It’s no secret that news/talk radio — especially on the AM dial — is overwhelmingly political in nature, and almost universally from the conservative angle. But Gary Hoffmann and Shannon Farren aren’t your typical AM news/talk duo on KFI AM-640 in Los Angeles.
Since debuting in 2015, Gary & Shannon has become the atypical news/talk radio success story. Voted by pollsters as the top major market midday show in the Barrett News Media Top 20 in 2022 and fourth place in 2023, the two very rarely spend their entire 9 AM-1 PM program talking politics the way other hosts and shows do.
And to put it bluntly, they just simply aren’t that interested in making that their entire identity.
“I would drive my car into a bridge abutment if I had to drive into work every day knowing I was going to do four hours of politics,” Hoffmann told Barrett Media. “I would say the style of our show — or one of the things that defines the style of our show — there is almost nothing that we take too seriously. Almost nothing. And politics is probably a great example of that. We have said multiple times over the course of the last eight years, nobody should love talking about politics. If you do, there’s something wrong with you.”
After more than eight years together, Farrenn and Hoffmann are in lockstep in what the show is and what it should be, making preparation a somewhat seamless exercise.
“I hate to use the word easy, but it has felt easy for both of us from the beginning,” Farren said. “We kind of already know what we both wanna talk about going into every show. I think the reason is because we’ve kind of taken the same life trajectory. We grew up in Northern California about eight miles apart from each others, we went to the same college at Chico State, we went to the same radio station after that at KFBK in Sacramento, we both went to the Seattle market after that before landing at KFI, and we were about eight years apart the entire time. We had never met until KFI. Had heard of each other … but it was just easy for me.”
“Our producers probably don’t want to hear this, but if we had to walk in and do a show by the seat of our pants — with nothing really prepared — we could pull off a four-hour show. That doesn’t mean it would be easy, and it doesn’t mean it would be seamless, but I think there’s enough of an understanding of how each other works that we would be able to pull it off,” Hoffman added. “That’s not to say it would be a great show, but it’s possible.”
Gary Hoffmann pointed out that he and Shannon Farren have been forced into that “Fly by the seat of our pants” mode in recent weeks due to the constantly changing news cycle centered around the 2024 election.
And yet, the show hasn’t lost its way during the hectic time. It remains centered on founding principles.
“I would just describe (our show) as a conversation among two friends who happen to be very well informed about what’s going on in the world,” Farren said. “I think that we have our meat and our potatoes and we eat our vegetables, but we also make room for dessert on the show. We don’t shy away from the big stories. We like to break those down and make them palatable for everybody listening. And I think we also make room for the fun stuff and to be silly.
“For me, it’s just the best balance. It’s perfect. It’s our personalities as well. I think when you can be 110% authentic on AM radio, that’s when you’re going to be successful. Because it bleeds through. People know you’re being true to yourself.”
As you might expect, sitting in a studio conversing with another person for four hours daily has turned Gary Hoffmann and Shannon Farren into genuine friends both on and offer the air. And the duo believes it only helps the on-air product.
“It proves to people who are listening that we genuinely care about what the other person thinks about whatever topic we’re talking about. It could be something as dumb as you know, the best variety of apple,” Hoffman said. It can be something as deep as the political ramifications of an assassination attempt and what that means for political division in the country. And if, if they believe that we’re friends and talking about it, I think that they have a deeper investment in that and listening to how we conduct ourselves, especially on those topics where we don’t see eye to eye.”
He added that a quote from Penn and Teller, the famous magician duo, has stuck with him. The two entertainers have worked together since 1975, and believe that their mutual respect for one another has led to their longevity. And that what they do and accomplish together is greater than anything they could have done alone. And Gary Hoffmann believes that’s the perfect analogy for his midday show with Shannon Farren on KFI AM-640.
“That stuck with me because it struck a chord,” he stated. “Especially those times when I’m out or she’s out and one of us has to do the show for four hours by ourselves. That’s a really long monologue and it really drives us insane to listen to our own voices for that long.”
“I think I would not be able to do this show — four hours, five days a week — with somebody who I did not admire and respect, and somebody that has the qualities that I would be friends with,” Farren added. “I think it would be impossible. I can’t be fake, I have no filter. It’s just something I could never do. That would be hell, and it would be not what I would sign up for or last long with.”
Both hosts shared they’ve never felt pressure to stick to the “normal” AM radio talking points that many conservative hosts stick to. Instead of those topics, the former news reporters have a great feel of what information and interests their daytime listeners have and what entertainment aspects those consumers expect.
Despite working together since 2015, Gary Hoffmann and Shannon Farren believe they’re just getting started on their journey together.
“Shannon and I have talked about syndication,” admitted Hoffmann. “We’ve talked about spinning off into the podcast world. I know that I am — and I think I can speak for Shannon — very happy with the success that we’ve had. We just need to make sure that we continue to build on it.”
“(Syndication would not be a big jump for us,” Farren added. “There would be probably no changes. (In Hollywood) there’s a lot of major things do happen here. But it wouldn’t be much of an adjustment. I think that that is definitely something that’s on the table. We feel like this show could be a lot bigger.”
Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
