10 Questions with ... Ryan McCredden

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

The longer I’m in this business the less “brief” it gets. I started in Eau Claire, WI at 18. Five years later I was in Madison working for Midwest Family Broadcasting. Five years later I was in Dallas with CBS primarily over KRLD-AM with some time working with KRLD-FM. I then went to Tucson with Journal Broadcast Group, where I would earn my first programming stripes with 104.1 The Truth and ESPN 104.9. After three years there I went back to CBS to lead the team at KILT in Houston. After spending almost six years there I found my way to the Quad Cities as the Operations Manager (Director of Content) for Townsquare Media and our five brands here.

1. How would you describe your first radio gig?

As an 18-year old Packer fan getting paid to listen to/watch the games and push a couple buttons while eating pizza, I’d describe it as pretty sweet.

2. What led you to a career in radio?

A stroke of luck. I was 18, working in a warehouse that I hated and realized I needed to do something else. I heard two DJs from Z100 doing a remote at the mall in Eau Claire, WI and thought to myself, “I like music. I can do that.” I went there and asked them how to get into radio. One said, “Go to school for it.” The other said, “Start out part-time and work yourself up in the business.” I was never much for school, so that sounded like the path for me. I went to the only radio group I could find (this was before Google maps, so I literally could only find one of the two in town) and applied. They happened to be hiring for a part-time board op to run the Packers games. I interviewed with the engineer and, for some reason, he decided to take a chance on this kid with absolutely no radio background. The rest…is radio history.

3. You have an extensive background in Sports radio programming. How did that lead you to your current role as OM for the Townsquare/Quad Cities cluster?

I think radio is radio, and entertainment is entertainment. When talking with the folks at Townsquare Media, it was never anything about what the formats were that I worked with. It was about working with the talent and creating compelling content on air, online and on the streets. At the end of the day, we are content deliverers. Talking for 10 seconds up a ramp or 10 minutes about the latest in the NFL, it has to engage and entertain the listener. I don’t know if that was the exact way I put it in the interview process, but those are the basics.

4. You have a lot of balls in the air every day—what are some of your planning tips to make sure that it all gets done?

I plan for as much as possible with emails, notes and calendar reminders. Everyone has their own methods, you just have to find what works best for you. Then prioritize those things that need to be done. But one of the reasons I love radio is that things come up that we need to act on now. Yes, I can plan for a concert announcement with everything that needs to be done to get it in front of as many people as possible and show why we are the concert leader. However, you can’t plan for breaking news. When news happens, your team needs to know how to get it to the listeners. On air, on our app, socials, all of it. When the plan is in place for what needs to happen when news breaks, we can be on top of it immediately.

5. “Local local local” has always been radio’s mantra. Have your stations been able to stay visible and involved in the community? Are you getting back out there these days?

I’d say we never stopped being visible because we in Townsquare Media are so active on our apps/website and on social media. So while there was a time we were not face to face with the listener, they still felt like we were right there with them. But now that things have opened back up, especially in Iowa, we are absolutely back out there with the listeners. We have some very visible and active brands in 97X, B100 and I-Rock 93.5. For our active rock station (I-Rock 93.5) I have been hosting, at least one big show each month since April. Plus for me, I love getting out in front of people and making that connection. So I’ll be at bars, festivals, wherever they’ll let me go, I’ll be there. Weekends (and some weekdays) are definitely not “off time.”

6. What is it about our industry that keeps you wanting to do it for a living?

Simple answer--it’s fun! Take a look at the I-Rock 93.5 social media pages to see how, over this summer, I’ve been on stage in front of 20,000 people, spray painted our logo on “competitor” t-shirts, gave away jars of cash, held exorcisms and funerals and so much more that I could never do anywhere else. If you stop having fun in this business then get out. Yes, it’s a lot of work too. We are all asked to do more every day and the role changes. But this business still provides me the opportunity to entertain and inform every day. Maybe it’s in a different way than it was 10 years ago, but if you are in any company/industry doing things the same way you were 10 years ago, then you are failing. An easy example of that is the way I am able to write stories and share them on our digital platforms. It’s fantastic. Our station apps, websites, social media [are] not dry and boring because I get to create local content every day that is fun and engages the listeners.

7. What is the one truth that has held constant throughout your career?

Don’t say no. That truth has evolved over the years, but it’s still there. When I was starting, it was more focused on opportunities for me. When I was asked if I could work New Year’s Eve 1999 to make sure the computers didn’t Y2K themselves, I said ‘yes.’ I kept saying yes to every opportunity to keep growing. I do that today as well for projects that come into Townsquare Media. I’m all about a new challenge/project. The way my “don’t say no” mantra has evolved though, is that now I’m in a position of making decisions. There are a lot of ideas that get thrown at me. I don’t say no. If the idea isn’t great, I still talk it through and see if there is a way make the concept work for the talent, the client, the listener. More often than not, there is a way to make it work or come up with something that will work.

8. What advice would you give people new to the business?

Learn everything in this business: on-air, writing, social media, promotions, sales, traffic, engineering…everything. The more you can do the more valuable you will be. And the more you understand about every department the more you can help them all work together properly.

9. What were your favorite stations growing up as a kid? Jock(s)?

As a little kid, I loved WAXX because that is what we listened to in the morning when it snowed. They were always the best at school closings! The other big one that sticks out for me is WTMJ and the Brewers Radio Network. Listening to those games with my dad with Bob Ueker on the call is a memory I’ll never forget. Mr. Baseball understood that the three-hour game wasn’t just calling balls and strikes. It was entertaining the listener. It was 9-2 in the 8th inning in August…you can’t just call the game. You have to be the show and make it entertaining. He can be in the middle of a game telling a story about something and without missing a beat “and there is a line drive base hit” and then the story just kept on going. It was like the baseball was getting in the way of Ueker and his story. The absolute best.

10.Who were your mentors? Who would you say has influenced your career the most?

Two guys that really helped me grow in this business were, and really still are, John “Sly” Sylvester in Madison and Gavin Spittle in Dallas. Two totally different people and approaches, but both with that same drive and attitude of I will not be beat. Sly actually helped me move from Eau Claire to Madison. Gavin took a chance on me in a major market with a lot of responsibility and taught me along the way. Two great guys still doing great things in this industry.

If you were putting together a cluster-wide post-pandemic welcome back event, which three to five acts would you go for if you had an unlimited budget?

This question I could spend an hour talking about and going through why some lineups would work and others wouldn’t. I know who my favorite bands are, but they wouldn’t all mesh right together. This is a party for all the Hard Rock fans here in the Quad Cities so I’m doing it right for them. Metallica (cause I mean, you said unlimited budget) Slipknot, Korn, Mudvayne and Quad Cities own Alborn to open the show. The rest of the country doesn’t know about Alborn yet, but they will. I’ll be taking donations to put this show together this weekend at every rock bar in town.