This is Robin Bailey – Part 2

Robin Bailey is the star of Brisbane’s top rating breakfast show on 97.3, and this week we caught up with her for a chat. In Part 2 we talk about what makes the 97.3 Breakfast team work, and ask Robin to describe her on-air breakfast partners Bob Gallagher and Terry Hansen in just one word.

And we ask Robin her thoughts and tips on being a female talent in breakfast radio in 2016. 

This is Robin Bailey Part 2.

Blair:  Apart from 97.3 what stations do you enjoy listening to?

Robin:  I’m probably going to sound really naff, but it really is mostly our network. I enjoy listening to Jonesy and Amanda. And Amanda Keller really is one of the most awesome chicks, she is one of the people I respect most in radio, God she’s a good bird. So supportive and she’s incredible on the air.

So yes I really enjoy listening to Jonesy and Amanda, and I’m a bit of an ABC nerd at times, sometimes ‘the world today’ program to hear what’s going  on, and I do love conversations with Richard Fidler, he really connects with people.

Who else do I like listening to?  Actually you’ll laugh, I am a little bit addicted to Smooth TV (laughs).

Blair:  Oh really?

Robin:  I know. Friends of mine joke that I’m probably the only one watching it but I enjoy it. When I’m in Sydney or Melbourne I often turn them on because they’re quite similar to 97.3.

Oh and I do listen Kyle and Jackie cause I’ve known Kyle from when we were at B105 together, so I’ve known him for decades, and there’s something about knowing the man and then listening to him, that just makes me chuckle.

Blair:  What do you think is the most important thing for doing a winning breakfast show?

Robin:  For me the most important thing is no bullshit. I think that people know what comes out of our mouths is only half of what you get with radio. But it’s that old adage that perception is reality. So when you make breakfast radio what are you trying to impart?  What’s the emotional integrity behind the content?

I’m not explaining this very well, but I really think you need to be very clear about who you are, and what you’re doing, and do it honestly.  Now for someone like Kyle, you know he is that guy that doesn’t often care. And you believe that, you feel that and I think that’s the same with us.

I genuinely care about people, and I genuinely hope that our show changes people’s lives. Yes we’re about entertainment, yes we’re about making people laugh, but I also want to make them feel other emotions.  Sometimes people get angry at me, and I’ve had some abusive stuff thrown at me, often I’ll reply back or I’ll ring these people and I’ll just say to them “My job is to make you feel something. If you’re angry I’ve done my job.”

As a medium we can really connect with people, and so that’s the one thing I’d say about what we do.

Blair:  Let’s talk the guys you work with On-air, one word to describe Terry?

Robin:  Terry?  One word, oh I was going to say he’s a funny bugger. Um, oh God ok.  Oh Man.

Blair:  You can’t think of just one?

Robin:  Oh, I can’t think of one.  I can think of many and all of them are lovely, he’s a genuine person, he’s funny, he’s compassionate, he’s frickin’ annoying, yeah (laughs)

Blair:  That’s good, and one word for Bob.

Robin:  Oh Bobby, again multiple words but here we go.  He’s lovely, very caring, Bob has a big heart. But so petulant! Oh my God!  You’ll probably only use one word of those and that’s not going to be fair, but there you go.

Blair:  Obviously you have a great team at 97.3 with Terry and Bob, but let’s pretend for a moment they weren’t around, who else would you love to work with?

Robin:  Honestly hand on heart I would love to work with Meshel Laurie, I would love to work with Amanda Keller. I’d actually really like to work with Kyle because I have always worked around him, and knowing him for years and years and years.

Who else? Let me think. Hmmmm, that’s really hard. I’d really like to work with Karl Stefanovic actually.

Blair:  Why is that?

Robin:  Oh and actually I’d really love to work with Lisa too. Why Karl? Because I think he gets it. I think both of them really get the whole concept of being real, they come from a good place, and I  believe that if you come from that perspective you can achieve amazing things.

Probably the other thing is that I enjoy working with people who I know have my back. It’s not about ego or being competitive it’s actually about going okay here’s the common goal, let’s go!

Blair:  Any advice to younger female talent looking to succeed in Breakfast?

Robin:  Oh man, it’s a hard game now, I thought it was tough when we started but there were career pathways then. I do wish radio would get off the bandwagon of reality TV show people, just plonking them on-air.

It perhaps sounds like I’m having a go at Sam Frost, and whilst she is a product of that, my comment isn’t about her specifically. I just think Radio is an art form, it’s a skill. And the really good ones have been doing it because they are so passionate about it, and they have been doing it for a really long time.

And tthe passionate ones are the successful ones, for example Chrissie Swan may have been a reality TV personality, but she also had done radio before that. And I just think for young people trying to get in, if you really want to do it don’t take no for an answer. It does sound a bit cliché though I do understand that, but you just need to get out and learn the trade, and try and get a job.

Blair:  ‘Try’ being the operative word.

Robin:  Yeah, it’s hard.  You know it’s like the triple threat in musical theatre. There used to be the singer, the dancer, the actor.  Now you have to be all three.  And I think what’s happening in radio is that you have to be a writer, you might have to have some television experience, and you do have to be able to ‘do radio’.  I think being able to tick those three boxes is extremely helpful.