20 Not Out
Published in John Mellis, The Art Of Noise, Podcasting
Click play to hear our audio blog in its entirety, or continue reading.
Twenty years ago last week, I spent the evening listening to Damien McLeod on what was then Northsound Radio. The next day, the station was about to become Northsound 1, and Northsound 2.
I was trying to get to grips with the fact I was going to be on the night time show on 'the new' Northsound 1 the following evening. It was my first proper job. Not just in radio, but anywhere.
I'd spent three years prior to this working for free, supposedly learning my craft(!) at Moray Firth Radio in Inverness.
Despite never earning a penny there, I’ve tremendous memories of being there, and a fantastic set of friends.
When I moved to Northsound at the age of 21 it was my intention to give it maybe a year before moving on.
After a fortnight, that opinion had changed to thinking I'd be lucky to see out my 12 week probation!
In the end, I spent four months on nights, six months on drive-time, eight-and-a-bit years on breakfast, one on evenings, and the rest (just over ten years) in the slot I occupy now between 10am and 2pm in the workday.
What's changed in radio in twenty years? Well, we've gone from playing vinyl records, to Compact Discs, to mp3s.
From recording on reels of tape, to DAT, to via apps on your smartphone.
From everything being entirely local, and live, to sharing programmes from elsewhere.
Facebook and twitter didn’t exist.
In 1995 Social Media meant reading something from the newspaper aloud to your workmates in your lunch break at work.
Everything about the way the audio we produce is delivered, and the technology we use to make it in the first place has changed dramatically, but very little about the nature of the content has altered at all.
Why?
Simply put, because people still want the same things - we always will.
We listen to the radio for companionship….for a laugh, to be entertained, or to find out specific information or news, and one of the greatest compliments an audience can give is to put its faith and trust in you to deliver that.
The chance to be the person who gets to offer them that is rare, and it's a privilege to be able to do it every day.
I've forgotten more than I ever learned, but the shorthand version is this:
- Try to be the very best you can every single day. Take pride in everything you do, and if anyone ever decides your time is up, you'll know there was nothing more you could've done.
- NEVER think you're done learning.
- EVERYONE has something to offer.
- If it stops being fun, stop doing it.
It took me until I was well into my thirties to realise I was the exception to the rule. I thought everyone grew up, found something they loved doing, and went and did that for the rest of their working life.
How naive was I?
And how lucky am I that it actually worked out that way for me?!
So, I stayed more than the one year.....twenty and counting. I met my wife here, fell in love with her and the area, and have a couple of smashing kids.
Each day I get to go and have a laugh for a few hours, and on weekends, thanks to my radio job, I get to be the guy who shouts 'Come On You Reds’, for the mighty Dons at Pittodrie.
It might not be everyone's dream, but it's mine.
If we've worked together and become friends, or you've simply listened at any point in the last twenty years - thank you.
I've always thought it's only a matter of time until I'm found out....but until then...