Episode 193
Adapt or Fade: Corey Dylan's 7 Takes on Radio Resilience
Corey Dylan, the morning host of 100.7 Big FM in San Diego, Corey discusses her passion for radio, her career journey, and the importance of embracing new technologies like AI in the industry.
She emphasizes the need to adapt to changes, learn about AI, and use it to enhance rather than replace human creativity. Corey also shares advice she received from George Clooney and Bryan Cranston about approaching auditions with confidence and viewing them as an opportunity to solve the employer's problems.
Overall, the conversation highlights Corey's commitment to community engagement, personal branding, and staying relevant in the evolving media landscape.
Her insights offer valuable lessons for aspiring radio professionals, emphasizing authenticity, community engagement, and adaptability as key pillars in radio success.
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Transcript
Radio has a lot of problems right now, but if you can be the
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:answer to any one of them, you have
to realize you're not there to get
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:a job, you're there to do a job.
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:And so when you are in that interview,
you have to be entertaining whoever
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:is in front of you and showing them
you're, again, the answer to their
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:problem, you're entertaining, you are
the person that they need to hire.
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:VO: Welcome to BRANDwidth On Demand,
your guide to rebooting radio.
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:Corey: Radio is not going to be
replaced by AI necessarily, but
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:the people who use AI are going
to replace the people who don't.
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:VO: BRANDwidth On Demand,.
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:Rebooting radio with a different
take on all radio can be.
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:Now your guides through the
mediamorphosis, David Martin, and
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:author of the book, BRANDwidth,
Media Branding Coach, Kipper McGee.
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:Dave: Our guest was born in the Motor
City, raised in the Emerald City,
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:and flown her way around the world
in search of interesting people, good
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:times, and great things to share.
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:She spent the last two decades
at stations like Tampa Bay's 101.
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:5 The Point, News Talk
970 WFLA, and Mix 100.
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:7, where she doubled the
ratings in just over a year.
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:She's amazing.
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:Along with hosting radio.
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:And voiceover work, she also squeezed in
time for occasional appearances, including
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:selling cool tech gadgets on HSN.
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:Ha!
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:In Atlanta, she co hosted mornings
for legendary Kix:
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:them through the station's
transition to New Country:
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:Now, a long time after her early
days at KZOK Seattle, she's
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:back home on the left coast.
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:Her personal motto is never turn down
an adventure and she's always working
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:hard on the next big thing She just
got through hosting the first ever
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:annual women's brunch at the morning
show boot camp in Dallas It was a
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:smash BRANDwidth On Demand, is proud
to welcome the morning host of 100.
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:7 big FM in San Diego the
one and only Corey Dylan.
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:Corey: Thank you guys.
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:Thank you
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:Kipper: We are so glad to have you So
thinking about your life in media, if
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:you were to pick the one thing that
really gets you going, what would it be?
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:Corey: Gets me going like, I don't know.
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:I just really love this business and it,
it just fires me up to see people losing
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:jobs or losing love for our business too.
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:Um, just in this ever changing time.
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:Right.
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:I really want to try to, I don't
know, encourage people and get
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:them excited about radio again.
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:And I mean, everybody, because I think
what a rising tide lifts all boats, right?
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:So if, if I succeed, I mean,
there's hope for somebody else.
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:And if they succeed, hopefully
there's, you know, a future for me too.
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:Well, Corey, you've
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:Dave: done so much and accomplished
a whole bunch, both on the
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:air and in your communities.
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:And you know, one thing that really
sets you apart is how you embrace local
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:charities and causes while creating
exposure for your personal brand.
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:Can you tell us about how you
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:Corey: do that?
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:Well, I, you know, I just offer up myself
for free to help people because I think
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:that's honestly the way I was raised.
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:I was raised in Catholic
parochial schools.
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:My parents are both devout
Catholics and it was always about
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:giving back to your community.
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:And so I think that's one part
about radio that has been a little
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:bit lost in all the, you know,
consolidation and buying and selling
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:and bankruptcies and things like that.
