I must say, there are some perks to no longer working in radio every day. For example, when Taylor Swift releases a new single, I don’t have to drop everything and find out all about it. But at the risk of turning into that guy who would approach me at a cocktail party and say “Oh, I used to be a RADIO DEEEEJAY” – the story behind Taylor Swift and a borderline sample of Right Said Fred’s “I’m Too Sexy” is an interesting one.
First, if you’re not familiar with the 1990 awesomeness that was I’m Too Sexy, crank this up. Your coworkers will gawk at you, but then probably sing and dance along.
Now, with that in mind, check out Taylor Swift’s Look What You Made Me Do.
If you think there are similarities in the hook, you’re not alone.
Frequently in music, a newer song will “borrow” from an older song, and a legal battle ensues. Now, depending on your level of cynicism, this is either the original artist defending their copyrighted work…or needing money when the royalty well starts to run dry.
A successful example of this: When Marvin Gaye’s family sued Robin Thicke, Pharrell, and TI over their smash hit Blurred Lines. Rolling Stone has a nice post mortem on it.
It’s no secret that Taylor Swift, with her Scrooge McDuck level bank accounts, has the best legal team that money can buy. So before we go accusing her of ripping off the brothers collectively known as Right Said Fred… it turns out that Taylor’s team sought and received permission to borrow from the song in her latest offering.
In the above Rolling Stone article, Right Said Fred won’t disclose what they are getting for royalties off the song and album, but there now seems to me a mutual admiration society between them and Taylor Swift / producer Jack Antonoff. Flowers have been sent, and they hope to meet up. But here’s the best thing to come out of it for us, the listener/viewer.
Right Said Fred has recut “I’m Too Sexy,” as a Mashup with “Look What You Made Me Do.”
Now go enjoy your weekend.
Archives for September 2017
Just Be Nice.
I consider my Uncle Jeff a mentor. We have both worked in media and entertainment, and we share a brain. However, he does have 20+ years on me, so I often seek his counsel. He told me his two rules for life.
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Know Your Audience.
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Be Kind. Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.
It’s no secret that in recent months and years, the world has gotten a little…well, nastier. There are a litany of reasons for this. There’s the 24 hour news cycle, and our current political climate. There’s social media, with algorithms that show you people who have your same point of view, rather than getting insight from the other side. And related to that, there are countless “keyboard jockeys” who will say anything and everything, emboldened by the lack of face time and the anonymity of the Internet.
Over the weekend, I had the honor of standing up in a dear friend’s wedding in Memphis. While I wish we’d been able to do more sight-seeing, we did make it to Graceland. John Stamos narrated the tour on a tablet, and we got to see everything from cars to planes to the famous “Jungle Room.”
After a great weekend, we headed to the airport for our 6pm flight. A girl soon sat down at the table next to us. She was headed to Charlotte on the same flight as us, before heading home to New York. She told us how she’d gotten into it with TSA (she was pulled aside) and a flight attendant on the way to Memphis. “Welp,” I thought. “That’s New York for ya.”
The waitress came over to take her order, and she asked for a burger, medium rare. The server told her they can’t do medium rare – only medium, medium well, or well done.
“I don’t understand what’s so difficult about medium rare. Is it that big of a problem to do that?”
Now this pleasant Memphis server was either having a bad day, or could not deal with this sudden onslaught of attitude. Or both. She said “Imma get my manager,” and left. The manager came over to see what the issue was, explained that they can’t serve medium rare due to health code (a common rule in many places), and she maintained the attitude. “Oh, well I don’t understand why she couldn’t have just said that.” Well, maybe if you had given her a chance instead of snapping at her, she could have.
This presented a delightfully awkward rest of the meal as we tried to distance ourselves from her, and the original server had to awkwardly walk past her to get to us for the check, etc. As someone who’s worked in customer service, I have no patience for someone who treats employees poorly. Sometimes I’ll even speak up, as I had to do at the post office a few weeks ago.
