Radio is definitely a business, but the best radio hosts are true artists, not unlike actors, bands, or comedians. Often the most talented, and popular artists in those fields are a “bit quirky.” Radi
Seacrest Out?
Depending on the dimensions of your browser you might’ve seen this headline on Billboard.com today: …Clark’s Company
Radio Life Interview
I was interviewed last year for a radio industry website. Here’s the transcript:
How did your radio passion begin?
I loved listening to the radio as a child. It started with CHUM FM, when it was still a rock station. I remember calling up the morning show as a little kid with a joke: “How can you tell Ronald McDonald at a nudist camp? By the sesame seeds on his buns.” I loved Dr. Demento and the Sunday Funnies with Rick Hodge. In my teens, it was CFNY, and CFRB. CFNY was one of the first great heritage alternative stations in North America. My parents listened to CFRB, one of the great heritage talk stations at the time. I suppose it was lucky to be in the Toronto market when I was young. I loved talk radio, and often called up the ‘RB talk shows during my teen years; mostly Wayne McLean and Ed Needham.
Great State of Radio Piece
This appeared on Bill McMahon’s Personality Radio blog. It pretty much encapsulates much of what’s wrong with terrestrial radio today.
The Problem with Ryan Seacrest
“On-Air with Ryan Seacrest”is a microcosm of what’s wrong with radio right now. The problem has nothing to do with the show being created in Hollywood and syndicated to local radio stations across the country. The trouble is the show’s content. It’s ordinary, average, and forgettable.
10 Questions (about radio) with Josh Holliday from 2006
I found an old link for this bit I did with All Access, a big radio industry website. They have a weekly feature called On The Beach (an old radio term for being between gigs – guess it’s better than Wallowing in Self Pity, Thinking I’ll Never Work Again.) It was April 2006, after 102.1 the Edge, and before X92.9.
Please begin by giving us a brief career history …
For the last 13 years I’ve been both in front of and behind the mic. Started out doing creative for CFNY. Went on to do on-air entertainment reporting, including hundreds of interviews with local and international notables. Wrote all the imaging and on-air promos for Classic Rock Q107 for about 2 years, but had a jones to get back in front of the mic. Hosted a regular (and quite popular) daily show on 102.1 The Edge.
1 What do you do to maintain a positive mental attitude and stay motivated?
The first rule of fight club: never talk about fight club.
2 How are you occupying your time, besides looking for a job?
I’ve never limited myself to a single medium. I act for television, film and some stage stuff, do voiceovers, some animation, perform stand-up and improv, and sometimes hold doors open for strangers.
3 Some people get discouraged or enlightened with the business when they actually step out of it for a while. Tell us your observations from the outside.
I’ve kind of been exploring all sorts of radio alternatives for my listening: including a fully-loaded iPod (music and podcasts,) public radio, college radio and most recently got satellite. I’m intrigued by the emergence of the new tech and programming, and how terrestrial radio is reacting (or in some cases not reacting) to it.
Personality Radio
Music-based formats on terrestrial radio are in a losing fight, and many are reluctant to use the biggest weapon available – personality. In a world filled with a myriad of musical sources – iPods, sa