Anyone can do American Idol updates, most people talk to the kicked off contestants, but only one show can do “Bud Light Bev”. Bev is a listener to Karson & Kennedy on MIX 104.1, Boston. She calls in a lot and she’s always drunk. So, they built an American Idol game around her. Go grab a Bud Light and enjoy!
The Seahawks had a great season in the NFL, even beating reigning Super Bowl Champs, the New Orleans Saints. To help celebrate, Candy & Potter, on KMPS, Seattle decided to put together, with listeners help, a Pete Carroll Carol. Just off of Christmas, they re-wrote “The 12 Days of Christmas” as an ode to celebrate the team and coach who took them further than anyone expected (theirs is called “The 12 Days of Seahawks”). I always ask shows what they are doing with local topics others in the market aren’t. This is a great example of one that scored on every level.
One of the chief responsibilities of a show is to generate content no other show in the market can. Perez Hilton does a daily celebrity update on J & Julian’s show on B96, Chicago (now #1 P18-34!!). Perez could certainly rattle off all the latest Hollywood gossip with great credibility. But listen as this report lights up when the morning team gets Perez to talk about trying to find a partner on match.com! That’s something no one else did that morning and led to other organic ideas which positioned the show as relevant, unique, and fun.
Games work on morning radio, especially if they have a vicarious element to them, where people listening can play along. Here’s Karson and Kennedy at MIX 104.1, Boston playing “Jessica Simpson or Homer Simpson” where they read something said by one of them, with the listener having to guess who said it. They get bonus points because they got audio of everything to add a dimension to make people laugh. The fun part is that everything they read could be said by either person!
Every show finds dumb stories in the paper or on line to use on their show. Listen as Chris Carr & Company, on B105, Cincinnati, use one to make their audience laugh. They not only report the story, they found audio (and doctored it) to make it better. Listen to the laughter and all the fun listeners have with this. It’s this kind of break that makes people come back to the show for more!
Sometimes the best fun is the silliest fun. Here’s The Scotty Show at Radio Now, Indianapolis opening the phones to have listeners make fun of Oprah’s favorite things episode!
Nothing is more powerful than when a talent reveals themselves. Listen here, on their first show back after Thanksgiving a couple of weeks ago, when a member of the Rickey Smiley Morning Show shares with the audience that his father passed away the morning of the holiday. This is so raw, so real, so touching, and so honest. It’s also the foundation for immense loyalty with the audience because it lets them in and makes them feel like they know you.
There is always a strategic benefit to putting a relative on your show because you become a kid. Here’s 92.3 NOW, New York’s Nick Cannon calling his grandmother to talk about Christmas. Listen as Nick gets redefined from being a super-celebrity to just being someone’s grandson. It’s not only cute, fun radio, it serves a purpose to defining his regular-guy character, too.
Karlson & McKenzie at WZLX, Boston do a fun feature every Christmas called “Scared Straight Santa”. A distraight parent calls the guys to tell them about a misbehaving kid. Pete McKenzie then calls the kid as Santa to create a little mayhem and to have one of those honest conversations to get the kid to promsie to behave or there will be no presents this year. Here are a couple of calls. Normally this is to young kids for the “cute factor”, but one is to a 19-year old who wanted to do nothing but curse with Santa on the line):
What could be more fun during the holidays than calling the Butterball Turkey Hotline to ask some silly questions to see how they’ll react? That’s what J & Julian from B96, Chicago did!