In my over decade long career in radio, I have had the opportunity to meet and chat with a variety of interesting people – CEOs, entrepreneurs and celebrities. You might think celebrity interviews are de rigueur for Radio DJs, but there are many times when celebrities do not want to meet the press. There’s also a whole bunch of red tape and approvals that must be met before this encounter even takes place. But when it does, it’s pretty awesome!
Close Encounters of the Famous Kind
I’ve interviewed Seal, Jason Mraz, Jackie Chan, Nelly Furtado, Boy George, The Script, One Republic, Simple Plan, Boy Meets Girl, Pentatonix, LMFAO, The Wanted, Spice Girl Mel B and John Cusack to name a few!
Many have been one-on-one interviews backstage, some have been in the radio studio and others have been at press conferences amongst other journalists all jostling to get a question in. But all have been unforgettable.
You might think it’s super glamourous meeting all these famous people but really, it’s a little stressful. You only get 15 minutes with the artist and often you’ll never know what answers you’ll get. These assignments come in with only a few days’ notice to do the necessary research. There is pressure to come up with interesting questions that are not only entertaining and relevant to your audience, but that are also going to get a good response. Predictable questions will not get any fresh content. I personally like to start with mandatory questions that allow them to promote the movie, album, tour, concert etc before diverting to a game or fun, off-topic questions.
Here are some old celebrity interviews that were caught on video.
