My son is a junior in High School. Wants to have a career in Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"? College programs etc? Thanks.
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- Thread starter SPACECOWBOY
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M
meangene
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> My son is a junior in High School. Wants to have a career in
> Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"? College
> programs etc? Thanks.
>
If you can, please try to talk your son out of going into radio. It is not the best career choice. It's a cut throat, back stabbing business, full of know it alls and lazy people who just slide by. Plus with new technology like satellite and ipods, in 10 years radio will be much different. BUT if he is serious, There are no easy ways to Radio management and programming. You gotta get the basics down before you become the boss, if yout lucky. You gotta get on the air, craft your style, master formatics, You just can't walk into a radio station and say I want to program this station, they will laugh at you. You can go to HCCC for Radio and TV. Or Syracuse University's Newhouse School. Now SU is great if you want to get into TV. Less for radio, but the options are there. If you really don't want to go that route, which you should, have a degree in Communications, there's always the New School of Public Broadcasting in Albany, who claim they can train you to be on the air, or do play by play etc. If your son thinks radio is easy and thats the reason he is chosing it for a career, PLEASE tell him it is not. Everyone thinks it's easy. Sorry to sound so negative, but I learned the hard way. Even Howard Stern had to put up with a lot of bs. Good luck, hope he make the right decision.
> Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"? College
> programs etc? Thanks.
>
If you can, please try to talk your son out of going into radio. It is not the best career choice. It's a cut throat, back stabbing business, full of know it alls and lazy people who just slide by. Plus with new technology like satellite and ipods, in 10 years radio will be much different. BUT if he is serious, There are no easy ways to Radio management and programming. You gotta get the basics down before you become the boss, if yout lucky. You gotta get on the air, craft your style, master formatics, You just can't walk into a radio station and say I want to program this station, they will laugh at you. You can go to HCCC for Radio and TV. Or Syracuse University's Newhouse School. Now SU is great if you want to get into TV. Less for radio, but the options are there. If you really don't want to go that route, which you should, have a degree in Communications, there's always the New School of Public Broadcasting in Albany, who claim they can train you to be on the air, or do play by play etc. If your son thinks radio is easy and thats the reason he is chosing it for a career, PLEASE tell him it is not. Everyone thinks it's easy. Sorry to sound so negative, but I learned the hard way. Even Howard Stern had to put up with a lot of bs. Good luck, hope he make the right decision.
> > My son is a junior in High School. Wants to have a career
> in
> > Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> > area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"? College
> > programs etc? Thanks.
Get him into computers - particularly networking, database programming, and streaming technologies. Also, get him into a business program, and a program that teaches him how to SELL.
Radio programming is a computer job these days, and radio management almost invariably comes out of the sales force. Beancounters are ultimately in charge, and learning to speak their language will give you a leg up.
Of course, by the time he gets out of college, the radio landscape is likely to be VERY different from what we have today. Wireless high-speed Internet will be available everywhere, and radio as a music/information delivery system will be terribly inefficient compared to webcasts unless major changes are made.
> in
> > Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> > area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"? College
> > programs etc? Thanks.
Get him into computers - particularly networking, database programming, and streaming technologies. Also, get him into a business program, and a program that teaches him how to SELL.
Radio programming is a computer job these days, and radio management almost invariably comes out of the sales force. Beancounters are ultimately in charge, and learning to speak their language will give you a leg up.
Of course, by the time he gets out of college, the radio landscape is likely to be VERY different from what we have today. Wireless high-speed Internet will be available everywhere, and radio as a music/information delivery system will be terribly inefficient compared to webcasts unless major changes are made.
> My son is a junior in High School. Wants to have a career in
> Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"?
I would have to agree with the other two posters, for the most part. Radio is definitely much more than just sitting behind a microphone, being Mr. Personality. Very rarely is anyone "just a DJ" anymore... and those who are, are usually first on the chopping block if/when they can be replaced by those who CAN multitask. DJ's often carry one or more other jobs... to the point where it's almost like your show is your "second" priority to what you might consider your "side" job.
Music Directors - Responsible for scheduling music logs, and for keeping in contact with record companies. The former requires good computer skills. The latter requires at least good knowledge of AIM and e-mail, not to mention good negotiating and sometimes, some "kissing up," as record companies can often provide favors like free CD's or even artist visits, but they won't bend over backwards to do you a favor if you're not nice to them.
