Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #592: A Lesson You Can Learn from Steve Martin

Posted on October 9, 2024 by tommykramer

Content is definitely what I get asked about most in sessions and in radio seminars. And since it takes a long time to get people who haven’t seen how easy it is to catch on, many times I give them an overview – a lesson I learned from watching the great comic and actor Steve Martin over the years.

I met Steve once, in about 1971, when a radio trade paper called The Bob Hamilton Radio Report was a hot sheet. Bob and I were friends, and he wanted to put together a convention with about 300 guests from radio all over the country – PDs, air talent, etc. Speakers were selected (among them were then a youthful Buzz Bennett, Bill Young from KILT in Houston, and as best as I can recall, Mike McCormick, known for programming WLS in Chicago). They had a roundtable discussion, followed by a Q & A period, then did air check sessions afterword, where even if you were a bumpkin from Louisiana (like me), you could get some feedback from these smart and accomplished Program Directors.
For entertainment beforehand, I had a friendly relationship with The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and asked them if they could open the seminar. They did, and brought a (then unknown to me) comic named Steve Martin as their opening act. (Steve’s manager was the brother of a member of the band, by the way.)

To say the least, Steve knocked it out of the park. 300 radio guys, laughing our heads off.

As I watched Martin’s career develop, I noticed something that I’ve always wholly believed in. You’ve probably seen it, too.

Every single time Steve Martin has been a guest on a late-night show, or hosted something like an Award show, there’s always been SOMETHING GOING ON.
Whether it was reciting his own notes on his appearances on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson (“August 3rd. Jokes killed. Audience was great. Ed was friendly. Johnny was…’sluggish’…”), or trying to throw a pencil through the imaginary glass windows behind David Letterman’s desk – missing each time, cutting to commercial, then coming back to 100 pencils stuck EVERYWHERE (even on a camera lens!), Steve always had something surprising to do.

And you came to know that about him. Something was coming. Guaranteed. You didn’t know what it would be, or when it would happen, but you just knew it WOULD come. (And it still does.)

So here’s the lesson: There always needs to be something going on. That’s how you COMPEL people to listen to you. Just “a voice reading words” won’t do. Yes, inform me. That’s part of the job. But always ENTERTAIN me, too.

This is a lot of what I coach. Ask yourself if this is that the kind of help you’re getting. If not, you need a different coach. (However, I don’t think Steve Martin is available.)

– – – – – – –
Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2024 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #591: The Easiest Way to Prep Content – End with the Beginning

Posted on October 2, 2024 by tommykramer

An interesting point came up in a recent session came from an air talent I’ve worked with for years. She was talking about how a break can go wrong if you’re not sure of how you’re going to start. This was my feedback…

Here’s the process that I’ve found works best:

1. Decide on a subject’s “worth” and what camera angle to use on it that will connect with the listener the easiest.

2. Plan an “out”. You may not use it; a “First Exit” may pop up, and you take it instead. But do plan an ending, so you have one ‘in the bank’.

3. THEN plan how you’re going to start. Write down a few words if you need to. Rehearse it out loud if you need to. (And most people do need to; they just think it’s not necessary. They’re usually wrong. Tom Hanks rehearses, but you don’t? Okay…)

The reason I put the Beginning last in the prep phase is because I want that last thought to be the first thing in my mind when, still fresh, I start the break. This simple way of laying out a break should help you.

– – – – – – –
Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2024 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #590: Memorable Moments

Posted on September 25, 2024 by tommykramer

Here’s a question for you: What stood out on your show today? Anything? A funny line? A really connective ‘take’ on something? A phone call that surprised you?

Great radio is about Memorable Moments.

If YOU can’t remember anything that stood out on your show today, no one else will, either.

– – – – – – –
Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2024 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #589: A Link in the Chain

Posted on September 18, 2024 by tommykramer

Early in my career, working at a 50,00 watt Top 40 giant, KEEL in Shreveport, Louisiana, I got a huge break.

Although I was probably the weakest air talent on the staff, my PD made me Music Director. (I’m a musician. That helps.)

All of a sudden, I had WORTH. I controlled the music we played. It was important. I became a link in the chain of terrific jocks we had.

Knowing that my boss had confidence in me, even though I was raw and untrained on the air, spurred me on to learn as much as I could from then on. (That led to the highest ratings in Shreveport history, #1 ratings in both Houston and Dallas, and being inducted into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame. And later, to my now 25-year career as a Talent Coach.)

If you’re a Program Director, consider this. The minute someone feels like a link in the chain, the chain gets even stronger.