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:It's like, what was the
goal really to inform?
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:Embrace and, you know, give
back to your community.
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:That's
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:Kipper: right.
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:A little reference about serving in the
public interest is not always as full
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:as it should be for many, but beyond
the community events and on location
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:stuff, what's your philosophy on creating
the brand Corey Dillon, both on air
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:and online, and how do you keep that
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:Corey: fresh?
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:You know, I think, I think it was
Dolly Parton who said, figure out who
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:you are and then do it on purpose.
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:Right?
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:I mean, you really have to know
who you are and You know, I
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:struggled with that idea of a,
what is my brand for a long time?
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:And I think it was, uh, Gary Vee.
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:I don't even know, Gary Vee is
kind of a brand guru, I think,
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:for millennials and beyond.
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:He said, your brand is
your reputation, right?
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:And so that kind of
crystallized it for me.
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:I thought, well, okay, I'm just
going to kind of be me on purpose.
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:And I think when you're in the right job.
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:And the right situation,
they embrace you back, right?
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:And just let you go and let you
be who you are because I've been
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:this way for a really long time
and not much is going to change.
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:I think that's the same for all of us.
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:So I just, I just do things
that I naturally want to do.
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:And I probably, as far as
reinforcing the brand, I really just.
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:I do them publicly, you know, whether
it's during the pandemic, I started a
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:cocktail and then a cooking show too,
in part because I was trapped in my
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:apartment alone, you know, you couldn't
go anywhere, you couldn't see anyone, you
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:couldn't do anything and I still wanted
that connection with people and so I just
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:started doing things on Facebook live and
it's something that I'm still doing now.
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:Dave: Well, Corey, being back on the
West Coast in America's finest city,
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:what opportunities are you finding
to connect with your audience and
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:perhaps help them see the market
through the eyes of a visitor?
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:Corey: You know, I mean, that's,
that's all about just getting out
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:there and exploring again, right.
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:You know, vacationing in your own
hometown, which is, it's so easy to
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:do in Southern California because the
weather is 99 percent of the time.
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:And, um, and the way that I think that you
can grow your brand when you're trying to
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:do it in a new city or a city new to you
is to show them how you can sort of, um,
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:I don't know, show the world what you're
doing and where you're doing it, you
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:know, whether that's on social media, when
we have things like a tropical storm or
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:hurricane coming to Southern California,
which was the first in forever.
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:I actually played it safe, but I did
make a video because I've got lots of
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:experience living in Florida for 17
years of how to throw a hurricane party.
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:So I made a video for Tik TOK and
Instagram and Facebook and just
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:showed people, here's the do's and
don'ts about having a hurricane party.
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:It's just kind of taking what you know.
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:And then if I was to be out there,
I had a neighbor who did go out to
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:the water and he's like, Oh, I saw
a couple of people out here, but
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:they were chased off the beach by.
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:The, uh, lifeguards and coast guard and
things like that, because we weren't
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:supposed to be out on the beach.
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:But if I'd gotten any video, if
I'd gone with him, I probably
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:would have tried to sell it.
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:People are doing that, you know, because
it's Gosh, I heard about some guy
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:that this is like his full time job.
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:He, and it might be actually a
group of people, they get video
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:of things in different communities
before the news reporters get
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:there, before the police get there.
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:They just listen to scanners.
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:And they take video and they sell it back
to the TV stations who may or may not, you
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:know, I need to remember what that website
is because I want to check that out.
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:And
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:Kipper: speaking of all things
digital and beyond just radio with
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:change happening faster and faster.
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:I mean, Meta's got threads, Twitter
becomes X and all sorts of ways now
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:to get audio and visual content.
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:Yeah.
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:How does already a
person like you keep up?
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:What kind of things do you want
to learn now to be ready to
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:be a leading personality in?
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:The media world of the
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:Corey: future.
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:Yeah, I mean, don't get me wrong.
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:There are days I hope
that it all implodes.
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:You know, whether it's TikTok,
the Chinese owning it, operating
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:it, despite what they say.
