There's a Strange Currency in Radio
I've been thinking about this one for a long time.
It isn't ratings.
It isn't revenue.
It isn't relevance.
It's looking like you're close to people who are famous.
Spend five minutes on Facebook this week after a major concert, awards show, or industry event, and you'll see it.
The same photo.
A radio person.
An artist.
A giant smile.
That familiar finger pointing at the artist's face like they've just reunited with a lifelong friend.
"Great catching up with my buddy..."
Come on.
We've all been through those meet and greets.
You know the drill. You get about ten seconds, someone from the label snaps the picture, thanks everyone for coming, and the line keeps moving.
I've taken the picture too.
This isn't about the picture.
It's about what the picture has come to represent.
Somewhere along the way, we started confusing proximity with impact.
Standing next to someone famous doesn't make you influential.
Having backstage access doesn't make your station more relevant.
Getting invited into the room isn't the accomplishment.
What you do once you're there is.
That's the part I think we've forgotten.
The Building Is on Fire
Maybe this article lands differently today than it would have ten years ago.
Radio is in the worst position it's ever been in.
That's not negativity.
That's reality.
We're losing audience.
We're losing revenue.
We're losing local programming.
We're losing talent.
We're fighting harder than ever to prove why we still matter.
To borrow a phrase from my friend Tim Richards: the building is on fire.
Yet if someone judged radio by Facebook this week, they'd think our biggest challenge was deciding which selfie to post with Taylor and Travis.
That's a strange picture to paint while the house is burning. I urge you with everything you post right now... read the room.
This Isn't About Taylor Swift
Let's be clear.
Taylor Swift isn't the problem.
The labels aren't the problem.
In fact, I'm grateful they continue to give radio something almost no one else gets.
Access.
They open doors.
They invite us backstage.
They give us time with artists.
They trust us with opportunities that influencers, creators, and fans would love to have.
The problem isn't the access.
The problem is what we do with it.
Too often, we walk away with a selfie.
Here's What I Actually Care About
As someone who works in radio, I honestly don't care that you got another picture with an artist.
I'm serious.
I don't. Who does by the way? And why don't we see ANY other arm of entertainment obsessed w posting artist pics like we are? (real talk)
I care what you did with the opportunity.
Did you create something your audience couldn't get anywhere else?
Did you ask the question every fan wanted answered?
Did you tell a story?
Did you make listeners laugh?
Did you surprise someone?
Did you create a memory?
Or did you just get another picture proving you were there?
Because those are two very different things.
When Did This Become the Strategy?
Here's the question I can't stop asking.
When did a fifteen-second backstage meet and greet become a social media strategy?
At some point, we collectively decided that proving we met the artist was enough.
It isn't.
No one cares that you met the artist.
I'm serious.
They don't.
Your audience doesn't.
Other radio people don't.
What your audience cares about is what they got because you met the artist.
That's the question.
Not whether you got a selfie.
We're Wasting Our Biggest Competitive Advantage
Here's what frustrates me.
Your local influencer can't do what you can.
They can't walk backstage.
They can't sit down with the artist before the show.
They can't ask questions from your listeners.
They can't capture moments nobody else in your market can.
They can't create something that only your station can deliver.
You can.
That's your superpower.
That's what the labels are giving us.
Not a photo opportunity.
A competitive advantage.
And too often, we're using our biggest competitive advantage to create the same content that anyone with a VIP meet and greet could have posted.
Radio doesn't have an access problem.
It has an imagination problem.
To the Record Labels...
Please keep inviting radio.
Seriously.
We appreciate it.
But let's think bigger together. Don't assume that the radio person is going to be bringing ideas. They need you more than ever, but they also might not always know how to do this. Look for ways to connect YOUR artists with THEIR listeners. Believe it or not, there is still magic there.
Don't just give us access.
Help us create moments.
Help us produce content listeners can't get anywhere else.
Help us tell stories.
Help us surprise fans.
Help us remind people why local radio still matters.
One unforgettable piece of content is worth more than a hundred backstage selfies.
Every single time.
We Need to Get Better
I know many of you reading this.
I know you're working ridiculous hours.
I know you're covering jobs that used to belong to three different people.
I know you're exhausted.
This isn't a criticism of your work ethic.
It's a challenge to raise the bar.
If we're posting about radio today, let's post the things that actually move radio forward.
Show me the promotion that packed the parking lot.
Show me the social campaign that exploded.
Show me the sales idea that opened new revenue.
Show me the programming tweak that added listeners.
Show me how you're using AI to work smarter.
Show me the interview that everyone in your market talked about.
Show me the artist activation that made listeners feel like they were part of something special.
Show me something another programmer can steal tomorrow morning.
That's the stuff our industry desperately needs more of.
Because right now, more than ever, if what we're sharing isn't connected to ratings, revenue, or relevance, it's worth asking why.
We Owe Each Other Better
We're all trying to solve the same problem.
How do we stop the bleeding?
How do we win back audience?
How do we create new revenue?
How do we become indispensable again?
Those conversations are infinitely more valuable than another backstage selfie.
I'd rather see one brilliant idea from another programmer than fifty pictures from backstage.
Because one great idea might actually help save someone's station.
A selfie won't.
Access Isn't the Win
Take the picture.
Seriously.
Enjoy the moment.
Celebrate it.
You've earned it.
But don't let the picture become the most interesting thing that happened.
Access isn't the reward.
It's the raw material.
The reward is what you build with it.
The next time you're backstage, ask yourself one question.
"What am I about to create for my audience that no one else can?"
Because that's the opportunity.
Not the selfie.
If the building is really on fire, the industry doesn't need another picture proving you got into the building.
It needs more people sharing the ideas that will help save it.
And maybe that's the strange currency radio should start valuing again.