It was the Friday before Labor Day weekend, about 4:30pm. I wanted to mail some souvenirs from our Hawaiian Honeymoon to my parents. Now, the post office near our house in the ‘burbs is notoriously slow. I walk in, and there is a woman haranguing the supervisor there. She’s going up one side of him and down the other, ostensibly over a package she didn’t receive. Seven customers stood waiting in line as she demanded the name of her mail carrier, which of course he can’t legally disclose. He was basically telling her she was out of luck, but she continued. As the mood got more and and more uncomfortable, I finally had to speak up.
“You know, the sooner you leave, the sooner the rest of us can get service.”
She then retorted with something about her issue and why she was so upset, pushing the boundaries of decorum further and further. At long last, she got the supervisor’s name, threatened some sort of report, and started to leave. I called after her, “Finally! Now the rest of us can get taken care of.”
I won’t print her two-word reply here, but the second word was “You!”
“Right back at ya,“ I retorted. “Have a GREAT weekend!”
I’m a pretty low-key, easy-going guy. I’m a people-pleaser. But one of my biggest pet peeves is people who abuse those in the customer service industry. It’s rude, selfish, and uncalled for. And maybe, if we put the same amount of effort into saying something nice, as we do holding on to anger and rage, the world can be an incrementally better place.
Again, be kind. Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.
How To Blow Your National TV Debut, Then Make It Worse
(image via DeadSpin)
If you haven’t heard the name Sergio Dipp today, you probably will.
Mr. Dipp is a several year veteran of ESPN Deportes, and the brass at HQ in Bristol decided to give him his big break – by making him the sideline reporter for the second of two Monday Night Football games last week.
Now you may not have seen this live, because the Monday Night Football doubleheader to start the year is almost as bad as having Thursday Night Football throughout the year. The nightcap of this double-dip is always some awful AFC or NFC West game that nobody east of the Rocky Mountains cares about. Case in point, its ignominious list of past play-by-play announcers. Mike and Mike did it a few times (stick to your day job, please). And Chris Berman swooped in occassionally.
Side note: It always seemed to be Grand Poobah Berman’s M.O. to take the big events. You can argue it was his right, having been with ESPN since its inception in 1979. But despite his legendary 1980’s pre-cable pre-internet NFL Primetime status, he always struck me as Brett Favre, hanging on just a little too long.
So ESPN has long used this yawner of a second game to give people a chance. Last night it was Beth Mowins doing play by play (I’ve got no issues with her, she’s solid on basketball), and Rex Ryan making his booth debut. Shortly after kickoff, the Beth (the first woman to call an NFL game in 30 years) and Coach send it down to Sergio for his big moment, and this happens:
You gotta feel for the 29 year old. It’s his big moment, on national television, and he tanks it. I’m not making fun of him. In almost two decades in radio, I’ve messed up live on the air dozens – maybe hundreds of times. So you laugh at yourself and move on. But a producer, either on the broadcast, or back in Bristol, made the snap judgement call that this “live hit” was so bad, that they wouldn’t use Mr. Dipp the rest of the night. That’s it – one and done.
This is the football equivalent of a rookie quarterback throwing his first NFL pass, and having an interception returned for a touchdown. If he never sees another snap, he’ll be psychologically destroyed. To put it another way, the first time I was in a fender bender as a teenager, my parents made me get behind the wheel the very next day. Shake it off. Unfortunately for our friend Sergio, he was never given an opportunity to recover from this car wreck.
This cub reprter could have laughed at himself on social media, been self deprecating, and there would have been a groundswell of support to give him another chance. Heck, maybe someone would have set up a GoFundMe for him.
He started with the self deprecating route, posting this at 11:11pm.
— Sergio Dipp (@SergioADippW) September 12, 2017
But before he went to bed, he had to post a video rant, that was at best incongrous, and at worst, offensive.
Thank you…
And God bless America.🇺🇸✔️ pic.twitter.com/mYXwBNFB6g
— Sergio Dipp (@SergioADippW) September 12, 2017
The video started with the same odd cadence as his unfortunate sideline hit. He also felt the need to explain date, time, location, and teams, because this self-important rant may have been saved for perpetuity. Well, viral and embarrassing is more like it.
The point that Sergio was trying to make in his now-infamous cut-in was actually a good one. It’s 9/11, we are celebrating our great country and its diversity. You’ve got two black NFL head coaches making their league debut in that role, with a Mexican-American sideline reporter, and a female play-by-play announcer (most reviews have Beth as the most highly praised of that group).
