On Air Personalities

[Seattleradiodude]

So I thought it might be interesting for people to post their thoughts on air talent in Seattle

MOViN:
Brooke and Monti- Show seems scattered, I like brooke over monti (no, im not someone who monti has "taken down") brooke seems to connect better with listeners
Maynard- Seems okay, i don’t hear enough of him to actually evaluate his airtime, but when i do hear him, he has good content
Mason- I dont listen to MOViN during drive times so i never listen to her.
Kaz- One of the best on this station

KUBE:
T-man- Very good show, has provin itself as a good show after many years. KUBE has a good thing goin for it. tman himself has a strong voice. good delivery
Shellie Hart- Radio Disney called, they want their midday person back! lol, she is NOT a good match for this station, even though she's been there forever, time to move on.
Eric Powers- Good Job, just dont try to copy T-man in you delivery. Doesnt work for you.
Eddie Francis- Seems a little lost without tiffany, but thats okay. he's doing a good job for evenings right now
Karen Wild- Need better content, always talks about CD release dates, sorry but this is the age of internet downloading.
Harrison Wood- In my opinion, he should be moved to middays replacing shellie hart. he has Great voice and delivery for this format.

KISW:
BJ Shea- Voice is weak, but his content and delivery makes up for it 100%
Ricker- dont care for his content to much, but his voice is good for the format, delivery comes across wierd
Mens room- Dont listen to it, not fair for me to judge it
Evenings- Same
Tom Lykis- Losing his "shock jock" image. content always comes full circle to how his relationships have failed, so his listeners must fail to. lol

Q-Country:
Big D and Bubba- I dont listen. Cant Judge
Tracy Taylor- Actually does a pretty good job! She knows her format (or at least acts REALLY good like she does)
Busman- Dont Listen, Cant judge

X104: (Just for fun)
They dont have a set schdule but here are the most consistant hosts ive seen
Rich Brown- Has good content, his board op needs to learn the board! haha
Syndicated shows are good as well as friday and saturday nights
St. Nic(k?)- Does traffic alot, and i've heard him on friday nights doing a show, good job!

Funky Monkey:
Justin- I know he's new, but so far.... wow, needs ALOT of work. doesnt appear confident when he's on air, voice isnt really rock format type
Damon Stewat- Does a okay job... not my favorate
Andy Guyer- Best Air talen on the monkey right now, shame they didnt move him to afternoons

106.1 Kiss fm:
Jackie and Bender- Show needs work. it takes a while but i actually find myself entertained after a while
Kirsten the island girl- MONOTONE anyone? she's like shellie hart, been there forever... but time to move on
Marcus D- Good content... dont hear enough of him to crituqe him to much
Tyler and Nina- Both do a great job! need a little help with content. but good delivery

This is NOT ment to offend anyone. YES i work in the bussness but i truly tried to be as un biased as possible
Obviously i missed quite a few stations, simply because i dont listen to them enough to really know their air talent.

 

[JustaLissner]

This post is a perfect opportunity for me to voice something I've been thinking for a while now. I've been surprised and excited that the Marty Reimer (sp?) show sounds so good. Marty and Jodi have only been together for a short time but it has a vintage sound. They support each other really well and are a perfect match-up. Perfect balance of content/yakking and music in the morning. Fresh sound. They are fantastic. I was one of the nay-sayers when Marty moved to mornings & I've been "sold".

 

[Mamaknowsbreast]

I used to ocassionally listen to Andy Savage's show when he was on the end and also his brief stint at KRQI. There were many times when Jody stole the show. She is extremely talented and definitely one of the top female personalities in town. Marty is a solid talent as well and hopefully Entercom will put the money into promoting this show.

