Bobby Bones: ‘Radio Is the Hub’ Of My Career.

Country radio syndicated host Bobby Bones is offering a look at his journey through the audio world — and its unique power to connect — during the latest episode of iHeartMedia CEO Bob Pittman’s Math & Magic podcast. For radio industry professionals, the episode served as a case study in the enduring strength of audio and the unmatched loyalty of country fans.

“Everything that I’ve done in any other medium other than radio is based off of my success in radio,” Bones says, calling radio “the hub” that enabled his wider ventures into TV, books, and podcasting. He says that has helped to open doors, like a role on “American Idol” and winning “Dancing With The Stars,” among other TV projects. “They realize how big the following is because of audio, and then they allow me to expand,” Bones says.

Despite early insecurities about his voice and on-air style, Bones credited his rise to consistency and tenacity. “I never felt like I was super talented at anything,” he says. “But as I got older, I started to realize that being tenacious and not stopping — that’s a real talent,” he said. Bones says it has also meant getting over not sounding like what air personalities did when he entered the business. “Although I didn't sound like what was traditional, I did sound like people that listened to my show, so I kind of sounded like a friend and that worked,” he says.

He also underscored audio’s emotional resonance. “TV is so fickle,” Bones said. “But if you want a sustaining career and you want people to stay with you, it’s audio.”

Why Bones Embraced Podcasts

Bones has been among radio’s biggest fans of podcasting. So much so that he struck a deal in 2017 to launch the Nashville Podcast Network with iHeart’s Premiere Networks and has grown to 10 shows.

“I always wanted to have a late-night talk show. What’s cool now is you can do that. You just turn some cameras on and you also record the audio for a podcast,” he says. Bones says lovers of long-form media are most attuned to the podcast option, seeing it as an option for people who want more than a brief social media post. “Podcasting allows me to really get down in the weeds a little bit,” he says.

Bones nevertheless has a near-constant presence on social media and like a lot of radio personalities says it has become a way to extend his relationship with listeners beyond having a few hours on the radio.

“It’s where they are, and I want to be where the people are. It’s where I can talk to them 24 hours a day,” he says. “The thing about social media is I can be on it constantly, over and over and over again, saying different things, but also directing them to the longer form media. In the end, it is a wonderful promotional tool for what I feel I do best, which is mid- and long-form audio.”

The Leap To Country Radio

Bones spent his early radio career in CHR radio starting in Hot Springs, AR, and years later when “The Bobby Bones Show” joined Premiere Networks’ national lineup in 2011 it was nationally syndicated on CHR radio. But that changed in February 2013, when the program transitioned to a country format.“I wanted to talk to the most people. That’s the selfish answer. But I talk like a guy from a little south of Middle America,” Bones says. “And what was funny was the word on the street then was he’s too country for pop. But then once I got the country, it was he’s too pop for country. So I kind of never really had a place to fit in. And the fact that I just embraced that, I think that is what endeared me to listeners.”

Bones credits his childhood, born to a single teenage mom and later adopted by his grandparents in a family that struggled financially and often moved. “That’s probably why if there’s anything I’m good at, it is being consistent and it’s tenacity. I think those are the skills that I’ve developed,” he says.

Why Country Is Cool

Bones credits the country genre for opening itself for its recent surge in popularity, as evidence by artists like Beyonce and Chappell Roan releasing material that crossed into the format.

“The music sonically has opened itself up a bit. And the one thing about country music is, it's always progressing,” says Bones, who thinks the format by and large remains fairly conservative. He also says it is also common to see a group that complains what they are hearing isn’t “real country” as they define it. “I think you've had a couple transcendent artists as well,” Bones says. “It doesn't hurt when you have big stars like Morgan Waller, Luke Combs and Zach Bryan and then the guys like the [Kenny] Chesney and Garth [Brooks] stadium acts ruling country music, and the fact that some of them are so young makes it cool.”

The one-hit wonders that are common in pop music remain rare in country, Bones says, not because of the music — but the fans. “They are far more loyal to the artist than any other format,” he observes. “Once you establish who you are and you build a fan base, they don't go anywhere. If you can actually prove you worth and there's a reason to like you, and you're not going to change fundamentally who you are, they’re going to roll with you.”

Pittman’s Math & Magic show is directed to marketers, and Bones’ advice for ad buyers is to set aside their preconceived nothings of country music and the format’s listeners.

“There’s a reason that these guys are selling out football stadiums, and it's not because there's a bunch of people in overalls showing up,” he says. “But it's normal people that are going to normal jobs that have money to spend, just like anyone else does, but oftentimes feel like they're not paid the attention to because they're not in LA or New York.”

Listen to the full episode HERE.