November 2002 RAP
November 2002 Highlights
Feature: Making a Living in the Voiceover Business
By Tom Richards
Admit it, you've thought about it: you're in a booth somewhere, reading a
spot, digging how you're sounding, and it occurs to you: "Hey this is pretty
coooool!" Maybe you're carting up a national spot or listening to a promo on
TV, and the idea starts to sink in: "Hmmmmm - why not be a full-time
voiceover talent?" And then you really start to trip out. You see yourself
socking away a seven-figure income, gliding from one VO gig to the next,
telling your agent to go ahead and book that session tomorrow if you can
squeeze it between the movie trailer and the game show taping. Its a heady
feeling that ramps up to a blinding fever, swirling, twirling, seeming like
itll never let you go... Just lie down for half an hour itll go away.
Feature: Minus Three Percent
By Michael R. Lee, Ph.D.
How much is a Production Director worth? More than any other talent at
the station outside of the morning show? More than the promotion director,
assistant engineer or traffic announcer? How about being worth more than the
year before?
If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, you'd be wrong. After years
of being underpaid and increasingly overworked, Production Directors in the
new R & R 2002 Radio Industry Salary Survey can now add the adjective
"insulted" to the list. Because last year, Production Directors actually
received on average 3% less salary than they did the previous year.
Interview: Rob Johnston, Corus Radio, Toronto, Ont.
By Jerry Vigil
In virtually all of the interviews we've done with producers in Canada,
we find stations with several full-time writers on staff and plenty of
producers to handle the job. Typically, the ratio of writers and producers
to stations is larger than that of U.S. stations. This months interview is
no exception. Rob Johnston is the Creative Director of the Corus group of
stations in Toronto--The Edge, Q107, and Mojo. Three stations, four
full-time writers, and four full-time producers. And as you might expect,
the quality of the product coming from their production rooms is top notch.
In this months interview, Rob gives us a look at this highly produced
cluster of stations, with an extra close look at Mojo Radio, the newest of
the three radio stations which is billed as "Talk Radio for Guys." Be sure
to check out the demo on this months RAP CD for some awesome production.
Test Drive: Eventide Eclipse
By Steve Cunningham
Ill admit it right up front this review is an exercise in personal
selfishness for me. I've admired and lusted after Eventide products since
the 70s, and I've even been known to hunt for old ones on eBay. So when I
saw the Eventide Eclipse multi-effects processor at a show, I called our
beloved Editor and begged, pleaded, coaxed, and cajoled him into having the
shiny silver box sent to me for review. Well, its here, and its an Eventide.
And that, dear reader, is a Very Good Thing as well see.
Q It Up: The RAP Network Speaks - You and Your Station's
Websites
Q It Up: What responsibilities, if any, do you as a
production person have with regards to your stations websites? Do you have a
full-time or part-time website person on staff that maintains the sites? Who
designed your websites? Please give us any other thoughts you might have
about how station websites have affected your production department.
Radio Hed: Where Do You Get Those Stories?
By Jeffrey Hedquist
One principle I continually emphasize, because it works, is to make your
radio commercials stories. Writers sometimes tell me they've run out of
story ideas. Where do you get the seeds for these wonderful tales that will
capture your listeners heart, or at least her attention for a minute? I
contend that you'll never ever run out of story ideas. You just have to know
where to look.
Production Library Review: Connect from FirstCom
By John Pellegrini
Ever wonder whom the composers are that make the music for production
music libraries? Over the years I've discovered something that is quite
vital for us radio prod people when it comes to auditioning production
libraries: the less the library company says about their composers, the less
I'm going to like what I hear. Kind of makes you think that no one involved
with putting the library together wants to take responsibility for the
music. Not so with FirstCom. They always tell you right up front who their
composers are and what they've done. And nowhere have they pushed this more
than with their newest offering, Connect.
...And Make It Real Creative:
By Trent Rentsch
Too many times I hear screaming, flame-throwing, hard rocking ads on
Country music stations. I have also heard monotone, voice only spots droning
on for what seems like hours on Classic Rockers. Beavis and Butthead drops
land smack in the middle of sweepers for oldies stations, while bad Elvis
impersonators mumble why they listen to the local alternative station every
time they are out buying jelly donuts. Who is the audience? Where is the
focus? Until the first question is answered, the second wont be and
obviously isnt in some cases.
RAP Forum: "I Think, Therefore I Am...Still Here"
By Albert Berkshire
I expect that everyone has morning rituals. Certainly, some must roll out
of bed and land in their running shoes. Others stumble sleepy-eyed into the
shower and pretend the new day hasn't yet arrived. Still others may bemoan
their own existence because they just cant face the day.
Around here, after our private "at-home" rituals are not long behind us, we
gather in our spankin' environment and take a fun approach to starting our
day here. Once I've gone through my 12-step program for anger management
(its 12 steps from my desk to the coffee pot), we sit around and talk about
life and about commercials.
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