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sounding "Southern"

M

Musicradio

Guest
Many of us had the "accent" of this part of the USA.

How did you overcome it?
ok-so some of you still have it....)

Can an accent hinder your search for a job elsewhere?
 
> i have really mixed feelings about accents. mine is pretty strong...having grown up in the most southeast corner of the state..very near the mississippi and louisiana borders. on one hand...having little or no accent is probalby the best way to get ahead in the radio biz...but it can take away alot of who you are. i think these days we need to have a little charisma and some accent can do that for you. i have never tried to get rid of mine...but i do try to control it. there is a big gap in sounding "southern" and sounding "hick"

also there are alot of national news people who have somewhat of a southern accent these days.

i have felt in the past that my accent has held me back a bit...but at this point in my life...i love living and working where i do. if a bigger job comes along...great...i'll look at it....if not...i cant think of a better place to be.

those of you who do have an accent...control it..dont get rid of it...it's part of who you are.....then again i may be full of crap!
 
I thought I had no accent until I moved to Denver in 1987 and discovered that compared to people out there, I sounded like I had just come from eatin' vittles with Uncle Jed and Granny. To make things worse, saying the station handle (Y108) was almost impossible, because the south Arkansas really came through on the "Y" and the "8". So, I had to do a crash course on losing the bit of southern I still had.

If you stay in the South, a bit of accent won't really hurt you. But if you find yourself out west, or in the northeast, or even down here in South Florida, it will be a problem. And if you want to play on a national stage, such as doing nationwide voice-overs, any sort of accent is a handicap, unless the client is looking for that particular dialect.

Now if you'll pardon me, Jethro and I have some cypherin' to do.




> > i have really mixed feelings about accents. mine is
> pretty strong...having grown up in the most southeast corner
> of the state..very near the mississippi and louisiana
> borders. on one hand...having little or no accent is
> probalby the best way to get ahead in the radio biz...but it
> can take away alot of who you are. i think these days we
> need to have a little charisma and some accent can do that
> for you. i have never tried to get rid of mine...but i do
> try to control it. there is a big gap in sounding
> "southern" and sounding "hick"
>
> also there are alot of national news people who have
> somewhat of a southern accent these days.
>
> i have felt in the past that my accent has held me back a
> bit...but at this point in my life...i love living and
> working where i do. if a bigger job comes
> along...great...i'll look at it....if not...i cant think of
> a better place to be.
>
> those of you who do have an accent...control it..dont get
> rid of it...it's part of who you are.....then again i may be
> full of crap!
>
 
> Many of us had the "accent" of this part of the USA.
>
> How did you overcome it?
> ok-so some of you still have it....)
>
> Can an accent hinder your search for a job elsewhere?
>


I owe a debt of gratitude to Dr. Eberle, my RTV Announcing Prof at Arkansas State University... Since he came from Harrisburg, PA, he was keenly able to carve that bit of ground-in hillbilly lingo from my larnyx in one semeseter.

You overcome your accent by paying attention to what you're saying...and recognizing it when you hear yourself use it.

Can it hinder? Don't know. You may want to ask Jeff Foxworthy.

However, if you're a native to PA (I've only lived here since 1986) there is one accent that could certainly haunt you for the rest of your life...

Click if you dare - http://www.pittsburghese.com
<P ID="signature">______________
--
Erik Lane
CHiX "Morning FiX"
Weekday Mornings, 6-10am
WCHX - Lewistown, PA
ICQ# 22671370; AIM: Brd N Jam; MSN: [email protected]</P>
 
Get rid of the accent if you want to move up and make better
money. "Country" radio allows one to retain his/her accent to some
degree. However, it is better to have "no" accent.

In addition, you have to be careful not to use certain regional
dialect. Example, in the south, you might say, "I've got to go to
Wal Mart right quick." "Right Quick" is a southern thing.

Your (not yur)

But keep in mind, being a personality is not just about your pipes
and accent, it's the personality that takes you over the top. If you
lack personality, you'll lack ratings.

I learned a great deal from Bob Gay at Metropolitan vo-tech back in the
early 90's. I spent two years doing his voice exercises. In fact,
I still use many of the tongue twisters today bfore I hit the air.

BTW- Anyone know where Bogart B. (Jim Buchanan) ended up? Haven't heard from
him since I left Oklahoma.


Matt Allbritton
 
> you are a prime example of someone who talks at people and not to people....ask anyone who listens to the radio...they want someone they cant identify with...not someone to give them a diction and english lesson.
 
It appears you're missing the point. If you're someone trying to
step up the ladder and work toward a top 10 market, you can't sound
like a hick. You missed the second part of my post that mentioned
being a "personality". That would be the part where you not only
"relate" to the listener, but "entertain" between the songs.

If you choose to keep your accent, there are MANY programmers that'll
pass you up faster than you pass through a small town at 90 miles
per hour. These are just the facts. <P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by allbritton on 01/15/06 07:46 PM.</FONT></P>
 
> > i have really mixed feelings about accents. mine is
> pretty strong...having grown up in the most southeast corner
> of the state..very near the mississippi and louisiana
> borders. on one hand...having little or no accent is
> probalby the best way to get ahead in the radio biz...but it
> can take away alot of who you are. i think these days we
> need to have a little charisma and some accent can do that
> for you. i have never tried to get rid of mine...but i do
> try to control it. there is a big gap in sounding
> "southern" and sounding "hick"
>
> also there are alot of national news people who have
> somewhat of a southern accent these days.
>
> i have felt in the past that my accent has held me back a
> bit...but at this point in my life...i love living and
> working where i do. if a bigger job comes
> along...great...i'll look at it....if not...i cant think of
> a better place to be.
>
> those of you who do have an accent...control it..dont get
> rid of it...it's part of who you are.....then again i may be
> full of crap!
>

Yep, there's a big difference between the way a "southern gentleman" from SE Arkansas sounds and an undereducated hick from the same area. My dad and his two brothers are from the Dumas area, they are college educated, one has a professional degree and the other a PhD, and they do have strong regional accents....but they don't necessarily sound like hicks. It's weird but you know it when you hear it.
 
