MOJO in the Morning, Channel 955, Detroit Five Lies to Tell Your Mom
Craft an edgy story with five lies and convince a listener to call their mom and tell it to her and you have a weekly benchmark called Five Lies to Tell Your Mom. In search of a new appointment for Mojo in the Morning, Channel 955, Detroit a few years ago, we developed this weekly bit that highlights the relationship one listener has with their mother. Offline, the show creates a short story with five bold, but believable lies. They then conference call the listener with their mother and, without the mom knowing they are also on the line, they listen in as the story is told and the mother reacts. They record this one week out to make it good – which affords the show the time to coach the listener on the story and then for editing and post production. In some ways, this is a train wreck (in a good way) the audience would never see themselves doing, but love eavesdropping on because the stories you concoct can be as bold as you like to capture the audience’s attention.
It’s really important when a cast member tells a story about any experience they have (or will have) that you include the other people in the story in telling it on the show. Dana and Jayson, KBZT, San Diego understand to make stories full and complete that using your break time with other colorful characters helps the story come alive even more and, it gives the principles (them) more to play with. Jayson was moving. A relatable, common occurrence. What kind of person is Jayson during this chore? How did he take care of those who helped? What is their take on Jayson and his emotional state during a task no one likes? There are so many questions – don’t limit yourself to just your perspective (or the one perspective of the person who endured it). Add drama through twists and turns, by inviting in others who’ll add some level of tension that will make the story more fun to tell and more fun to hear.
Houses divided, where each spouse roots for a different team in a sports rivalry, is an easy relationships topic that adds a special layer of emotion for your audience. One of the classic football rivalries is the yearly Bears-Packers game, because both teams are fairly close to one another and each has a fan base deeply loyal. It’s easy to get into these kinds of conversations on the show when these games happen, and you should do that. Sherman and Tingle, WDRV (The Drive), Chicago (one of whom backs the Packers and the other who prefers the Bears) took it one step further the morning after the game. With a Packers win, they asked the audience if it was inappropriate for Packers fans to gloat by wearing their Green Bay jerseys to work to celebrate the win, and rub it in to Bears fans in the office. The resulting phone calls, mostly from Packers fans believing there was nothing wrong with doing that, results in some very local content, and breaks that radiate the rivalry and passion, giving both sides an opportunity to relate, take a position, and have fun (even if they lost).