Production Directors - The folks responsible for creating the commercials and any other recorded "liners, sweepers or imaging pieces" you hear. Basically, anything that's not a song or a DJ talking, is handled by production. Even if the commercial is produced by an outside source, someone has to get the audio from that outside source and into the station's on-air playback system... so everything passes through production. It's a job that probably requires the most technical computer skills, and a lot of organization... as most "clusters" have one production director handling all this work for several radio stations.
Promotions Directors - To put it simply, public relations, but so much more than just issuing press releases. Promotions directors usually oversee remotes, contests, and any other special event the station does, especially when it involves the talent being out in public... things like parades, appearances, and so forth. While it sounds simple from the outset, many clusters have their promotions directors working for more than one station... so you're constantly "shifting mindsets" between ideas that might work well with one station's audience, but you'll need to think of something completely different to work well with another station. This is another area where computer skills are good, especially with graphics programs because you'll often be designing things for brochures, flyers, signage, and even the internet. In some cases, the promotions director also maintains the station website. Depending on how the station is set up, it may or may not require actual knowledge of the nitty-gritty of web design, but you need to know more than how to just "point and click" on AOL.
Program Directors - Usually, this is the best way to work your way up the ladder from the on-air side of things, but it's also one of the most demanding jobs. The PD is the one person who ties it all together, constantly interacting with all of the above, plus the sales department and other management types, to keep the station's day-to-day operations running smoothly. The PD is in charge of all the air talent, the format of the station, making sure talent stick to it, and also keeping an ear on the competition to see what they're up to. PD's are also often responsible for overseeing the automation for the station... when something doesn't air properly, they're the ones who get called in first, to fix it.
Just as the captain has to go down with the ship, PD's are usually "on call" 24/7... if someone calls in sick or doesn't show up, the PD is often the one stuck filling in for an airshift, even if it's in the middle of the night or on a holiday. (Or, if the automation craps out, which is more likely than a "missing DJ" overnights or holidays.) PD's are also sometimes responsible for lots of official paperwork like FCC Public File write-ups and preparing the station's annual budget. In cases where a station doesn't have a "full" staff, the PD also serves in other capacities like music director, or may wind up having to assist the other departments, as opposed to completely delegating the work to others.
Despite all the hard work, PD's are usually first in line when there's an opening for the "next level," Operations Manager. Basically, an Operations Manager is a "super PD," in that they oversee the programming on all the stations in a cluster. In cases where more than one station might be sharing the same promotions director, production director, or even just equipment, the OM is the person who draws the lines, and says who's doing what. The OM makes sure that the different stations are working as a team, as opposed to competing with each other. As far as the on-air side goes, Operations Manager is as far as you can go without becoming the General Manager of an entire station cluster.
However, if it's the GM's job you want, I would recommend bypassing all the on-air steps. Get into sales. In my opinion, it's not as fun as on-air, but on-air people are grossly underpaid, and often have to work six days a week, and many holidays. Also, on-air people are often restricted from taking vacation during ratings periods, which can be anywhere from 24 to 48 weeks out of the year (policies vary depending on market size and management's perogative).
Salespeople, on the other hand, control their own fate. If you're good at it, you'll make a lot in commissions. Good salespeople make much, much more than the on-air people do. They also get weekends and holidays off, and they get to work normal business hours. They don't get the "prestige" of being on the air, but owning your own home and being able to afford a marriage and kids is a nice tradeoff. That's assuming you can do a good job. See, most of the best clients are already being serviced by the salespeople who've been around the longest. Newbies often get crappier clients who don't spend as much money, so it's harder for a newbie to make big commissions and hit their expected goals. But if you can do a good job when you first start out, the better clients come your way with time.
In addition to the higher salaries, comissions, normal hours, and holidays, salespeople who become sales managers are more often the likely candidates to become General Managers. Most of your GM's in both radio and TV are people who came from sales, not people who came from programming or news. Unfortunately, salespeople usually don't understand how the "other departments" work as well as programmers do... they don't know how the well-oiled machine really comes together day after day. But at the end of the day, all corporate brass cares about is the almighty dollar. A great sales manager can find ways to turn a profit selling ice to eskimos... and making money on a station even when the ratings aren't that great. So when brass needs to hire a new GM, yes, they do care about ratings, but not so much as they care about knowing the GM will continue to keep the dollars rolling in.
GM's who come from the programming side are usually better at knowing how the entire station works, so they may be better at solving problems (rather than just pointing at people and expecting them to magically fix it), but without a strong sales background, GM's who came from programming sometimes struggle with making sure sales goals are met... and that can get the kind of attention you don't want from the upper management.