"BTW- Anyone know where Bogart B. (Jim Buchanan) ended up? Haven't heard from
him since I left Oklahoma."


Hey Matt..

He emailed me about a year ago and said he was working on putting together some kind of syndicated show or something (You know Jimbo!). Seems like he was somewhere north of LR. Maybe I can find those emails.. If you run into him, tell him to holla at me.. Where are you now?


Back to the topic.....

When I first started in radio I spent a lot of time trying to get the hick out of my voice.. then realized no matter how hard I tried I was still going to have a little bit of an southern twang so I turned my focus on what I was actually saying (or wasn't saying)... :)

Many years ago an old school broadcaster told me the best way to work on pronouncing my words correctly was to place a cork between my teeth and stand in front of the mirror and practice saying words I had trouble with. I never actually tried that method, but the jocks who've worked for me in the years since that have tried it.. thay it workths..<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by scottm1025 on 01/16/06 01:17 PM.</FONT></P>
 
Hire a voice trainer. Speech thearapist, or something. I took professional voice lessons to lose my hick accent, to a degree. Now it only comes back when I'm drunk or mad. Hooked on hickness worked for me!
 
> Hire a voice trainer. Speech thearapist, or something. I
> took professional voice lessons to lose my hick accent, to a
> degree. Now it only comes back when I'm drunk or mad.
> Hooked on hickness worked for me!
>


I lived and worked in MS and FL (I'm from Ohio). Although I never developed a full blown accent-I was often asked if I was from around there or "you must be from around here?" and I think it was always the relatability that mattered..
I am in country and I tend to have an "accent" or "overdo" it sometimes but it only helps sometimes..never be ashamed of where you are from..use it and work it. Talent comes across regardless of the locality..I have heard some of the best talent in the south and I never noticed the accent-it was the fantastic presentation that blew me away. Yeah, now I think of it, they got accents but they are still damn good! Actually, we all got accents! LOL My first consultant sat with me and said, "girl, you got a central Ohioan accent-better work on that." HAHAHAHAHA!! guess, I still am, y'all..
 
> > you just summed up everything i was trying to say....this may be a little harsh....but if you feel like you HAVE GOT TO HAVE a voice teacher....you must lack natural talent....
be proud of who you are and where you are from...go to the format that loves you most..not the other way around...as i said before...there is alot of national talent...tv and radio...that hve accents...it can be done...all depends on how you use it
 
> > > you just summed up everything i was trying to
> say....this may be a little harsh....but if you feel like
> you HAVE GOT TO HAVE a voice teacher....you must lack
> natural talent....
> be proud of who you are and where you are from...go to the
> format that loves you most..not the other way around...as i
> said before...there is alot of national talent...tv and
> radio...that hve accents...it can be done...all depends on
> how you use it
>


I'll tell you..there is nothing more refreshing than talent..and you love it when you can hear it? Nobody has to care where you are from...New yorker, Natchez, the bayou or Tempe? Just my opinion..when you fake it-you get in real trouble. Kinda like when a northern gal tries to play southern belle and does it terribly wrong! God, it is painful!
 
> Many of us had the "accent" of this part of the USA.

Several scattershooting points (and since I worked at KAAY
back when that actually meant something), I guess I can post
on the Arkansas board. :)

1). Notable accents (and stereotypes) also exist outside of
the USA. Specifically, when I was Germany, I observed it was
much the same. My friend's (who was from Bavaria) wife was
from Hamburg (northern Germany). She used to kid him about
his ``lazy accent'' and how slowly he talked. He
good-naturedly countered with ``well, at least we have good
manners and aren't always in a rush''.

2). As one of the authors in the thread mentioned, other
regional accents can hinder one's career. It took some
effort to rid myself of the harsh Western Pennsylvania
accent that I never noticed I had until my radio career
took me out of the tri-state area of PA, WV and OH.

3). To some extent, regional differences of all types are
vanishing and that's applicable to more than mere accents.
With the pervasiveness of national media as well as
shifting population trends, I wonder how far off we'll be
from losing our regional identities?
 
I remember when getting into radio in Ft. Smith many years ago and my first PD saying "well, you're going to have to get rid of that accent" and I said "what accent?" But yep, I had one. Like stretching long a's when "today" is the last word in a sentence.

So I listened to tapes and got rid of it. Since then, I've worked in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Phoenix, ect. and when people found out where I was from, some would say "why don't you have an accent"?

I don't particularly find the Arkansas accent charming when heard on the air somewhere else in the country. I've also heard jocks on country stations fake a southern accent which didn't sound too good to me but at the time, their station was beating mine.

I'd say listen to an aircheck, see the words where you are stretching vowels (or whatever else you are doing and part of conquering the problem is isolating the patterns) and eliminate it, one word at a time.

Now, I'm in news and (I'm sorry to say) my station has Fox news. They've got a guy from Ireland or Scotland named David Mcdougal reporting about mudslides in the Philipines and bombings in Iraq. Doesn't make sense so I don't use his stuff. They've also got a reporter that's on Fox TV and some of her reports end up on the radio stuff with a pretty deep southern accent(can't place it). I don't use her stuff either. It ain't that great to start with. But that's just my take.
 
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