– – – – – – –
Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2024 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #588: Another Lesson from the Great Howard Clark

Posted on September 12, 2024 by tommykramer

In the last tip, I mentioned one of my earliest mentors, Howard Clark. Howard was part of the original air staff of the legendary KFRC in San Francisco, and later in life returned to his (and my) hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana. And believe me, just listening to Howard was a lesson in how there are endless opportunities to do real Content.

One day, later in both of our careers, Howard shared his vision. He never worried about Content. He said if you’re paying attention to the song, to the artist, to the city, to the mood of the people around you, something will come to mind. And if it doesn’t, just do a nice, professional break. (But even then, sound ENGAGED in what you say.)

To quote my friend John Frost, “It’s a shame that most people have never heard someone as good as Howard, much less worked with him.”

But those of us who were around him can still spread the word.

– – – – – – –
Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2024 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #587: Short Breaks MATTER

Posted on September 4, 2024 by tommykramer

In a session recently with an air talent on a station my partner John Frost and I both work with, we discussed something “under the radar” for most people on the air. As Frosty put it, “Most air talents think only the longer breaks matter because ‘I get to prepare those.’”

John and I were fortunate in that early in our careers, we had a wonderful mentor named Howard Clark, who showed us what could be done in a short break. Because short breaks matter too. (This became a real strength for each of us, and a staple of what we teach.) Howard could do a killer, genuinely funny line in seven seconds or less. You listened more closely, because you never knew when Howard would say something that would crack you up – or at least, make you pay attention.

Since you probably never heard of Howard Clark, here’s the lesson:
(1) A clever line doesn’t always need a lengthy setup.
(2) Just your tone of voice can connect with the listener. It’s the mindless “read” that simply passes by unnoticed.

My thought? Until you master the art of having short breaks be an opportunity to inform or entertain, you’re not a complete air talent.

– – – – – – –
Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2024 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #586: Getting in the Groove FAST

Posted on August 28, 2024 by tommykramer

It stuns me sometimes that air talents sound so completely disconnected from the music. (This happens A LOT with voice-tracking.)

So, think about this little little-known technique: if you match the pace of the song you’re talking over the intro of, or coming out of, or if you match the emotional vibe of the song – or hopefully, you do BOTH – it makes a statement. You’re immediately a part OF the music. We want to believe that you’re listening to the music, too. Because, as my brilliant friend John Frost puts it, the core weakness of voice tracking is that the jock just drops in from nowhere, is not connect (or invested) in the song at all, and it’s just a voice reading a liner or a boring, mechanical intro.

Something really cool happens when an entire air staff realizes this, and thinks about stuff like this. There are dozens of little ways to be more “present” than your competition.
Great radio is thrilling and organic and surprising and connected. But bad radio is just disappointing.

Could be you’ve never thought of this. Now’s the time to do it.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #585: It’s About How Long it Sounds

Posted on August 21, 2024 by tommykramer

It’s not how long something IS. It’s about how long it SOUNDS.

Too many words, too many examples, or parenthetical “side road” journeys, will automatically make you sound longwinded.
And it’ll feel long, no matter how it times out on a stopwatch.

“2 minutes isn’t that long.” Really? How long does it FEEL? Try holding your breath for two minutes right now. You’ll understand.

Tommy Kramer Tip # 584: The Starting Place When You Have a Guest On

Posted on August 14, 2024 by tommykramer

If you want to have a guest do a good job and want to come back, you MUST start with this…

Take a back seat to him/her/etc. It starts with how you bring them on. Don’t “give away the plot” and tell the guest’s whole story. Take ONE thing and start giving, like “So, tell us about this movie…” (or whatever the guest is there to promote).

Or with a caller…suppose she’s obsessed with the movie “Back to the Future”. (This is an example from a show I coach in Houston.) Naturally, you ask how many times she saw it when it came out, and she tells you – instead of YOUR telling us you learned something about her, then telling HER that she has an obsession with a movie. (She knows that.) When you let the guest (or caller) tell the bulk of the story, that person comes across better – and so do you.

I can tell you from experience that the guest will really appreciate it. And you build a catalog of people who’ll gladly come back on the show.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #583: The Two Options in Content

Posted on August 7, 2024 by tommykramer

“Content Creator” may be a new title to the You Tube/Tik Tok generation, but to those of us in radio, it’s been part of our lives for a long time.

So, if you’re just starting out in this business, or if you’ve been around for a while and want to refresh and refine your Content, it boils down to two options:

(1) Be of Service. This can be about where to get relief from the heat in the dog days of Summer, helping out storm victims, or simply sharing what the station does that makes us a part of our community.

(2) Entertain me. No matter what format you’re in, if there’s not true Entertainment Value in your show, it’s going to be really difficult for people to become fans.

Filter everything through those two goals, and do your best in both.

(And remember, you can even accomplish both at the same time.)