To reiterate what the others said... if you really want to get into radio management, here's what I would consider.
1) Pick a school where the broadcasting program touches on a number of areas. Performance, production, sales, and programming. It's important to know a little from each of these areas. Choose electives based on whether you want to lean towards sales, news, or other areas (production, promotions, programming).
2) Get involved with the campus station in the area you want to specialize in for your career. But understand that campus stations don't always operate the same way the "real world" does, especially if it's completely student-run.
3) Get an internship with a "real" station as soon as possible, usually in your junior year, sometimes sooner. It'll help you see how things are really done, so you know if you're going to like the job or not -- while there's still time to refocus on another aspect of the business without having to spend an extra semester in school taking classes you should have taken earlier.
4) If you want to work on-air, remember that "fame" comes with sacrifices like working longer hours, often six days a week. You'll likely have to perform multiple tasks, maybe even develop a "split personality" to be live on one station, and voicetrack for others, sometimes for stations out of town.
5) If your main goal is not so much to be famous on the radio, but more to make money and climb the management ladder, go for sales. But be prepared to work hard there too, especially in the beginning.
Also, as one of the other posters said... stay on the cutting edge of technology. With the increasing availability of "on demand" services, radio stations that choose what THEY will play and make you wait for the stuff YOU want, are beginning to fade away. Granted, radio has many benefits that iPods do not, but still, no one radio station can possibly have a playlist where every song is a smash hit with every listener. As new technologies emerge, it'll be important to know when (and if) the right time comes to jump ship. Having an "above average" knowledge with computers (though not necessary as much as a computer science major) will be a big plus over the old-school radio folks who barely know how to send e-mail.
It might even be beneficial to skip radio altogether and look for a career within one of these emerging technologies.
> Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"?
I would have to agree with the other two posters, for the most part. Radio is definitely much more than just sitting behind a microphone, being Mr. Personality. Very rarely is anyone "just a DJ" anymore... and those who are, are usually first on the chopping block if/when they can be replaced by those who CAN multitask. DJ's often carry one or more other jobs... to the point where it's almost like your show is your "second" priority to what you might consider your "side" job.
Music Directors - Responsible for scheduling music logs, and for keeping in contact with record companies. The former requires good computer skills. The latter requires at least good knowledge of AIM and e-mail, not to mention good negotiating and sometimes, some "kissing up," as record companies can often provide favors like free CD's or even artist visits, but they won't bend over backwards to do you a favor if you're not nice to them.
Production Directors - The folks responsible for creating the commercials and any other recorded "liners, sweepers or imaging pieces" you hear. Basically, anything that's not a song or a DJ talking, is handled by production. Even if the commercial is produced by an outside source, someone has to get the audio from that outside source and into the station's on-air playback system... so everything passes through production. It's a job that probably requires the most technical computer skills, and a lot of organization... as most "clusters" have one production director handling all this work for several radio stations.
Promotions Directors - To put it simply, public relations, but so much more than just issuing press releases. Promotions directors usually oversee remotes, contests, and any other special event the station does, especially when it involves the talent being out in public... things like parades, appearances, and so forth. While it sounds simple from the outset, many clusters have their promotions directors working for more than one station... so you're constantly "shifting mindsets" between ideas that might work well with one station's audience, but you'll need to think of something completely different to work well with another station. This is another area where computer skills are good, especially with graphics programs because you'll often be designing things for brochures, flyers, signage, and even the internet. In some cases, the promotions director also maintains the station website. Depending on how the station is set up, it may or may not require actual knowledge of the nitty-gritty of web design, but you need to know more than how to just "point and click" on AOL.
Program Directors - Usually, this is the best way to work your way up the ladder from the on-air side of things, but it's also one of the most demanding jobs. The PD is the one person who ties it all together, constantly interacting with all of the above, plus the sales department and other management types, to keep the station's day-to-day operations running smoothly. The PD is in charge of all the air talent, the format of the station, making sure talent stick to it, and also keeping an ear on the competition to see what they're up to. PD's are also often responsible for overseeing the automation for the station... when something doesn't air properly, they're the ones who get called in first, to fix it.
Just as the captain has to go down with the ship, PD's are usually "on call" 24/7... if someone calls in sick or doesn't show up, the PD is often the one stuck filling in for an airshift, even if it's in the middle of the night or on a holiday. (Or, if the automation craps out, which is more likely than a "missing DJ" overnights or holidays.) PD's are also sometimes responsible for lots of official paperwork like FCC Public File write-ups and preparing the station's annual budget. In cases where a station doesn't have a "full" staff, the PD also serves in other capacities like music director, or may wind up having to assist the other departments, as opposed to completely delegating the work to others.
