
5. The Rod Ryan Show is a big anchor The Buzz. Why has the morning show been so successful?
The work ethic of Rod. Even after 17 years, he is still at his desk until 2pm every day and has that drive to win. He is surrounded by a great cast that share his drive and desire to win. It is not about beating others but keeping score against ourselves. Readers may want to hear about an effortless win and a “secret ingredient” that short-cuts to success. Actually, it is a lot of experimentation. We get it wrong a lot and try to learn from our mistakes and grow. Rod and I are under no illusion when we have a “fail” we know when to move on from something. No ego, and ice water in the veins. Rod is the one of the most adaptable people I have ever met. He evolves without getting emotional about bits or benchmarks that don’t work. He is invested in the process of the team, studies the numbers, and is always trying to learn. He is smart and open to trust in the coaching and data, and he will outwork anyone. Period.
6. Give us the 411 on The Rod Ryan Cares Foundation.
This is the 501 C3 Rod built that we use for the framework of the Buzz charity efforts. There are a number of organizations we champion through various station events that we frame with this. The Rod Ryan Cares Foundation is the front facing charity brand that can pivot and add charities to support when the need arises.
7. Tell us about The Buzz brand and your Alternative path as more guitar-oriented station.
Rock has always been the backbone of Houston and the appetite for songs with this texture. I don’t define what the market wants, the market tells us what they want.
8. Several years ago you told me your programming philosophy includes research and social behavior. You said, “I learn a lot from my team, and I try to figure out what motivates them. It is more about focusing on the listening – and not necessarily just listening to music; there are listeners, staff, and others who have great insight that can be applied to the mechanics of the trade. It is about being open and trying new things, sifting through the hype and data to make of all that accumulated information become output that connects with people.” Can you give us some examples?
Sure. And this is still true today. First, I am a generalist, or rather, I am good at a handful of things, but not a specialist in any area. I am pretty good at reading ideas and seeing if we can get mileage from them. For example, when Rod brought me the idea of doing a Meat Raffle a couple years ago, first, I needed to figure out what is a Meat Raffle and then consider if it makes sense for us. Basically, it is a fund-raising raffle that social fraternities (American Legion) up north use to make money raffling chunks of uncooked meat. You might need to Google it to really understand. It is a cool idea, and we might have done the first Radio-Meat Raffle in Texas. No surprise, Texans love meat and it was successful. We found we could make about $15,000 for one day’s work for a charity and now we have done this six times now with 100% sell out each time. Great idea. You gotta listen to your team.
9. In addition to programming The Buzz, you’re also iHeart’s Rock Brand Coordinator. Explain your role and the station’s you oversee.
It is like being a Music Director at a macro level. I get a seat at the table in music meetings at a handful of stations and help vet songs. My job is to collect data and be the resident nerd to make more informed music suggestions. Picture Jonah Hill in Moneyball. That’s me. I compile the metrics and distill the hype. But I am not as handsome as Jonah Hill.
10. What is your favorite part of your job?
Save that for another time. Many favorite parts.
Bonus Questions
What are weekends like for you during the pandemic?
Great! In the summer it was a lot of swimming and hanging with my 3 kids. Having fun finding ways to stay entertained. My wife always has some “house” project she needs me to attend to so that filled up a lot of time. We are pretty much homebodies anyhow, so it wasn’t too far out of the norm to be locked up.
What are your favorite restaurants?
I hate eating out.
Favorite food?
Fish type dishes … Salmon, Seabass, sushi
Favorite drink?
Tequila!
How often will you get back home and what are your top priorities when you get back to Pittsburgh?
It has been awhile since I was there, but I need to get back and see my 91-year-old Dad.
Rank your sports teams in order of passion.
New Territory Tarpons (my kid’s swimming team), Steelers, Penguins, Pirates, Astros
Favorite new band over the past year?
White Reaper and Blue Stones are great in format. Out of format, Dua Lipa is amazingly talented.
Anything else you would like to add?
Let’s open up a can of worms… Alternative needs to evolve – or maybe get back to what made ALT great. This decade of music was probably the least inspiring or creative ever – at least in terms of giving value of hits to Alternative Radio. Songs these days sound like they were crafted by committee. This may be the era Turntable hits; most gone and forgotten in weeks or months. Few gems in this box of Cracker Jack, we eat it and pretend that it is a nutritious meal.
What is the ramification of a bad diet of songs that define our format? ALT stations (from a business standpoint) are struggling. How many new ALT station sign-ons has there been in the past couple years? Maybe one. How many stations flipped and left the format in the same time? Let’s see… KFOG, WRDA, WBOS, WDTW, KLLT, KHTB, KCJK, WNOH, KPOI, KDXA, WNFZ, WWYY, WLZX (went Active), and in the last week two more! WWCD Columbus and WFUZ Wilkes-Barre. 15 or more off the air – I am sure there are a few I am missing. Most of those flips were before Covid hit and now the industry is facing tightening trying to save itself. Will there be more? Let’s not let ALT radio become the next Smooth Jazz or Jammin’ Oldies. If there is a Doctor on this flight, please come to the front of the plane.
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