Here’s what’s not clear, and I’d like to see this explained by ESPN Brass. Now, this is a network that’s had to make cuts to some big name talent recently, and has dealt with a lot of bad press. Was Dipp removed from the game because, in the current political climate, they felt it was inappopriate to talk about race? Or was he, (as I believe), pulled because he choked in his big moment. If the former is true, that’s a bold move by ESPN. If its the latter, give the kid another chance. You know what else Americans love? A comeback story.
For more on the story, and more Internet reaction, The Washington Post has a nice piece, as does Deadspin.
Remembering September 11th
I’m somewhat heartened today, that in the midst of Hurricane Irma, DC Dysfunction, and football analysis, that I’m seeing a number of posts remembering September 11, 2001.
I was a senior at Syracuse University, and that day was, to our generation, what the JFK assassination was to our parents. There are so many details that I won’t forget. My roommate’s mom calling the apartment waking us up to tell us to turn on the TV. Reaching over to turn on my clock radio – it was set to our student-run Top 40 Radio Station, Z89. But when I turned it on, I heard ABC News. Bringing my boombox to the station so we could record what we did that day, for perpetuity. (Ironically, and sadly, I CANT FIND the tape!) It was the only day in my two decades in radio that I used my real name on the air. “JAG” or “Jon Gray” didn’t seem appropriate at the time.
Also, keep in mind where we were, technologically, in those days. The idea of getting news from the Internet was still in it’s infancy. Also, our web was down at the station, so I was frantically running across the street to the Kimmel computer cluster to try and get information. Crazily enough, in the chaos of the day, we weren’t able to verify some of it – just had to be sure we attributed it to sources. How many planes? How many buildings? Were more attacks coming? Most importantly, we had to get information to the students. Syracuse University, despite being 5 hours from NYC, was densely populated with students from New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey, many of whom had parents that worked in the World Trade Center. Cell phones weren’t very prevalant in 2001 (I was one of a few friends in our circle who had one). So the school converted its fundraising phone center into a resource for students to call home. I can’t imagine the agony they felt.
I wasn’t in a fraternity in college, but my “family” was my radio station co-workers. Some are my very best friends to this day. So when I signed off at 7pm, and handed it off to the next DJ on a very carefully selected, limited music playlist, we all gathered at “The Batcave” – the nickname we gave to the off campus house that several radio station people called home. We sat down and watched the news. They showed people jumping from the towers – choosing death by impact over being burned alive. I remember my friend Beth shrieking in horror at the sight. One of us had a close friend in NYC, and finally heard that they were OK.
Finally, I went home to our apartment. Bill and I just watched the TV. And we kept watching – for days and weeks. We were both history minors, and we knew that despite the tragedy, we were literally living history in real time. We were fascinated.
That semester, I was taking a history class taught by Professor Bennett, “American History 1963-Present.” The syllabus started with JFK’s assassination, and culmintated (I believe) with the historic 2000 Presidential Election. Some tweaks were made, and the final class was about September 11th, an event we had lived in real time as the semester started. That part was surreal. The class, essentially, became “American History: JFK’s death to 9/11.” Very creepy symmetry.
I feel it’s important to reflect back on 9/11 every year. Yes, it’s become cliche, but no, we should never forget. We should thank our military and first responders. We should explain to kids that couldn’t understand or weren’t alive in 2001. Keep in mind, those born at that time are now in their final couple years of high school.
What’s most important is to remember how this country came together at that time. It wasn’t democrat or republican, black or white, gay or straight. It was American. People helped each other – just like they are doing now in Houston and Florida. We should all keep that in mind.
I’m glad I had the foresight that night to jot down some thought. I have a Microsoft Word document dated 1:50am, September 12, 2001. I thought it would be good to get some thoughts down on paper to look back at it later. My ramblings are followed by a sampling of “AOL Instant Messenger Away Messages” from classmates and friends.