Despite all the hard work, PD's are usually first in line when there's an opening for the "next level," Operations Manager. Basically, an Operations Manager is a "super PD," in that they oversee the programming on all the stations in a cluster. In cases where more than one station might be sharing the same promotions director, production director, or even just equipment, the OM is the person who draws the lines, and says who's doing what. The OM makes sure that the different stations are working as a team, as opposed to competing with each other. As far as the on-air side goes, Operations Manager is as far as you can go without becoming the General Manager of an entire station cluster.
However, if it's the GM's job you want, I would recommend bypassing all the on-air steps. Get into sales. In my opinion, it's not as fun as on-air, but on-air people are grossly underpaid, and often have to work six days a week, and many holidays. Also, on-air people are often restricted from taking vacation during ratings periods, which can be anywhere from 24 to 48 weeks out of the year (policies vary depending on market size and management's perogative).
Salespeople, on the other hand, control their own fate. If you're good at it, you'll make a lot in commissions. Good salespeople make much, much more than the on-air people do. They also get weekends and holidays off, and they get to work normal business hours. They don't get the "prestige" of being on the air, but owning your own home and being able to afford a marriage and kids is a nice tradeoff. That's assuming you can do a good job. See, most of the best clients are already being serviced by the salespeople who've been around the longest. Newbies often get crappier clients who don't spend as much money, so it's harder for a newbie to make big commissions and hit their expected goals. But if you can do a good job when you first start out, the better clients come your way with time.
In addition to the higher salaries, comissions, normal hours, and holidays, salespeople who become sales managers are more often the likely candidates to become General Managers. Most of your GM's in both radio and TV are people who came from sales, not people who came from programming or news. Unfortunately, salespeople usually don't understand how the "other departments" work as well as programmers do... they don't know how the well-oiled machine really comes together day after day. But at the end of the day, all corporate brass cares about is the almighty dollar. A great sales manager can find ways to turn a profit selling ice to eskimos... and making money on a station even when the ratings aren't that great. So when brass needs to hire a new GM, yes, they do care about ratings, but not so much as they care about knowing the GM will continue to keep the dollars rolling in.
GM's who come from the programming side are usually better at knowing how the entire station works, so they may be better at solving problems (rather than just pointing at people and expecting them to magically fix it), but without a strong sales background, GM's who came from programming sometimes struggle with making sure sales goals are met... and that can get the kind of attention you don't want from the upper management.
To reiterate what the others said... if you really want to get into radio management, here's what I would consider.
1) Pick a school where the broadcasting program touches on a number of areas. Performance, production, sales, and programming. It's important to know a little from each of these areas. Choose electives based on whether you want to lean towards sales, news, or other areas (production, promotions, programming).
2) Get involved with the campus station in the area you want to specialize in for your career. But understand that campus stations don't always operate the same way the "real world" does, especially if it's completely student-run.
3) Get an internship with a "real" station as soon as possible, usually in your junior year, sometimes sooner. It'll help you see how things are really done, so you know if you're going to like the job or not -- while there's still time to refocus on another aspect of the business without having to spend an extra semester in school taking classes you should have taken earlier.
4) If you want to work on-air, remember that "fame" comes with sacrifices like working longer hours, often six days a week. You'll likely have to perform multiple tasks, maybe even develop a "split personality" to be live on one station, and voicetrack for others, sometimes for stations out of town.
5) If your main goal is not so much to be famous on the radio, but more to make money and climb the management ladder, go for sales. But be prepared to work hard there too, especially in the beginning.
Also, as one of the other posters said... stay on the cutting edge of technology. With the increasing availability of "on demand" services, radio stations that choose what THEY will play and make you wait for the stuff YOU want, are beginning to fade away. Granted, radio has many benefits that iPods do not, but still, no one radio station can possibly have a playlist where every song is a smash hit with every listener. As new technologies emerge, it'll be important to know when (and if) the right time comes to jump ship. Having an "above average" knowledge with computers (though not necessary as much as a computer science major) will be a big plus over the old-school radio folks who barely know how to send e-mail.
It might even be beneficial to skip radio altogether and look for a career within one of these emerging technologies.
Thanks for the imput. He's not thinking of Radio for the "glamour". He truly believes in the power of music and wants to make a difference.
