Listen...let’s call a spade a freaking spade – radio interviews on Namibian radio are painstakingly boring. Especially musical and corporate interviews. One would think the musical ones are lit but it’s not. It actually really is not. I mean honestly, who gives a flying f**k if some random artist decided to release a song? No honestly, I need us to be exceptionally honest with this one.

Obviously, musicians would be pressed by this because interviews of such nature caress their egos. But is it really what the listener wants? Does the listener care? We live in a time

where radio competes with literally everything for the listener’s attention. We need to start having honest conversations, grill each other and see what we can do as a collective to keep radio alive.

Radio will die if we continue with these thoughtless, brainless freaking interviews. I don’t know about you, but I love radio. I cannot afford for the radio to die. And yes, it’s that deep and it’s that urgent. If you look at radio worldwide or even just our neighbours, South Ah, you will see that they use interviews to push the overall brand. They are extremely aggressive with interviews. The innovation that goes into your ordinary music interview is mind blowing. From stunts to on-air

games, to live performances...it’s just different. It’s value for money and it’s definitely worth your time.

Namibian radio needs to move away from these basic interviews where an artist comes in, radio presenters ask a few questions, songs get played and klaar. We move. Twako. Ons kyk voerentoe! What listening value does a listener get from such an interview? I always ask my fellow colleagues in the radio space – would you have sit through that interview if you were a listener? And 99% of the time I get a strong ‘No!’. So, if we cannot stomach it, why do we expect our listeners to?

Interviewees equally also need to understand that your basic two to three questions about your ego is so overdone, it’s so boring and it’s old radio that no one cares about. Interviewees need to

understand that we live in a fast and complicated tech world. No one – literally no one – has the patience to sit through an interview for three to six minutes of someone blabbing about themselves. If we are to be completely honest, you are not getting value for your money if that’s the knacks of that interview.

Both parties, radio presenters and guests, need to understand that it’s time to shake things up with interviews. It’s time to add innovation to these interviews. I will die if I have to sit through

another corporate interview where the questions were scripted. Do you know what’s crazy? – the answer also sounds so damn scripted.

Can we do better?

Until the next Loop, we say #GMTM

* Need an MC? I do not post naked pictures or have 100k followers but after 10 years of MCeeing, I think I can do the job.

Contact me for a quote at naobebsekind@gmail.com