You may be thinking that it’s “Seattle DJ Week” on this blog – and you wouldn’t be wrong. But it turns out the most fascinating stories in radio last week weren’t about the whereabouts of Casey Kasem’s corpse or what happened to radio’s Q2 revenue – they were about Bob Rivers hanging up his headphones and B.J. Shea stepping up to superstar status at “Morning Show Boot Camp.”
You’ve probably read various summaries of Don Anthony’s annual conference that took place last week in Chicago. Boot Camp is one of the most unique events in all of radio because most of the people in attendance make their living on the air.
If you believe that the future (not to mention the past and present) of radio is its personality – the people behind the mics – then you would enjoy Boot Camp. There is a different vibe in the room when it’s filled with performers – the folks who are paid to entertain and to inform. They are the faces of most great stations.
And the list of radio icons in attendance was a long one: Paul Castronovo, Rick Rumble, Dave & Carole, Mark & Mercedes, Ross Britain, 2 Guys Named Chris, Larry Norton, Brother Wease, Fitz, Phil Hendrie, and many many more. These personalities come together every year to compare notes, compete for the best bits, have a lot of laughs, and hang out at a conference that almost has a radio throwback feel to it.
Yes, radio has changed. It’s a business that is obsessed by ROI, IPOs, and EBITDA. But let’s not forget the DJ. No matter how much Wall Street thinks it has us bought and sold, drawn and quartered, radio is a circus. And the Big Top was in all its glory in Chicago last week. And B.J. Shea was the ringmaster.
Veteran Boot Campers know too well how B.J. has been a consistent presence at these events. I’ve been to several Boot Camps, and B.J. seems to show up for every session, and often leads off the Q&A with a query – or more to the point, a very vocal, pointed question and lots of attitude.
But this year, Don Anthony had a better idea. You know the phrase about tents and urination? Well this year, B.J. was definitely inside the tent – charged with kicking off the entire event.
I was expecting a rant – maybe even a statement about the state of radio.
But instead, B.J. talked about himself and his journey to this stage. It was very personal, but every second banana, stunt boy, producer, phone screener, and sidekick in that room could relate to what he was saying. As most everyone knows, B.J. has knocked around. A lot. From Rochester to Phoenix to San Francisco to Seattle; from bad situations to mediocre gigs, and now to the great one he now enjoys at KISW, B.J.’s ride has been episodic.
In his speech, he talked about his own psychosis, years of therapy, and support from his family, his show, and his management team. B.J. admitted that he spent many years blaming others for his lack of success – no marketing, bad formats, lousy partners, a lack of support. All of that led up to the realization that he became his own worst enemy (“Maybe I was the a-hole”). He talked about how some of the greats like Kidd Kraddick always took time to positively greet him at Boot Camp, but how his own attitude and negative thinking held him back.
When you think about it, the guy has pretty much done the impossible at KISW – replacing Howard Stern and achieving even higher ratings, while helping return the station to its former greatness. There are very few of these stations left – local brands that have become bigger in 2014 than they were in in all the previous decades they been around. But that’s the KISW story under Dave Richards, with players like B.J., The Men’s Room, Ryan Castle, and Jolene providing the personality and the attitude around the clock.
As Dave noted recently, “B.J. and I had spoken for two years about the fact that his then midday show on sister station The Buzz was ready for the throne. When opportunities like this arise, too often we spend a lifetime weighing options, overthinking, researching. This was not only a no brainer because of his talent, intelligence and overall show DNA, but the transition was so seamless, it almost seemed too easy.” A no-brainer indeed.
B.J. truly set the tone at Boot Camp. In a 30-minute speech filled with passion and inspired self-deprecation, B.J. looked more like he was giving a TED Talks presentation than one of his signature rants. No notes, no slides, but a steady stream of introspective advice and dead-on observations fo
r a room of talent looking for a guiding theme from this Boot Camp.
B.J. reminded everyone that his mantra wasn’t “never give up” – instead, it was “give up, never,” and he spoke to the importance of sticking it out, persevering, and confronting one’s demons.
He told a story about his daughter’s cool, calm ability to be able to improvise a dance performance by adapting to a much smaller stage at the last minute. And that’s an important lesson to all of us – on the air or not – having the skill and exposure to perform on any stage at any venue, regardless of the conditions, the odds, and the disruption that’s all around us.
While radio continues to be ruled by metrics – ratings, revenues, spreadsheets, and forecasts – B.J.’s opening invocation at Morning Show Boot Camp was reinforcement that the greatness, charm, and hope of radio emanates from the air studio – not the numbers.
“Great art comes from crazy people” was one of B.J.’s lessons, because despite the corporate need to package it all up and make it scalable, the reality is that radio’s past, present, and future is about people who let’s just say aren’t exactly the most buttoned up, securest, calmest, and most rational folks on the staff. Thank God for those people.
Like B.J. Shea.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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“…radio continues to be ruled by metrics – ratings, revenues, spreadsheets, and forecasts…greatness, charm, and hope”
Many, probably most radio decision makers are missing this connection. So much of radio’s differentiation and advantages over its growing digital competition revolve around personality and spontaneity. Concurrently, the algorithms that the Pandora’s of the world use will get better and that will only underscore radio’s limitations as musical wallpaper.
Radio’s talent bench strength always came from small markets, nights and weekends and they are almost universally tracked now…so where is talent going to come from going forward? Three major radio talents (Bob Rivers, Kid Kraddick – tragically, Scott Paulsen) are off the air already in 2014. Who is going to replace these guys. It seems to me that right about when the connected car starts having real impact, many of radio’s top personalities will be at the age where they may not want to work much anymore. What will happen to those spreadsheets then?
It takes time to develop talent, as today’s blog illustrates. Talent = EBITDA IMO. Does anyone else see it that way?
I hope you’re right. The themes you bring up here are what motivated us to showcase local (Detroit) talent at DASH last October – clearly one of the high point sessions with Valenti & Foster (The Ticket), Jay Towers (WNIC), and Dave & Chuck the Freak + Lisa Way (WRIF). Thanks for chiming in, Bob.
I have known Bob Shea, B.J. for many many years. And all I want to add to this excellent article is, He is also one hell of a nice guy.
Dan
Thanks, Dan. B.J. wears his heart on his sleeve – and just about everywhere else. Thanks for commenting.
Well put, his heart on his sleeve and everywhere else.
I’m actually a listener in the Seattle area and I must say BJ, his crew, and even the management have stood out in the community. It’s not just their talent, but the genuine way they address the audience. In a time where native advertising is rampant and content becomes questionable, they manage to not only entertain but also gain the trust of the audience and the community. They regularly involve themselves in the concerns of the city in a constructive manner and remain approachable enough that they feel like friends, rather than someone trying to sell be something. I’m proud to support them and their sponsors. May it continue for many years.
It is sincerely great to hear from a real “end user.” These are compliments that any radio personality would love to receive. Thanks, Tristan, for taking us the time to give us your perspective.
Knowing BJ as I have for many years, his being “knocked around” was in my opinion not a “lack of success”, but new opportunities to succeed. He doubted his ability? Sure, that is what he said, but his friends and supporters knew that there was only one #1 DJ and that is BJ Shea, from the small markets on the east coast to the pinnacle he is at now. Kudos to BJ for his continued success and thanks for the positive article about him.
Much appreciated, Chris. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
any shot the video will be released? I’d LOVE to see it!
Good question, Jeff. I will check in with Don Anthony.