I'm a Radio DJ Again...Sort Of

So I've decided to restart my career as a radio DJ. Sort of.

So I've mentioned in previous weeks that there has been an app that Amazon has come out with called Amazon Amp. It's still in beta, but the idea is that you can put together a show with content as well as actual songs from the Amazon music library and play music. The idea sounded kind of cool.

So I gave it a shot, but when I got into it, I saw that you can't play music until you have somebody watching or listening to the show. Well, problem is, the app is still in beta. Not a lot of people have tried it. So unless I call a friend and get them to sign into it and create an account, it doesn't really work.

So then I remembered Anchor and Spotify have a deal where you can create a show and include music clips in it. So I figured, even though I rail against anchor, it was actually my co-presenter in Syracuse. Stacy Simms, that recommended anchor. If you want to just kind of play around and try something for fun without paying for a real podcast host.

So I did, I created a show on Anchor and Spotify called the JAG Throwback Show. And I decided what I would do is I would count down my personal top five songs of each of the 20 years that I worked in radio from 1998 until 2017, not according to billboard, but according to me, and I would tell some fun stories from my career along the way.

So it's a work in progress. I'm trying to release new episodes when I can. So far I've recorded 98 through 2004, and I'm editing those last two. You can follow the show or check it out from the link in today's show notes, or just search Spotify for the JAG Throwback Show.. Now, again, some limitations. It's only on Spotify because it's using the music rights Spotify has access to, so it's not on Apple Podcasts or Google or anywhere else. You can only find that on Spotify. And interestingly, your listening experience will depend on what tier of service you have through Spotify. If you're a Spotify free member, you're only going to get 30 second hooks of each song, but if you are a Spotify premium member, the $9 99 a month, you'll get to hear the whole song. So that will change your listening experience.

The other thing that's really frustrating to me as an old music DJ is I enjoy the craft of it and talking up the post and essentially talking over the intro of the song right up to when the singer starts singing and coming out of it, keeping everything nice and tight.

And fortunately Spotify doesn't have the ability to segue or transition between elements. So my voice track will end and then the song will start with intro, whatever else. And then the song will end or fade all the way out. And then my next voice track will start. So it's not as smooth as a radio show, but I've kind of had fun doing it as a bit of a hobby when I have a few minutes to create a new episode.

So I do invite you to check that out. It is called the JAG Throwback Show. It is only on Spotify, top five songs of each of the years. I worked in radio with some stories from behind the scenes in it as well.

Some big podcasting news as I record this Wednesday, March 30th, James Cridland and pod news broke this, this morning: YouTube, as we had hoped and potentially predicted and expected ,is working on their own podcasting platform. My suspicion is that this will eliminate Google podcasts, which really doesn't do that well compared to Apple and Spotify. But YouTube may actually pull in content, even if it's just audio from your podcasts, RSS feed.

Why is that important? Because now, if YouTube is using your RSS feed, your host will be able to give you combined stats from who listened from your RSS feed. That will include YouTube. You won't have to take your podcast listens from your host, add your YouTube views and wherever else. And come up with an aggregate number.

You can theoretically have one accurate number in one place. Google and YouTube have certainly seen the value in podcasting and podcasters have seen the value in YouTube. As I've mentioned before, if you Google something, how often do you get a YouTube result? Because Google owns YouTube. You want people Googling your podcast and finding it.

So YouTube working with RSS feeds for podcasts is a potential game changer. Link to James Cridland's exclusive piece in today's show notes. More on that to come as we learn more.

If you enjoy the JAG show podcast and encourage you to share it with one person you know, Or follow it in Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening right now.

And again, if you want to check out the JAG Throwback Show for music, you can find the link in today's show notes. Until next time stay healthy and stay safe. Lata!.