It was a dream realized for ESPN New York host Michael Kay on Wednesday, as he got a shoutout from legendary SiriusXM host Howard Stern.
Stern played a clip of Kay and Paul O’Neal from a recent Yankees broadcast where they reacted to a group of fans who started chanting “Baba Booey,” a reference to The Howard Stern Show. Kay talked about how big a fan he was of Stern.
On The Michael Kay Show Wednesday, Kay said Stern shouting him out made his whole day.
“I’m good,” Kay told co-hosts Peter Rosenberg and Don La Greca. “Even if I never get a chance to talk with him, the fact that he said something nice about me I’m good now!”
Peter found it odd that Michael would consider Stern an idol, especially considering the two are somewhat close in age. Stern is 69 years old, while Kay is 62.
“Why is it unusual that I idolize somebody that’s close to my age?” Kay later asked. “I don’t understand that.”
Rosenberg felt like idol was too strong of a word for Kay to use. He said admire was more fitting.
“I think that someone who is almost a contemporary you can just say you really admire their work. That’s how I view it,” he said. “There are a lot of broadcasters that I admire, but I can’t say I idolize them, because I’m a contemporary almost.”
Kay said even though he hasn’t made anywhere near the kind of money Stern has throughout his career in radio, the two of them aren’t so different.
“I look at him with all of his insecurities and I have all the same insecurities,” Kay said. “I see myself there, and I’ve carved out a pretty nice career for myself but nothing close to Howard Stern. No broadcaster has.”
