It’s Hard To Make It Sound Easy
Ad-libbing is one of the more difficult things that radio types do. I vividly recall a guy at CKSL in London who used to write out all of his breaks, including “Hi, I’m ____. How are ya doin’ this afternoon?” Every once in a while he would veer from the page and inevitably talk himself into corner with no way out but a series of stammers, followed by total panic. Dick Joseph (formerly of CKSL, now of NBC) once gave me an excellent piece of advice. He said, “always know how you’re going to end a bit.” That tip was so valuable to me as I worked on developing the skill to ad-lib. Because I knew where I was going to end, all I had to worry about was getting there.
On 680 News, Paul and I launch little asides here and there, where they’re appropriate, about lighter stories or topics from our own lives. They appear to work more often than not. We’re lucky that we have chemistry. So many teams don’t. I’ve been involved in many morning shows where the aura was definitely off, and my “partner” was actually even resentful of my presence. That is a painful situation to be in. Morning show hosts have to be respected if they can tell a story well. There’s nothing like trying to perform in front of someone who wants desperately for you to fail!
Some hosts in the Toronto market completely suck at ad-libbing and it makes one wonder how they keep their jobs. Some are excellent at it. John Derringer and Marilyn Denis come to mind. When it’s done right, it sounds effortless, but believe me, it’s not. Think about the last time you were cornered by someone you didn’t know at a party, and they proceeded to try to make small talk. It was boring and pointless. Your mind wandered, and you silently begged for a fire alarm, an aneurism, anything to get you out of that situation.
Everyone thinks they can do the job. Most “win a radio show” contests prove that they can’t because the winners don’t last. (I hate those contests, by the way. I think they’re incredibly insulting to professional broadcasters.) Maybe anybody can do one show. But few people can do them day after day after day. You can’t possibly love all of the radio voices you hear out there. But I hope you can at least respect them.
