To do that?
I don’t talk much about the clients I’ve worked with. I always considered our relationship sort of private. I think most of them appreciated that.
I was so fortunate to work with the biggest radio company in Europe, Group NRJ, for over a decade. That time was a gift!
While in Paris one visit, I met Patrick Bruel at the stations. If you don’t know him, google his name. I think you’ll be surprised.
Patrick is a huge star in France and throughout Europe.
He was gracious, he was humble, and he spoke perfect English, forgiving my paltry French.
Can you spare 5 minutes? Watch this:
I loved this song the first time I heard it, even before we added it to the CHERIE FM playlist.
I loved this song without being able to understand more than a random word here and there.
How does that happen? How is it possible?
Perhaps you noticed the orchestra. In front of each musician is a music stand holding sheet music, a language understand by all musicians.
It’s understood by those who only speak Mandarin, or Russian, or Hebrew.
It’s a universal language.
And I don’t think you need to be fluent in French to love the song Patrick wrote and performed for this audience because music itself is also a universal language.
You don’t need to understand French to feel the emotion that the audience, that Patrick himself, is feeling.
And it is the feeling that penetrates, that links our emotional response to his.
If you struggle with being vulnerable on the air, if you struggle with sharing your own emotions publicly, please never forget that you have music as your backup.
You play songs every hour that communicate emotion, and the Power songs you grow so tired of are usually the most emotional.
Even if you can’t let your listeners inside your heart, understand that the songs you play hold the hearts of your listeners with all the tenderness they need.
Match the tone of your voice, the pacing of your words, to the emotion within that song as best you can. At the very least, try not to ruin whatever emotional response your listeners may be feeling.
Ahh, and if you have the gift of all great artists, understand that the song you just played can let listeners see a glimpse inside your heart. There is no better time for vulnerability and emotional connection.
“So now we find ourselves on the street, with our fears and our worries and our doubts. Who has the right to do that to a child who truly believes?“
Even the greatest stars struggle. Even the wealthiest can feel worthless.
Even the best among us is insecure.
Don’t ever feed that, in your own life or others’.
Emotion – all emotion – is a universal language.
We understand tears.
We understand laughter.
We understand anger and grief and love.
Let that be what you share with your listeners, no matter which words – which language – you use to convey it.