September 11, 2001
September 12, 2001
1:10 AM
I almost don’t know where to begin. I sit here at the computer, in the bedroom of my South Campus apartment, 20 years old, a senior at Syracuse University. I’m reading everyone’s away messages on AOL Instant Messenger. Some are quoting scripture. Some ask for prayers, some thanking God that their families are OK, sending well wishes out to others. Some passing on word that we should wear red, white, and blue tomorrow in defiance of this attack on our country.
This is by far the worst, most tragic event any of us have seen in our lives, and hopefully, the worst we ever will see. One person – I think a Senator – perhaps someone from the military – called this a “second Pearl Harbor.” I think this must be what it was like for our parents’ generation when John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Total shock – unreal. Quite a day I had.
I had an astronomy test at 1pm…my roommate’s mom called at 10, waking me up with the news. I gave Bill a ride to class, albeit a few minutes late. I watched the news until about noon….then drove up to campus, dropping my stereo off at Z89, so they could tape their coverage. I took the astronomy test and bombed it (partly due to distraction, partly to poor preparation). I went back to Z89 to help with coverage. We simulcast the ABC News coverage…then broke in at the top of each hour. As the scheduled drive jock on from 3-7pm, I was the one breaking in, securing myself a place in WJPZ history – which (though I feel slightly guilty about this) I take pride in – working with Dave Peterson and Brett Bosse, as well as several others behind the scenes.
The news is still on – 1:30am now – still showing images, Dan Rather still on. They keep showing the planes crashing into the World Trade Center towers in New York…landmarks which existed 17 hours ago, but are no more.
I’m getting tired, I think I should go to bed. I may write more tomorrow….I don’t know. I may summarize the events, but I did that all afternoon. I am just going to go to bed. Here are some away messages.
Reaper 19th: For all those at SU, take this time to talk to friends or love ones and tell them that you love them or show them that you care. Tragedies like this remind us how precious life is and that we should never take those we care about for granted. Goodnight and let us pray for those who have passed on.
BillSU44: watching the news coverage
Rappy88: still watching the news
ChrisH9339: I normally don’t put away messages up when I sleep, but I know a lot of people check away messages, so if you’re reading this, remember: terrorists try to alter our way of life by leaving us eternally scared. Let us pray and grieve for the victims, find who’s responsible and punish them, and then continue on as best we can…God bless America and good night to all.
Arjordan50: Unbelievable.
Sjdumont: Snuggling in bed with my teddy bears. I really want my mommy now! God bless and sweet dreams, all. Good night.
Klborange5:Footage has now appeared on CNN of the first plane crashing. I can’t even think of words to describe it. I hope everyone’s family and friends are safe and thank god for the safety of mine. Off to bed in the hopes that when I wake up they have found more information about the bastards that did this…
MattDel66: God bless America, my home sweet home… :'( DOWNLOAD OF THE DAY: Kansas, Dust in the Wind
Jrsyboy17: “Crawling in my skin, these wounds they will not heal, fear is how I fall, confusing what is real.” Here’s hoping our collective wounds will eventually heal
Hills82: i dont have anything inspirational to say right now…im around
BiffBeth: Pass this message to as many people as you can: Make tomorrow a day of national pride. Support your country and those who died today by wearing red, white and blue. I hope you and your loved ones are well…
Slvrstr5: *crawling in my skin/these wounds they will not heal/fear is how i fall/ confusing what is real…my walls are closing in…im convinced thats just too much pressure to take/ive felt this way before…so insecure…*
BlairwitchOct94: I am trying to sleep after a very trying day. I only hope that tomarrow wil lbe better.
MarkSU99: In the city of God (NYC……. big buildings….. looks like god built it) there will be a great thunder (the crash), Two Brothers (The 2 towers) torn apart by Chaos, while the fortress endures (4th plane doesn’t make it to the white house and white house stands), the great leader will succumb (we will give in)” “The third war will beginwhen the big city is burning”- Nostradamus 1654
LindsayLu8: Sweet Dreams* Hopefully tomarrow will be a better day:'(
AngelinaJolie79: RRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (nough said!)
SUPrincess7682: sleeping today away:-\
I think those sum everything up. As tragic as this is, I want to be able to freeze this exact moment – I know it is one I will never, ever forget. More information comes in – some relating to how the terrorists got the plane (with many small, legal knives) – more speculation as to if Usama Bin Laden is responsible. Bill’s right on two counts. This is one of those things you’ll always remember where you were when it happened. Also now, so very tired – but not wanting to go to bed.
