I guess some of my liberal friends got a little upset the other day when I commented on Facebook that I thought that white people were musically hipper than black folks.
Hey, I like all kinds of entertainers, whereas black people seem to like black artists..
Some of them even claimed my statement was racist, which I find ridiculous.
Anyway, that’s when the debate began, and one of the folks who disagreed with me was my friend @HarryLyles, a very successful Hip Hop radio consultant.
I backed up my statement by telling Harry that I recently saw Stevie Nicks in concert and also Steve Miller about a month later.
“Harry,” I said, “There wasn’t one black person in the audience at their shows, and I doubt there are any at a Taylor Swift concert either.”
Then I went on to say that I’ve seen the Stones, Elton John, Maroon 5, Paul McCartney, Rod Stewart, Joni Mitchell, Shania Twayne, Gordon Lightfoot, John Mellencamp, Sting, Melissa Ethridge, The Four Seasons, ZZ Top, Van Morrison, The Beach Boys, The Moody Blues and Crosby Stills Nash and Young.
Same story though, no black folks and the only time I’ve seen any was when I went to see The Temptations, The Four Tops, Fats Domino, and the occasional Doo Wop show.
I still remember how strange it was when I walked into a Christian Rock concert a few years ago to pick up my daughter Cami, and the only black person was one of the musicians on stage.
Hey, I also doubt that CHR radio has many black listeners, whereas tons of white people listen to and love hip-hop.
I finished up my conversation with Harry by telling him about the day George Martin died, and on that day, I happened to be sitting next to a black dude.
We were discussing the plight of the Miami Dolphins, and at some point, I said, “Hey, sad news about George Martin, huh?” He looked at me and said, “Who’s George Martin?”
“Harry,” I couldn’t believe it; I said, “Hell, I know who Quincy Jones is, who the fuck doesn’t know who George Martin is? ”
Harry responds with, “George, could you tell me this, just who the hell is George Martin?”
(George Martin is shown on top with his greatest accomplishment, The Beatles. Harry is shown right below him)
COMMENTS
@TimMoore: George, I’m tossing the penalty flag at your feet! “Modesty” is a great quality…but you’re making a science out of it!
If I had to win today and was asked to provide a small list of “Contemporary Radio’s most innovative PDs” (by contemporary, I mean the “format-era” to now), you would unfailingly share the top rung within a small, select company.
Coming from Michigan, I believed “Northern Radio” was superior…until I took the VP job atTM in Dallas and started listening to KVIL! Pure artistry.
It usually worked! From Detroit to Portland, Maine…from Grand Rapids to San Diego, we preached the strategy of “Cinematic” Radio.
As I mentioned, I left Dallas (which I had come to love) to launch a huge 100,000-watt CHR in the gorgeous Grand Traverse Bay (Michigan) region where 24 Class C stations already existed!
Names like The Chicago Club, Harbor Point, Belvedere Club, and numerous others depict the Hyannis backdrop, which it remains today.
GM Bernie Blair called and said, “Timmy…what are you doing ?” I explained it was the ultimate compliment and, in fact, we were WKHQ, but with the exception of “legal,” we were positioned “106 KHQ”!
So they commissioned the region’s first Arbitron for Northwest Michigan. I was dreading it, having been on for only nine months and realizing “WJML,” though far from spectacular, had been the big dog for ten years
My Ops manager (Bob Harper/WKBW Buffalo and others) made a deal to call me as soon as the advances were released…I was dreading it! All I hoped for was that we’d just have a respectable debut.
I interrupted…”Okay Bob…I get it…I’ll stay calm”, to wit he responded, “Well…that’s good…because… KHQ is NUMBER 1 in every category that matters, including 25-54 Women and Persons!
Little did I know you were crucial to their greatness! (Geo’s Daily Life-Liners)
Geo: Tim, you’re much too kind, but I must admit I loved it. 🙂