 

[radioprofessor]

This board can tend to be repetitive. I went through this analysis last summer after a full market study commissioned upon my arrival to assist a station in Seattle. While I have come to appreciate some of the talent in this market in my humble view it still ranks a bit lower than some other major markets. What Seattle lacks is a true talent that can operate on a national parameter. T-Man and Bob Rivers have both had syndication and both fail horribly outside this market. They are fortunate to be on radio stations that have no real format competition in the ryhthmic and Classic Rock arena. Would like to see how they would perform under attack. Several morning shows in Seattle have a national reputation and do well in their specific demographic profile in Seattle. Kent and Alan and Ichabod both have heritage, but little real talent. They have a Seattle folksy, kind of provincal appeal, which is not bad just not great.
Scott and Sam on KCMS might have syndication possibility in the KCMS Christian format. On a national level the format lacks genuine talent so they have an advantage there. On a mainstream station they would be a mid-level market team. The rest of the morning talent in Seattle lacks format basics or talent for the most part. The only shows that on average outperform their station ratings parameters are Bob Rivers, BJ Shea (who may have potential if the show can focus) and Kent and Alan. A sad comment on the rest of the shows that can't even beat their own station AQH over a one year period by 15%. This is the minimum threshold of success for a morning show. On a side note. It is an a rare occurence when AM radio morning programs don't outperform the rest of the station because listeners tend to sample AM radio news in the mornings. KIRO mornings underperform their mid-day and afternoon talk shows. KOMO mornings underperform Mariners. KTTH mornings underperform middays and afternoons. The remaining AM stations have little ratings. Thus my humble analysis based on ratings, talent factors and national appeal reveals few if any morning talent in Seattle are up to muster. Those listed above would be the top of the morning perceptual parameter in Seattle studies yet still fail to excell to greatness. Most markets have at least one or two breakthrough talent. Seattle has five or six shows that are just fine and the rest should be ashamed of their inability to outperform station numbers.

 

[radioplayer]

It is interesting to note that the Radio Professor does not seem to understand nor account for the technical elements of Seattle's AM stations. Unlike other big markets, AM is NOT strong here and has not been for a really long time. Most of the Seattle's AM's do not have any real reach or audience, particularly at night. The AM's have a negligible impact at best. Compare this w/ Chicago, New York or even LA, where several exceptional AM call letters like WLS, WABC, and KFI come to mind. These are just starters. Some of you on this Board know the markets I just mentioned a lot better than I do and will no doubt come up with even better examples and more of them. The notable exceptions in this town are KIRO-AM and KOMO, where I mostly agree w/the Professor. These stations have potential to do MUCH better.

Seattle is really an FM town and it has been for a very long time.

As for talent, it is remarkable that Seattle does not have "better" than average in my view. I do think that the clusters as they are today is much to blame. When we have no serious competition between the bands and the stations, there is no need to have better than average folks on the air. In fact, the Radio Prof said himself that "talent" isn't really all that important anymore in this age of suits and bottom line profits.

 

[djspills]

If talent was really the most important factor, wouldn't you see jocks making more money and living more comfortably? I'm no saying that all Seattle market jocks are living off food stamps...quite the contrary. But as a whole, jocks are the least paid employees of the station, the majority of the time. And the sad part is? listeners don't want to meet the suits, they want to meet the jocks. But the suits are making the money.

 

[djdan]

A couple of quick comments on an interesting thread. I agree with the Prof that AM typically does better in other markets. NY, LA, SF Chicago, Minneapolis, St Louis, Philly and many other markets have two or three AM stations with morning shows that way out-perform their stations and are typically near the top of the hill 25-54. I would point out that KJR-AM's morning show fits that description. It outperforms the station by 25% and is typically top three 25-54 males and many times is a top three player in adults. It is the strongest rated AM morning show on the dial. Maybe the Professor was just looking at the wrong AM stations?

The talent question is more subjective. I find Seattle talent highly local and really fit this market. Bob Rivers, Kent and Alan and Ichabod have been in this market for decades. There is much to be said for that kind of local heritage and knowing the subtle nuances of a market. Being a nationally syndicated show does not necessarily equate with talent. I would say ratings performance is a must. Mitch in the Morning and Bob Rivers would be the biggest outperformers of station share. Kent and Alan and BJ Shea also significantly outperform their individual stations on a four book average. (I assume we are talking 25-54)

There are at least four shows that outperform the station share by a solid margin, one AM morning show that finishes top five 25-54 and talent that may be a lot better than an out of town ear might think. Most other markets also have one AM and three to five outperforming morning shows, so we really aren't that different. Just my "humble opinion" from traveling the country with a sales hat on.