Class tomorrow should be interesting….I think I’ll wear red, white, and blue.
Hawaiian Honeymoon and the Battle to Unplug
Last summer, my then-girlfriend Ellen and I took an amazing Alaskan cruise. Travelling round trip from Seattle, we visited Glacier Bay National Park, Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan. The scenery was breathtaking, and the King Crab was outstanding. The only issue we ran into was the fact that my phone is always on. It’s the classic struggle between “living in the moment” and “always being connected.” The most aggravating part, she later told me, was that as soon as we came back to shore and were within coverage, I had to immediately grab my phone and check my messages.
Yes, I’m one of those people who has separation anxiety if my phone is in another room. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, News, Sports, you name it. I’ve tried to be better about it. I leave my phone on the charger while we eat dinner. I also try to not react like Pavlov’s dog every time it dings with a text, or a SportsCenter “da na na, da na na” notification about a player from one of my favorite teams sneezing.
I’m happy to say that I was good about the phone on the most important night of my life – our wedding. I knew that anyone who needed to reach me would be in the same room, and if there were ever an evening to live in the moment, it was my wedding reception. I couldn’t handle leaving the phone upstairs, but I did put it in airplane mode, using it only as a pocket watch. (Side note: Everyone told us that the night would fly by, and they were absolutely right). I was able to live in the moment and enjoy the best night of my life.
Fast forward a month to our honeymoon and we left with the best intentions:
The best comment on this picture came from a cousin, recounting her honeymoon:
(My husband) left his cellphone in the rental car in LA on our way to French Polynesia for our honeymoon. It was the best gift he could’ve given me, as he was off it for almost 3 full weeks and they had it waiting for us when we returned. Put it in the safe in the room and don’t check it until you leave!
But when we landed in Hawaii, with full cell coverage, my phone dinged with every notification from the last 6 hours we’d been in the air from Phoenix. So one by one, I had to go into my iPhone notifications and turn off News, CNN, Click On Detroit, WXYZ, MLB.tv, ESPN, Twitter, and so many more. And I tried to keep my phone on “Do Not Disturb” so I wouldn’t buzz every time someone texted me. (Although I will say most people kept texting to a minimum, not wanting to bother me on my honeymoon).
My biggest albatross was Facebook. Who doesn’t enjoy watching Likes and Comments roll in when they post something cool? It started with the post above, and while I intended to post very little while away, there were times when I couldn’t resist. My temporary solution – SIGN OUT of Facebook, and only sign in when I wanted to post something or had some down time. Another useful strategy was to “turn off notifications for this post” – I could scroll back when I wanted, but wouldn’t feel compelled to clear out the little red notifications on my Facebook icon.
Howard Stern famously called our phones our “pacifiers” – when we are standing around, or killing time, or waiting for something, we just pull them out – and scroll through our various apps and news feeds. I felt I had somewhat of a reprieve when I saw Ellen take her phone out as we waited for a shuttle bus, or a table at dinner, or various other down time. She can’t yell at me if she’s doing it too, right?
I will say, one of the best parts of our trip was The Road to Hana – a 50 mile drive across Maui, where you average about 15 miles per hour and see some of the most breathtaking scenery everywhere. Also, there’s little cell service in some areas. We downloaded the Gypsy App, which is a narrated tour that tracks your location by GPS without need for data coverage. We saw some amazing sights, from the Black Sand Beach to the Seven Sacred Pools.
It was an amazing (yet long) day, but one of the most fun of the trip. And of course, when Ellen stepped out of a rest room, she busted me checking my messages. Oops.
I wish I could tell you that I have no problem putting my phone away. But I was honest with myself about it. And after a month of marriage, we know that compromise is key. I stayed off my phone for the important things – the scenery, dinners out, snorkeling trips, and spending time together. And in the down time, I checked a few things here and there.
So, no, she didn’t throw my iPhone into the Pacific Ocean. But I’m glad I had it on me. Wouldn’t have wanted to miss this shot of sunset on Waikiki Beach.