>
>
> My son is a junior in High School. Wants to have a career in
> Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"? College
> programs etc? Thanks.
>
<font face="times new roman" size="3" color="330066">
Please tell your son to go into Accounting... maybe get a degree in Psychology... Education...
Seems if you're writing and posting on this board, you already know what to tell your son. Bob Ross' "Radio 101 Primer" is exceptional. He should have it published. Sir Roxalot also hits the nail on the head.
Not much more for me to add other than a bad day in radio is often better than a good day at Wal-Mart, though each has much in common these days. In a good situation, radio will break your heart. In a bad situation, it will rip your heart out and eat it. But if you're addicted to it, it's like crack and you keep coming back for more.
The personalities who post on this board are a good indication of what your son will face: Arrogant, pompous, humorous, biting, witty, sacrastic, articulate, knowledgeable and yeah, even compassionate sometimes. From Bone to The Genius, to Roxalot and the lamented Biggus. We're all half a step away from being committed.
I got out a few years ago. Truth is, I would have been fired if I didn't hit the door first. I sometimes think of getting back in. A few years ago I had a feeler to work in a large market down south, but I have a good job with the family contracting business, painting, contracting and renovating. As some of my posts may indicate, the fumes from paint thinner have taken their toll on me.
As to radio: Do I miss it? Yes. Do I miss the bullsh*t? Not at all.</font>
> Radio management and as a programmer. We're in the Utica
> area. Any ideals on a "good path to follow"? College
> programs etc? Thanks.
>
<font face="times new roman" size="3" color="330066">
Please tell your son to go into Accounting... maybe get a degree in Psychology... Education...
Seems if you're writing and posting on this board, you already know what to tell your son. Bob Ross' "Radio 101 Primer" is exceptional. He should have it published. Sir Roxalot also hits the nail on the head.
Not much more for me to add other than a bad day in radio is often better than a good day at Wal-Mart, though each has much in common these days. In a good situation, radio will break your heart. In a bad situation, it will rip your heart out and eat it. But if you're addicted to it, it's like crack and you keep coming back for more.
The personalities who post on this board are a good indication of what your son will face: Arrogant, pompous, humorous, biting, witty, sacrastic, articulate, knowledgeable and yeah, even compassionate sometimes. From Bone to The Genius, to Roxalot and the lamented Biggus. We're all half a step away from being committed.
I got out a few years ago. Truth is, I would have been fired if I didn't hit the door first. I sometimes think of getting back in. A few years ago I had a feeler to work in a large market down south, but I have a good job with the family contracting business, painting, contracting and renovating. As some of my posts may indicate, the fumes from paint thinner have taken their toll on me.
As to radio: Do I miss it? Yes. Do I miss the bullsh*t? Not at all.</font>
> Thanks for the imput. He's not thinking of Radio for the
> "glamour". He truly believes in the power of music and wants
> to make a difference.
> >
Bob did a great job in his post. Let me just pass along one little piece of information. In the business, the beancounters refer to it as "product", not "music".
> "glamour". He truly believes in the power of music and wants
> to make a difference.
> >
Bob did a great job in his post. Let me just pass along one little piece of information. In the business, the beancounters refer to it as "product", not "music".
> Thanks for the imput. He's not thinking of Radio for the
> "glamour". He truly believes in the power of music and wants
> to make a difference.
To that, I have to say good luck... you'll need it. I assume that by "make a difference," you mean your son wants to shake things up by programming a radio station where he can give more exposure to some of the many artists who are talented, but lack the "big record deals" artists currently on the radio have.
It's a noble cause, and I wish him the best, but he'll be hard-pressed to find a radio station where he can devise the playlist entirely on his own. Most radio stations are owned by corporate giants like ClearChannel, Citadel, Entercom, and so on. As most are publically-owned companies, often the main priority is profit... gotta please the shareholders. To that extent, many radio stations employ consulting firms, or have their own internal people, who often have most of the control over station playlists.
What does a music director do then? Depends from station to station. In just about all cases, the music director -- if nothing else -- generates the song-by-song logs of what a station will play each day. Most of this is done by computer, but usually some human "fine-tuning" is needed. In most cases, the music director (and program director) also has say over which "current" songs get added and dropped from the station each week. But in some cases, the consultant or a corporate manager hundreds of miles away will make that decision, leaving the local music director almost powerless.