Sadly I agree that talent are not getting paid what they used too. Not sure which suits are getting rich. I wear a suit and based on this years pacing not many sales suits are getting rich.

 

[djdan]

Ran some numbers in Strata. Adam Corolla also outperforms END numbers by 17% in the 25-54 demo, though that is not a big number because of the troubles the END is having in other dayparts. He actually has done very well compared to the rest of the station. Didn't realize it, until you run the numbers. The station does not do well so Adam Corolla is not at the level of other shows in the market, but definitely the highest rated daypart on the station.

Worst underperformers against the station share are KRWM mornings, KWJZ mornings, KMTT mornings, KCMS mornings, JACK and KJR-FM mornings. This makes sense because these stations are about "at work" listening and music.

 

[seatacpro]

I agree with the Prof, repetitive post. But what the hell. (And these are just the folks I hear)

KUBE
T-Man-He is the franchise baby. In my opinion, and this PURE fiction that would never happen, if MOViN wanted to make a splash with their 1st AM show they should have thrown the farm at him to hire him.
Shellie Hart-Smooth as glass. One of the best midday talents Ive heard in a loooong time. Her conversation with her audience is second to none in a music format. She may be way past the demo, but who cares. It works!
Harrison Wood-By far the MOST underrated P/T talent in the city. The guy should be F/T somewhere.

KISS
Jackie & Bender-Great show. Once again, going up against T-Man they dont stand a chance. But put them anywhere else (KDWB, KZZP, WFLZ) and they would rule the school. Its CHR morning radio 101.
Marcus D.-Good talent. Better talent than PD. I would encourage KISS to let him open up more.
Tyler-A much better fit at night than afternoons. Im sure that pains him to hear, since most night guys think they should be in afternoons. He is a solid, non ground breaking, CHR night jock.

MOViN
Brooke & Monti-It sounds like reading a Cosmo on the radio. Which is what I think their going for. Time will tell on this one.
Maynard-Its VT'ed and sounds like it. He is the PD, get off the air and program and let a live jock on. This is market #14, right?
Kaz-Sounds the best on the love jams show. That is his niche. They should make the entire 7p-12a shift that.

The End
Lazlo-I think he could be a great talent if he had someone to guide him. Problem is he is, and has been in the past, the PD too. TAKE THE PD'S OFF THE AIR (see Maynard) and let them program. To the PD's who cant let the jock ego go, you need to choose a path my friend!

KISW
Ricker-For what the format warrants, I think he works fine. Sure, he is a hit or miss with most people. With me he hits.
The Mens Room-These guys need to go to AM drive or a hot FM talker. Stellar show that connects with their demo 110%.

 

[radioprofessor]

Indulge me in a couple of comments.

First: I did not include syndicated programming in the talent equation just locally based talent. Adam Carolla proves my point. He has some success here and no where else in the country because his competition is fairly weak in Seattle. Put him on KISW, KZOK or even KUBE and he would be number one. The talent competition is not strong. Lack of competition is why the MOVIN format gets above a one share here and no where else in America. MOVIN is a failed format, Carolla is a failed air talent nationally, but do well in Seattle.

Second: T-Man and Bob Rivers succeed for the same reason, there is no real competition for them. T-Man is about to be pulled off syndication in every Clear Channel market except Seattle due to his lackluster performance, same thing happened to Bob Rivers. I would suggest you could put Monti or Jackie and Bender on KUBE today and they would pull equal numbers but like T-man neither would outperform the station which is a key parametric indicator of excellence for a morning show. I also fail to understand how the KISS or MOVIN morning shows can be considered excellent when they fail to beat an all talk T-Man or an aging Kent and Alan in the 25-54 female demographic which is their parameter for success. A failed talk show and 55 year old air talent should not perform better year to year than either Mainstream CHR option. That is not the case in NY, Chicago, LA, SF, Boston, Dallas and the list goes on and on.

