A Loyal Reader Asks:
“As the morning show co-host, I want to play music that acts as a synergy between our two personalities and the station’s flavor — as well as separating our show from the rest of the clutter.
“The two of us have off-the-wall personalities. I would like to play music which fits our personal styles. But some of our station’s hottest songs really don’t match our personalities.
“Is it a good idea to separate us musically to some extent because of this?”
While the morning show should not be playing music that contradicts the radio station’s music image, it is quite common to have a more restrictive playlist during the morning show than in other dayparts.
Often, for example, some of the “harder” songs aren’t played during in the morning.
Also, your morning show probably plays fewer songs per hour than other dayparts. This means the morning playlist must be more selective, to insure that when a listener does hear a song during your show, it’s a hit.
If you play music during your show, you are representing the station’s music brand. Playing songs that fit your personalities is nowhere as important as playing songs that appeal to your target audience.
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Amen to that!
In the mid-90s, I programmed an AC station in West Texas; the midday DJ insisted on playing Fats Domino’s “Walking To New Orleans” during his show. I like the song, but it sounded waay out of place next to Michael Bolton and Celine Dion. He thought he “deserved” to get to play one song he liked.
The last two sentences sum it up nicely.
Shouldn’t the morning show “fit” the station, and therefore the stations music?
“The two of us have off-the-wall personalities. I would like to play music which fits our personal styles. But some of our station’s hottest songs really don’t match our personalities.
“Is it a good idea to separate us musically to some extent because of this?”
If you’re asking that question….what are you doing behind the console? or that station?
OK, sure a paycheck. but it’s not totally about you or your individual personalities. It’s about the whole package, from station imaging to the music to the personalities that interact with it all and the listener to boot. No one individual part is bigger then the other (though talent can sometimes think they are, unless you are howard stern, get over yourself!)
That whole package is the “carrot” that tempted the listener to stay and hear those wonderful commericals that help pay you money.
Instead of trying to change the music…..how about changing the personality? Make it work with the music. That’s one thing you can control. The other thing is finding a radio station with music that works with your off the wall personality. You can do that also.
There are some formats I knew I could never work in, because of the fact that it just wouldn’t work. I didn’t like the music, or couldn’t try to like the music. It was just too hard on my head. But I knew the music is the # 1 thing you cannot deviate from in commerical radio. The format is the star, everything else is secondary.