I've seen it referred to in articles as the "McDonaldsization of radio." All over the country, stations limit themselves to music from the same artists all the time, while hundreds of equally talented (or maybe better) people never get on the radio because they didn't have the right "inside connections" with the recording industry. Do you think we'd be hearing Ryan Cabrera on the radio if he never knew Ashlee Simpson? For that matter, would we even know who Ashlee is if it weren't for her big sister?
Now, don't get me wrong -- there are stations out there who are willing to go "off the beaten path" and play lesser-known artists. But, they're mostly college radio stations, or it might be on a commercial station, but only a few hours buried in the overnight or a Sunday morning when the audience is usually much smaller.
If your son ever were to find a station that's willing to let him "make a difference" by playing relatively "unknown" artists and break the mold, so to speak, good for him. But I hope for his sake that it's a success from the get-go, because any owner who's willing to take that kind of a risk may not be too patient otherwise. I tend to think you'd only get this kind of opportunity from a smaller owner, where there may not be as much corporate red tape in the way... an owner like Galaxy, for example. (Yes, purely for example -- as a size comparison only -- I'm not saying good, bad or otherwise about Galaxy.) But, because they're smaller, they don't have as much "wiggle room" if the plan doesn't work. When smaller companies take a loss on something, it hurts them much more than it does the big guys.
If he ever does get the chance to do something like this, he'll probably have to spend several years just nodding his head and smiling, building up some senority, a good track record, and schmoozing some people before he could ask for that chance to "make a difference."
> "glamour". He truly believes in the power of music and wants
> to make a difference.
To that, I have to say good luck... you'll need it. I assume that by "make a difference," you mean your son wants to shake things up by programming a radio station where he can give more exposure to some of the many artists who are talented, but lack the "big record deals" artists currently on the radio have.
It's a noble cause, and I wish him the best, but he'll be hard-pressed to find a radio station where he can devise the playlist entirely on his own. Most radio stations are owned by corporate giants like ClearChannel, Citadel, Entercom, and so on. As most are publically-owned companies, often the main priority is profit... gotta please the shareholders. To that extent, many radio stations employ consulting firms, or have their own internal people, who often have most of the control over station playlists.
What does a music director do then? Depends from station to station. In just about all cases, the music director -- if nothing else -- generates the song-by-song logs of what a station will play each day. Most of this is done by computer, but usually some human "fine-tuning" is needed. In most cases, the music director (and program director) also has say over which "current" songs get added and dropped from the station each week. But in some cases, the consultant or a corporate manager hundreds of miles away will make that decision, leaving the local music director almost powerless.
I've seen it referred to in articles as the "McDonaldsization of radio." All over the country, stations limit themselves to music from the same artists all the time, while hundreds of equally talented (or maybe better) people never get on the radio because they didn't have the right "inside connections" with the recording industry. Do you think we'd be hearing Ryan Cabrera on the radio if he never knew Ashlee Simpson? For that matter, would we even know who Ashlee is if it weren't for her big sister?
Now, don't get me wrong -- there are stations out there who are willing to go "off the beaten path" and play lesser-known artists. But, they're mostly college radio stations, or it might be on a commercial station, but only a few hours buried in the overnight or a Sunday morning when the audience is usually much smaller.
If your son ever were to find a station that's willing to let him "make a difference" by playing relatively "unknown" artists and break the mold, so to speak, good for him. But I hope for his sake that it's a success from the get-go, because any owner who's willing to take that kind of a risk may not be too patient otherwise. I tend to think you'd only get this kind of opportunity from a smaller owner, where there may not be as much corporate red tape in the way... an owner like Galaxy, for example. (Yes, purely for example -- as a size comparison only -- I'm not saying good, bad or otherwise about Galaxy.) But, because they're smaller, they don't have as much "wiggle room" if the plan doesn't work. When smaller companies take a loss on something, it hurts them much more than it does the big guys.
If he ever does get the chance to do something like this, he'll probably have to spend several years just nodding his head and smiling, building up some senority, a good track record, and schmoozing some people before he could ask for that chance to "make a difference."
M
meangene
Guest
> > Thanks for the imput. He's not thinking of Radio for the
> > "glamour". He truly believes in the power of music and
> wants
> > to make a difference.
> > >
>
> Bob did a great job in his post. Let me just pass along one
> little piece of information. In the business, the
> beancounters refer to it as "product", not "music".
>
AMEN BROTHER.
> > "glamour". He truly believes in the power of music and
> wants
> > to make a difference.
> > >
>
> Bob did a great job in his post. Let me just pass along one
> little piece of information. In the business, the
> beancounters refer to it as "product", not "music".
>
AMEN BROTHER.
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