Third: I reject the argument that localism is an excuse for being mediocre. Talent is not based on localism, which is a quaint but provincial concept. If you can't be great be local?
This argument makes no sense. Ichabod, Kent and Alan and Bob Rivers have been here for a long time and talk about local things which is why they outperform their stations. I think not.
They outperform because their competition is weak. This leads to my comment that Seattle talent is average at best.

Fourth; Outside of syndicated product like Rush, no local talent, outside of mornings has any significant market awareness. Any consultant who has done has homework through perceptual market studies will give you this answer. It is rare that a mid-day or afternoon talent on an FM can create enough market awareness to cut through. Only three local radio talent have significant Q scores. I will let you guess on your own who they are. Hint: they are all in morning drive.

Fifth: Seattle is not a sports town. I did not count KJR-AM as a real sports radio station because the town lacks sports enthusiasm. You want sportsradio listen to sports stations in Boston, NY, Chicago, Nashville. Sports is the talk in every bar, every office in town. In the south March Madness is religion. Seattle, Portland, SF and LA are not sports towns and the sports radio stations in these markets are afterthoughts at best. Sports stations in sports towns are among the biggest revenue stations in the market. KJR-AM is not. No offense please but sports is behind the ballet in West Coast mentality. Seattle has no hockey team, is about to lose its basketball team and no one really even knows the players on its baseball team. Very sad indeed, in my humble opinion. It is not KJR-AM's fault there is just no audience for what they do except for the odd morning show spike which has quickly gone away.

Again this thread is repetitive. Ahem (I guess that means I am repetitive: a little professor humor)

 

[TakeItFromMe]

The trouble with professors is they are book learned and got no real clue what its like behind the mic in this cowboys "humble opinion."
Like many talent when I first listened to Seattle radio I thought how lame
When I go to another market I think the same thing about the top rated morning cowboys ???
Guess what dude. There is a lot of strong talent in this market. Stick around for a while and you'll begin to see the thought and talent it ain't slapstick, fake or in your face
but it is talent all t he same.

My favs: BJ Shea, Bob Rivers, Adam Carolla for the guy stations. T-man for the 18-34 set. For the ladies Fitz and K@A. ;D
My mind changes the longer I am in town. Maybe the professor and DJdan should take their noses out of research and just listen for a change 8)

 

[Bongwater]

Personally, I thought JJ Hemingway was a PERFECT fit for KJR-FM (still do, as much as I think we need a Zip's restaurant THIS side of the Cascades, I MISS those Papa Joe burgers!...)

 

[AQH]

Maybe the professor and DJdan should take their noses out of research and just listen for a change

Sounds like someone got his feelings hurt because prof or dan didn't mention his show

 

[jupiter2]

Radioprofessor or radio-b-essor?

The Rivers show was never syndicated. They were on some opie and anthony stations to warm up while they were sitting out their KISW non compete, and then for a few months in Portland on a station CBS was going to blow up anyway. Not heard outside Seattle for any length of time. Correct me if I'm wrong, anyone.

In order to fail, you would have to actually be on a real station, at least for a year to 18 months. Carolla has had that long, and if memory serves, it also took Stern that long to crack into the top 5 25-54 here. Carolla had sh*& ratings for the first 18 months or so as well. Howard Stern replaced Rivers, and if you think he wasn't a challenge to the old KISW show, you must be in a coma. Stern should have killed Rivers.

I think the same goes for T-man. Held up well against Stern. His Portland stint was also BS and too quick to tell. God knows what kind of short term knee jerk politics goes on with those wacky cluster heads. It is my understanding that Tepper actually has decent demos in one market, but I don't doubt that Change Channel will pull him off anyway.

I think you do a disservice by dissing innacurately. (If you are going to diss, at least know what you are talking about). I have no idea if Seattle shows would be successful, but no Seattle show has ever been in syndication long enough to know.

