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Talent Matters
April 30, 2019
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Are we are own worst enemy? We, as an industry, seem to continually diminish the importance of talent. We seem fixated on de-humanising our brands in favor of uninterrupted music sweeps. That can't be a winning strategy for the long term health of our business, especially with the increase of competition within the audio ecosystem. Successful radio stations have always had a soul; a heartbeat that went beyond simply the music we played... a pulse that is emitted every time you come into contact with the station. It's an energy - a rhythm - that is addictive; no matter how hard you try, it draws you back in. Successful stations are created by people for people. When you think about the best stations (past or present), they have that soul, and I would bet that the talent between the songs were a huge part of creating that feeling within you.
"It's 2 degrees right now outside of WXYZ-FM." That break appeared over the intro of the song, ensuring that no crack appeared in the wall of music being played. That was on a top 10 market station in the US. Later the same day I landed on another market leading station in the same market when the talent cracked the mic and said "WXYZ-FM. P!NK coming up next by text request," Soul-less.
Now I am not placing all the blame with the talent. I blame us as an industry for thinking that this type of content qualifies as entertainment. I am left wondering whether we have taken the easy option. Have we settled for what is easy instead of what is right? Have we prioritized the short-term PPM battles at the expense of the long term war? A war that will see us competing for attention amongst a myriad of entertainment choices (a war that is already upon us and will only get more intense).
To me radio's magical power has always come from the people. Our most valuable weapon is the human connection you are rewarded with whenever you choose to hit the listen live button: A real person who shares themselves with you. A person who is intent on making you smile on a miserable day. A person who wants to ensure you have the information you need to navigate your day. A person who shares the same interests as you and wants to share their thoughts and passions with you. Companionship has always been one of the untold (and underplayed) benefits of tuning into the radio; something to keep you company when you are alone. The more we de-humanise our radio stations by reducing the talent's involvement to moments shorter than most PA announcements at a grocery store - and with equal entertainment value - the worse our future will be. Surely we must all agree on that.
"There's no new talent - the talent pool is shallow!" That's a statement that can be heard echoing around conference halls and reverberating around boardrooms. I wonder whether that's because we are treating talent as a nuisance rather than something that can actually elevate our station to unimaginable heights. We aren't cherishing the power of what talent can do. If you were on the outside looking in at radio, would you perceive us as a creative playground? A place where uniqueness will not only be welcomed but encouraged? An environment where you will have the chance to be yourself and test drive your ideas? I suspect when people hear us as an industry resort to "its 2 degrees right now outside of WXYZ-FM" they have a perception that is anything but one of creative freedom. The curious thing is that there is more content being created and consumed today than there ever has been. Talent just aren't seeking out radio as their distribution model. If we can't inspire the next wave of young people to want to find their way into our industry then who is to blame? Also, why is it always the managers who restrict their talent's contribution who crow the loudest about the lack of talent?
Research seems to always remind us of the need to find interesting and entertaining personalities to magnify our formats. We seem fixated on the idea that this means in the mornings only. I'm not downplaying the importance of a larger than life morning show that is high on entertainment value, but simply curious as to why we don't seek the same standards for the other 20 hours of the day? Surely a roster of entertaining and diverse personalities tailored for the time of the day is a more compelling option than a station that downplays talent almost entirely after 10 a.m.
I'm not advocating - nor do I think the audience is - for heavy personality-led shows all day long. I understand that brevity will likely always be part of the formula for music stations. That is not a bad thing. I'm however advocating for us to put more emphasis on talent as an additive to our brands. The people who curate our brands have the power to make us human and to build unbreakable bonds with audiences. But, if we keep constraining our talent so they think "its 2 degrees right now outside of WXYZ-FM" is entertainment, then how do we expect to build products that have something more compelling that music-streaming services?
It would be foolish for me to not state the obvious - some on air talent are part of the problem. There are many examples of talent doing the bare-minimum. Mailing it in. Prepping on the fly, if prepping at all. If talent aren't invested wholeheartedly then of course the industry is going to put boundaries and restrictions ahead of entertainment. Talent needs to actually want to entertain. They should have a burning desire to share their thoughts, feelings and opinions with the audience. They should be bursting to get behind the microphone each day. If that's not you, then you're part of the problem. Talent who think they know it all when they don't are just as bad. For talent who have more to offer but feel constrained - don't give up, strive to be the best you can be. Be the most inventive, most creative, most exciting you can be. That might just be enough to get us to loosen the shackles and then you can be part of radio's inevitable solution.
I urge anyone working in this magical industry to ask why? What made you want to get into radio? I suspect it wasn't music alone. It definitely wasn't a desire to auto-pilot another long uninterrupted music sweep. I suspect you were drawn to radio stations that sounded larger than life. Big personalities. Great music. Fun Ideas. Lots of energy. For a radio station to achieve that larger than life sound you need all those elements working in unison. Talent will always be one of those very important elements. This is a plea for us - as an industry - to not accept breaks that are nothing more than "WXYZ-FM, here's Shallow." Let's entertain & connect again. Let's commit to hiring entertaining people and then giving them the chance to entertain. Let's let talent provide the companionship that our audiences seek. Talent matters. It always has and it always will.
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