Straight From The Mouth
The Morning Mouth's June Interview with Loren Henderson
(Reprinted by permission; Copyright © 2005 Talentmasters Inc.)
Ryan Cameron, Frank Ski, Steve Harvey and now John Salley, you're
like morning radios' starman. How does one walk into some of the biggest
shows in radio, a major comic and sports legend turned jock and tell them
you're their to help their show?
Very carefully. In each situation you have to deal with each individual
differently. Trust is the main factor. The talent has to believe that you are
there to help and not to compete. Can't tell you I was always successful in
conveying that to each talent but I tried. Some relationships were
harmonious, others tense. The problems might have been egos, pride or just
plain "who the hell does he think is?" I learned from each one. They all have
well deserved big egos and unfortunately I guess I have one too. Some were
easy to get along with and they'll all tell you that I'm not the easiest
person to get along with at times. That's because I'm a perfectionist. I'm a
student of morning radio.
Benchmarks, relating to the audience and, yes, even show prep. It's
because of that I was hired to put together an entertaining show. Now each
talent has their own idea about how the morning show should be executed. So
does management. That often left me in between the talent and the Program
Director. So lesson number #1 is if the talent is not bringing in their own
producer and you are challenged with working with a big time talent -- you
are going to have to submit but not surrender. They are the star and you have
to find a rhythm but there has to be respect. Great producers are talents
too. The days of glorified interns are over. It ain't easy.
What was producing Steve Harvey like? Is it true his manager was
always with you in the studio?
You have to remember at the time Steve Harvey was coming off the
phenomenal success of "The Kings Of Comedy" movie, he had been a successful
television star with 3 shows under his belt and still is an icon among black
people. When Radio One bought The Beat in Los Angeles back in the summer of
2000 and hired Harvey to take over mornings from Ed Lover and Dre, they felt
they had the superstar they needed to support this multi-million dollar
venture. He didn't trust me right away but did trust his longtime manager who
had been with him for years and helped him gain a significant portion of his
success.
A lot of the ideas and direction I suggested wasn't what Harvey wanted to
do. It had a lot to do with Harvey wanting to do a non-traditional morning
show. He felt like a lot of the formatic things about morning radio was
boring and redundant. He is a free spirit. So yes I had to deal with his
manager in the studio every morning because Steve trusted him and after all
who am I? I'm just a morning radio producer whom the company invested a lot
of money in moving from Atlanta to L.A. He is a star. The great part about
working with Steve was watching how he touched people's lives. He is
spiritual. He is real. He is your crazy-ass uncle with a radio show. Big
stars came to be on the show just to hang out with Steve instead of the other
way around.
Is there anything intrinsically different in producing an Urban
Contemporary show when compared to AC or CHR?
I've only dealt with urban radio the better part of my career, but after
talking with other producers from other formats, I've found we all deal with
the same challenges. The things I learned most from many of the Morning Show
Boot Camps I've attended is an audience, no matter what ethnicity or
nationality, all have the same relatable things about life that make for
great morning fodder. You don't have to be Hispanic to be cheated on by your
spouse. You don't have to be white to wonder why Tom Cruise is acting like an
ass over Katie Holmes. You don't even have to be black to wonder why your
kids keep coming into the bedroom without knocking. You still have to look
for the hottest things to talk about and have on the hottest guests. I'm just
as interested in having on Ellen (DeGeneres) as I am having on Oprah.
I've heard that the Urban audience can sometimes have less tolerance
for humor that pokes fun at religious leaders or certain topics. Are there
any that you steer away from?
Depends on the talent. Are you articulate? Are you well-prepped? Somebody
just getting into the game probably shouldn't try to tackle subjects like
religion or politics without a diverse background. I've found the Sterns, the
Mancows, or even the Jeff & Jers have been successful because they push the
envelope and have interesting outside interests. Some Urban Program Directors
will tell you subjects like Martin Luther King, abortion and religion are off
limits. I disagree. It's not the subject specifically but what kind of spin
you can generate to create compelling radio.
Since you've built a number of shows from the ground up, what's your
best advice for starting a new show?
Establish relationships and trust. You want to be able to say, "Hey we're
here and want to be part of the community!" If you are starting out in
Tupelo, Mississippi, or Los Angeles, California, you want people to call in
and tell you where the hot spots are, who are the popular neighborhood
celebrities and where can you get a good fish sandwich? Establishing
benchmarks are also important. Part of the trust factor is conditioning your
audience that we are going to do birthdays everyday at 7:20 so you can set
your clock. Patience is a factor. Don't move too fast. Putting together a
great morning show will take some time. It might mean adding and subtracting.
I promise you by the time you get the rhythm down, the show you end up with
in 6 months might not be the one you started with.
What's it like producing for sport's legend turned jock? With John
Salley being over 6'6', I'm sure you don't want to rub him the wrong
way.