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:You know, it's just like,
Oh God, another platform.
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:And frankly, who knows how long.
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:Any of them is going to be around, because
like you said, things change so quickly.
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:At first, Threads was the fastest
growing social platform, and
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:now the engagement is terrible.
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:I go on infrequently,
like anybody, if at all.
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:But one thing I tell people, and there is
a lot of fight and pushback, is you have
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:to learn to make AI your friend, right?
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:And it's, the threshold is so, I
think the bar is so low right now,
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:because it's new to everybody.
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:Even though, predictive AI has
been around for at least 10 years
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:or more with Google working on it.
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:Now, everybody's in on the game, right?
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:And, generative AI is the catchphrase,
even though, again, people are
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:fighting it like it's brand new.
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:It's, it's not brand new.
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:It's just that it's learning to
think for itself, you know, with all
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:the information that you feed it.
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:So, I just think, unless you are, Going
to embrace this as the new technology.
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:I mean, you would sound like an old
fart, like, Oh, I'm not playing CDs.
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:I'm not going to play music videos.
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:You know, everything is just so negative.
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:And I, I just think.
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:The best thing that you could do
is take any of these free courses.
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:I mean, LinkedIn, Coursera, edX.
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:There are so many free courses
that will just sort of introduce
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:you to the basic concepts.
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:And from there, you can actually
get certified, a certification.
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:Like I actually bought one for 45.
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:I didn't buy one.
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:I bought the class that I could
get certified in for 40 on edX.
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:I have not yet taken the class.
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:I've just been listening to a
LinkedIn free course kind of in
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:my free time or on long drives.
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:Um, I'm just trying to learn how I
could use it rather than have it use me.
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:And as other people have said before
me on different radio groups, like
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:radio peeps and whatnot, radio is not
going to be replaced by AI necessarily.
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:But the people who use AI are going
to replace the people who don't.
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:So I intend to be one of those
people that sticks around because.
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:I'm not gonna just pooh pooh it and turn
my back on something that, frankly, none
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:of us really has a huge grasp on, so.
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:Kipper: That's a great line about
using it rather than letting it use
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:Corey: you.
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:Yeah.
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:I mean, that's what's gonna happen.
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:We don't know with Ashley AI because there
hasn't been total transparency about that.
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:Like, has she compensated extra?
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:She said that she could tell them
to stop using it when she wanted to,
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:but I, we don't know the actual facts
contractually or otherwise, but I know
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:that in the voiceover world, there
is already an uproar to, I mean, and
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:this is why the actor's strike and the
writer's strike, particularly for us
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:right now, the actor's strike is so
important because That's one thing that
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:they are standing their ground on is the
use of AI with their likeness and their
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:voice and performance and deep fakes.
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:I mean, it can be done
very easily these days.
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:So what protection do we have?
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:And I mean, the best way to
learn how to protect yourself is
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:to learn a little bit about it.
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:Otherwise you don't know
what questions to ask.
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:Great
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:Dave: point.
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:Our guest is Corey Dillon from Big 100.
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:7 San Diego.
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:Hey, somebody you'd love to hear from,
we'd love to hear your suggestions.
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:Email us show at brandwithondemand.
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:com or reach out to us on social.
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:Brandwith Plus on Insta,
Facebook, LinkedIn, and X.
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:Wherever you look, it's brandwithplus.
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:com.
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:Plus P L U S brand with plus,
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:Kipper: and if you haven't,
feel free to check out our back
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:catalog of previous guests.
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:We got top media thought leaders,
PDs, managers, and big air talent.
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:Like twin city, like twin cities, legend
KVWB is Dave Ryan, Andy Summers from
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:92, five XTU in Philly, Seattle legends.
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:BJ and Megs from KISW and so
many, many more all in the feed.
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:Dave: Coming up, Corey Dillon shares
some advice you don't want to miss.
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:VO: Musicmaster, less stress, more yes.
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:Hey, this is Dave Tyler.
