Monday, 3/4

You know, maybe I need to enunciate a little more clearly.

I’ve now had two people come up to me at entirely different times and ask the exact same question--“How come, when you’re taking Instant Requests, you ask the caller about their station for “More Music, More Fun, and and Instant Request? Why do you say ‘and' twice”? Well, I actually don’t. I ask them about their station for “More Music, More Fun, and AN Instant Request”. And once I explain that to the person asking the question, they realize what’s going on, and nod their head in acknowledgment.

However, as I’ve found out many times over the hundreds of years that I’ve been doing this, if more than one person notices something, then a LOT of people are noticing that same exact thing. Therefore, I guess I need to enunciate a little more clearly.

In all honesty, I don’t even pay attention to stuff like that, and I’m sure I should. I’m sure a vocal coach could come in and explain dozens of things I’m doing wrong (like not enunciating clearly and being overly dependent on the words “okay” and “like”). I’m sure a real radio “professional” would point out that I don’t punch the right words or phrases, and that I often just sound like I’m talking to someone, instead of having a voice that sounds like I Should Be On The Radio.

My bad. I guess I just don’t really have a radio voice, something that’s been pointed out many times when people meet me for the first time and say, “You sound just like you do on the radio!” Well, yeah. . .that’s just because it’s me talking. I’ve never approached it like I should sound like I Should Be On The Radio; I just always figured it’s just me talking to you guys, and why should I have a “radio voice” to do that? Yet there are so many people in this business who are what are known as “pukers”; people with big RADIO voices that make themselves sound like their tonsils are coming out of their throats. I’m sure you’ve heard them before, and I know that’s what some people expect when they turn on the radio.

But that’s not me, and it’s not something to which I ever aspire.

However, maybe I SHOULD work a little on the enunciation, especially if people keep wondering about the double “ands” at the end of an Instant Request. I do tend to speak rather quickly, and maybe, sometimes, on occasion, my words tend to run together, especially if they have the same sounds, like “and” and “an”. So I’ll try and work on that.

Like I said, my bad.

(jim@wmqt.com)