 

[radioprofessor]

I actually do speak with some authority in this matter since I consulted the syndicating group at the time. Initial plan was for a 50 plus market launch led by CBS in LA, Seattle, Portland and multiple smaller markets in the first round. Show would be done primarily in Seattle and LA. The show actually traveled to LA as I remember for the launch week. Within three months LA was over most stations that signed up cancelled. Some smaller markets stayed on for some time in Alaska and other small markets as I remember. He does a fine show but my point is it is not a national in the talent parameter In looking over past arbitrons Stern easily outperformed Rivers in Stern's final year in just about every demo before going to satellite. I do not "diss" I report facts. The show did not survive in syndication long and Stern eventually won. This is not to say that the Rivers show is not one of the best in town. I believe I have made it clear that he is one of the best. My point is that lack of format competition and morning talent allow shows that would just be "fine" in other major markets to excel beyond their talent parameter here. This is T-Man's second swing at syndication. He did quite well in Anchorage as I recall, but that does not make you a major talent. In the key 25-54 Demo Stern beat T-Man two to one in Seattle. There were some books Stern beat T-Man 18-34. T-Man is a fine Seattle talent but again proves my point that on a national competitive stage Seattle talent is not in the excellent category. Many Seattle talent have gone on to the national stage or larger markets and performed very well in years gone by, just none of the recent group on the air.

I am not "dissing" anyone. I just feel there is a unique parameter for a true talent in Seattle to succeed. I have consulted in many markets and have an outside and researched perspective which will always bias my view. I compare talent not just in Seattle but market to market.

 

[pbf1]

another case in point

Remember Langan & West? How long did THEY survive in LA?

 

[LITTLEBOYBLUE]

I just feel there is a unique parameter for a true talent in Seattle to succeed. I have consulted in many markets and have an outside and researched perspective which will always bias my view. I compare talent not just in Seattle but market to market.

The part where I disagree with you is if talent is popular in Seattle and their listeners are in Seattle...who give's a rat's {whatever} how the talent compares to other markets? If talent here puts on a different show and people like it ... why is that less-than-optimal? From your own examples (and from others') the pattern is clearly people warm up to something here and then stay loyal to it for a long time. Unfortunately ... the suits (and sometimes, {wink, wink} the consultants) usually start tweaking all the knobs and staff rosters before that familiarity has a chance to get any traction.

And for what it's worth...I'm not really impressed with talent in any OTHER market either!! Everyone seems to be essentially running the same formulas with localized adjustments. By formula I mean usually a morning duo ... maybe an extra news person ... a traffic person ... and some producer who has to have a nickname that demeans him/her. Some hosts are wittier than others ... some of those elements change SLIGHTLY ... but ultimately each market is about familiarity. It's why KILT, for example, calls each of the folks who have done morning drive "Hudson" and "Harrigan" -- the franchise is based on long-standing loyalty even though the original namesakes are both deceased...

Where I am proven wrong would be the "resurrection" of Dees in LA -- but I would assume that's because people who appreciate his longevity are probably way too old to stomach the Movin' format, so the match no good. I find it interesting that much of the legacy talent has settled in various smaller/medium markets and very much enjoy the loyalty they develop in those communities.

 

[TakeItFromMe]

Blueboy makes a damn good point
Seems lots of guy and gals I know have left the big city for medium and small markets where they can have a loyal following and freedom from consultants (Radio Prof Peran are you reading)
Sure the money ain't great but its droppin in major markets too. The cost of living and the quality of livin in smaller towns more than makes up for it. Some of the best talent I
have heard live in small towns. Heard a darn special country morning show while driving to the Gorge last year, real good and real local. Plus they don't have to take heat from boards like this or managers, or CONSULTANTS

Didnt some major market dudes just settle down in Anacortes. COuld be new trend. ;D

 

[pbf1]

Where I am proven wrong would be the "resurrection" of Dees in LA -- but I would assume that's because people who appreciate his longevity are probably way too old to stomach the Movin' format, so the match no good.

Hate to prove you wrong within your own thought of proving YOURSELF wrong, but Movin's format (in LA) is pretty old to begin with. The only people too old for Movin' must be listening to KRTH.

 

[alexanderthepeon]

Those of you who read this board regularly probably already know this.

Radioprofesser occasionally speaks a "half-truth", but usually it is much less. His most recent post is a complete fabrication.