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:And maybe it's just me, but I love
uptempo songs coming out of the
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:legal ID at the top of the hour,
as well as out of my stop sets.
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:S[pt: It's kind of like saying, all
right, we're done with business.
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:Let's get back to the party.
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:To do this, I use clock filters in these.
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:Positions that only choose
medium up or uptempo songs.
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:Sounds great every time.
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:And it's easy to set up.
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:If you have any questions, just shoot
me an email at Dave at musicmaster.
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:com.
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:Musicmaster.
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:Music scheduling the way it should be.
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:Kipper: Hey there Kipper here and
ready or not, holidays are here.
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:So one way you can help out your
listeners and your bottom line is with.
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:Radio Swag Shop.
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:You just give them some cool
holiday artwork, pick your
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:items, they do the rest.
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:They'll do the sales website, they
handle the fulfillment, the transaction.
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:All your station has to do is
sit back and reap the reward.
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:Radio Swag Shop.
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:Easy!
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:Just follow the link in the show
notes or go to radioswagshop.com
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:and be sure to use the coupon
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:code KIPPER.
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:That's RadioSwagShop, coupon KIPPER.
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:Your listeners and your
station's holiday budget.
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:Will, thank you.
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:VO: Exploring media
evolution in real time.
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:BRANDwidth On Demand,
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:Dave: we're with Corey
Dylan, the star of Big 100.
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:7 in San Diego.
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:Corey, what's the best
advice you were ever given?
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:Corey: Save your money.
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:You work in radio.
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:Dave: And conversely, if you could give
one piece of advice to others in the
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:industry, what would that advice be?
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:Corey: You know, there's a couple
of different quotes, actually.
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:One was from George Clooney and one was
from the other actor, Brian Cranston.
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:And when I was unemployed for two years
and seven months, these quotes both
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:helped me just kind of overcome adversity
and just reframe my perspective, right?
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:The one from George Clooney was.
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:You're as far as auditions went,
which for us would be an interview.
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:Right.
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:And he said, I had to stop
going to auditions thinking,
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:gee, I hope they like me.
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:And I had to go in thinking I
was the answer to their problem.
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:I mean, radio has a lot of problems
right now, but if you can be the
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:answer to any one of them and help them
figure out how to get ratings, how to.
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:Draw an audience, whether that's
using your social media or whatever,
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:that's what they're desperate for.
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:And the other one was from Brian
Cranston from Breaking Bad.
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:And he said, it's a subtle difference, but
he said 35 years ago or so, this really
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:helped the trajectory of his career.
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:He said, when going to an
audition, you have to realize
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:you're not there to get a job.
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:You're there to do a job.
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:And so when you are in that interview.
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:You have to be entertaining whoever
is in front of you and showing them
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:you're, again, the answer to their
problem, you're entertaining, you
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:are the person that they need to hire
because you've got The knowledge and
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:the skills and you're entertaining,
you know, to be on the radio.
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:Dave: It's great advice.
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:Kipper: Yeah.
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:Corey: Thank you.
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:Great advice.
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:Wish I'd heard it myself 20 years ago.
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:Dave: The star of San Diego
radio, Corey Dylan from B 100.
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:7.
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:We have links to her complete
bio, her social links and
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:more all in the show notes.
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:Just scroll down on your phone
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:Kipper: As always.
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:We want to thank our exec producer,
Cindy Huber, and associate
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:producer, Hannah B, for booking.
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:And boy, has she been busy.
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:Coming up, a top rated multi award
winning morning host, a look at the year
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:in music trends past and what's ahead
for 24, and an expert on linear sound.
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:How to grow your TSL, whether
on -air, online or on-demand.
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:That's all coming up.
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:Dave: That's a wrap.
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:Kipper.
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:Holidays.
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:Yeah, they're important.
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:We think about a lot and that's
what we'll be thinking about in
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:the next One Minute Martinizing.
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:Find it in the show notes
at BRANDwidthOnDemand,.com.
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:I'm Dave Martin.
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:Kipper: And I'm Kipper McGee.
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:May all your BRANDwidth be wide.