John helps host Fox Television's "Best Damn Sports Show Period," so he's
not totally ignorant to structure. He is driven to win in Los Angeles and is
open to constructive criticism because the entertainment industry is
watching. I've got great support from my Program Director, Tom Calococci, who
has a lot of experience working with high-profile talent. He and I have just
tried to get John and his partner, Ananda Lewis of "The Insider" television
show, used to each other and formatics. The first few weeks have just been
about basics like time and temping and explaining the importance of
consistency. At the risk of a corny cliche, it's a marathon and not a sprint.
Was the transition that much harder given you were following Steve
Harvey?
No, because John spent some time co-hosting with Steve to make a smooth
transition weeks before we debuted the new morning show. He even sat in while
Steve was on vacation. The audience became familiar with John very quickly,
not to mention he's a former Laker.
What's the funniest thing you ever witnessed on the air?
In 2001, Steve Harvey goes on the air and says he just bought a new truck.
He starts bragging how nice it rides and blah-blah. Stevie Wonder happens to
be listening one morning and calls to say he wants to play a trick on Steve.
So one morning we "borrow" Steve's keys and move his truck around to the side
of the building where Steve can look down on it from 19 floors up. Late in
the show Steve is once again bragging about his truck, and then we take a
call from security to say someone has just driven off in it. He freaks! After
about 10 minutes Stevie calls Steve to look down out of the window. Low and
behold it's Stevie behind the wheel of Steve's truck cruising (with a little
help of course). Let the cursing and laughs begin. Hilarious bit.
Any horror stories?
I have many, but I won't embarrass anyone (Kareem Abdul-Jabar!). I will
say that most problems start because of a communication breakdown. A lot of
celebrities (Kareem Abdul-Jabar!) will miss interviews because of scheduling
conflicts. As a rule never take it out on them because it probably had more
to do with a moronic publicist or an inept assistant. Just keep in mind as
well that everybody is not good for morning radio (Kareem Abdul-Jabar!)
I understand your future plans may include working with a number of
shows. Without giving away the store, what's your formula for
winning?
- Know who you talking to -- create a profile of the target demo.
(Example: 18-49 single white collar black woman who's average income is
between 25-35 thousand dollars.) You then focus your content towards this
demo's interest. (I.e. TV shows, culture, music, fashion, health, etc.)
- Define roles. Who's the comedian? Who's the straight man? Who's the
leader? Create lanes for each character on show and make sure they stay in
their lanes. Seinfeld made TV millions because each character stayed in their
lane and was consistent week in and week out. Problems start when team
members start crowding other member's lanes.
- Strong show prep skills. If
you are a Program Director and your morning show doesn't prep well? See tip
#1.
- Improve team relationships. I've learned the hard way. The more team
members know and accept one another, the better the chemistry on the air.
Have to spend time with each other. You don't have to sleep with each other,
but it would be good to know what makes each member tick.
- Local, local,
local. Get out and be seen. Let the public touch you. In turn you'll find out
what issues touch them.
How do you feel about non-politically based jocks occasionally
stepping out of their element and taking on controversial issues?
Talking about Bill Cosby's comments about today's African American kids
for Urban radio is just as important, or more, as keeping up with "American
Idol." Urban radio (or black radio) owes some it's early success to community
activism when blacks used the radio interview to sound off on community
issues. Black people were motivated to save our neighborhoods. A few shows
today deal with controversial issues largely because it's how we grew. My
owner Cathy Hughes was a strong advocate back in the day in Washington at
WOL-AM. Balance is the key. People for the most part want to laugh and hear
good music. Every now and then it's good to stop and talk about something
serious. Remember you got to relate to your audience. You can't ignore what
the public is talking about.
Of all the people you've worked with, which of their attributes
stands out most in your mind?
- Russ Parr - Funny! Enough characters to do a show by himself.
- Steve Harvey - Realness. His spirituality touched people. Also everthing
he does is big.
- Mary Catherine Sneed - Passion.
- Ludacris (rapper and
former intern)- Drive. I should have been nicer to him.
- Ryan Cameron...
Frank Ski-Civic mindedness
So how in the heck did you actually become a producer?
I, like some other producers am a frustrated morning air talent. It was
after a couple of years in London that mary Catherine Sneed asked me to come
to work for Radio One in 1995. Ryan Cameron was doing a morning show in
Atlanta and he needed somebody with experience to help support him. At first
it was mixing oil and water but for the most part we were successful.
When you run into people at Boot Camp this year who've read this
interview, what is it you hope they'll remember?
I'm a former thumbsucker. I remember as a kid laying in the bed at night
listening to how funny Tom Joyner and Rick Dees were while sucking my thumb.
That's when I decided to do this radio thing. So when you see me at Boot Camp
-- just say "hey thumb sucker!" It won't bother me. It'll just remind me of
some of the best times in my life. Listening to radio!
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