Training Future On Air Personalities

96five Brisbane has a knack of finding new talent and training them up. hit 105’s Sam and Dom and the entire Collective Noun group are some recent discoveries. So what’s important when it comes to getting your foot in the door of a station, and what’s next? What is this community station’s approach to work ethic, training and development?  PD Liam Renton explains why the station has a deliberate plan on training talent.

Let Them Own a Live radio Shift

We start by offering them a platform. A live time slot, doing live radio. And not just voice tracked, late nights or a shift on our digital channel. We throw them in the deep end with prime weekend shifts, arvos or nights. The small amount of fear when that red mic light comes on is a rite of passage to up and comers and we don’t take the privilege lightly. We still believe in the live shift and also believe in learning from your mistakes. And by throwing them in the deep end, we don’t just say ”Here’s 4 hours and a microphone”. We make sure they are fully trained in the art of prepping a shift.

Teach them to Prep.

Our current weekend team of Courtney and Jacob came to us looking for a shift they could own.  We needed them to understand that not everyone will get given or deserves an on air shift. So we make sure they take seriously how important prepping a shift is.

We ask that they have every single break thought out, prepped, written down and checked off before it goes to air. They have just submitted 32 pre prepped, pre written out breaks for two live shifts they will do on air at 96five this weekend.

 It may seem extreme, but we ensure they actually have something to say. I’m confident that Courtney and Jacob could be the most prepped duo in the country with possibly the least experience. But they are pulling two daytime shifts in a capital city every weekend and they are getting better every week. Plus with great structure they know what they have to say before their shift starts. (see example of their prepped shift before they turn the mics on here)

Let them play by our rules

We run a tight format and fiercely protect our demo and what they like to hear. So when young guys come along and want to sound all Hit 105 on us, we remind them that part of their training is to craft a sound that suits our sound and audience.

We encourage them to be themselves, but teach who our target listener is and that their time will come to be the next big thing on the CHR stations, which is where most want to end up. Whilst they are on air here, they must prep and deliver a shift that suits who we are, not where they want to be. They can make as many demos as they like for other stations or potential job opportunities in studio 2, after they craft a tight shift our audience wants to hear.

Invite them back to do it all over again.

We encourage mistakes. We all make them. It’s the only way to learn. And we find if they make them once, they’re unlikely to make them again. It’s an honour to be a part of the early days in the future radio stars careers and we are always looking for the next big thing to make an impression on.

Liam said 96five is happy to hear from anyone wanting a start. Find out more by email [email protected].