The Friday following the NFL Draft is a massive day for sports radio. Fans flock in to hear reaction about the next great superstar prospect for their hometown NFL team, and what to look forward to over the next two days as rosters continue to be built for the upcoming training camp season. For Tyrone Johnson, it wasn’t the usual Friday following the NFL Draft, as it would be his last with 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia. Johnson wrapped up his program, was walked into the offices at Beasley Broadcasting, and told his services were no longer needed.
“I had sensed there were people in town that weren’t normally in town. There were a few tells that things weren’t so great,” said Johnson. “They brought me into the office. They said they have to make difficult decisions. I said okay. They said they were going another direction, and I said okay. That literally was it.”
In less than three years after launching The Best Show Ever? with Johnson, Ricky Bottalico, Hunter Brody, and Jennifer Scordo, 97.5 The Fanatic had made the decision to move on. After nine years of devotion to the radio station both as a producer and host, Johnson said he felt a strong sense that he knew his exit was near with just months remaining on his contract.
He admitted that as the lead talent on the program, he felt the responsibility of meeting the expectations management had for the program in the coveted afternoon drive daypart on 97.5 The Fanatic. However, when asked if he felt he received everything he needed from management in order to succeed, Johnson noted that not every request was met.
“It was a situation where obviously it was fluid and what was needed from me changed fairly often, but if you’re going to be the lead person on the show, it’s your job to respond to that,” noted Johnson. “I don’t think failure was a certainty, but I didn’t get everything that I asked for.”
The Battle To Beat The Competition Included Constant Hurdles
A radio lifer, Johnson calls his relationship with the medium “toxic.” With 25 of his 45 years on Earth devoted to the media industry, he has a deep passion for the business and still strives to be successful at his craft. Living in a passionate sports market like Philadelphia, Johnson knew going up against 94WIP would be a challenge with its rich history in the market. However, he didn’t see the challenge of beating WIP as unreasonable.
“Their brand at 94WIP is extremely strong, and that is a hurdle,” said Johnson. “If you provide content that people want, and you execute that content to the highest level, you can still win there. I didn’t always do that. Now, there were challenges along the way that made it more difficult, but I don’t think it’s impossible.”
When Johnson began The Best Show Ever?, it was live-streamed locally on NBC Sports Philadelphia as a partnership between the network and 97.5 The Fanatic dating back to 2018. Following Mike Missanelli’s exit in 2022 due to a contract dispute, the partnership with NBC Sports continued with Johnson and The Best Show Ever? showcased their product to viewers on the network.
Johnson was no stranger to the television side of the daypart as he served as Missanelli’s producer previously, but he feels that because the program was streamed on NBC Sports Philadelphia, it impacted the ratings he received on the radio product.
“TV was a blessing and a curse. TV did make a huge impact, and we trained people more or less to consume it that way,” said Johnson. “It was a good thing for my personal brand, but I do think it affected the habits of our audience.”
When asked if NBC Sports Philadelphia shared viewership data for the program either with The Fanatic’s management or himself, Johnson declined to answer. He did note that because of the simulcast of the program on NBC Sports Philadelphia, he had to close out each segment mentioning the television channel in every tease.
“I think there was an audience there that was difficult to measure because the way they were consuming the product was not by the radio,” Johnson said. “Every single segment I’m saying both 97.5 The Fanatic and NBC Sports Philadelphia. As more people work from home, why wouldn’t I just watch it on TV? Why would I turn on the radio when I can see it? That absolutely played a role, but I don’t want it to come off like I’m making excuses.”
Leaving 97.5 The Fanatic With No Regrets
Johnson announced his departure from The Fanatic with a tweet on his personal X account that simply read: “It was a good run. I regret nothing.” While the messaging was short and to the point, Johnson took to his personal YouTube account the following Monday to discuss his exit, saying he knew that day would come and he was not shocked that it happened.
When asked if he regretted not having a final sendoff program at a radio station he devoted his passion to for the last nine years, Johnson said he didn’t earn that opportunity.
“Very rarely do people get to do that. I am not a legend,” explained Johnson. “I absolutely didn’t earn a final show. It would have been nice, but I didn’t earn a final show because I’m not a legend.”
Radio Is Still Playing From Behind
Now removed from the radio industry he has been a part of for many years, Johnson’s outlook for the health and success of the terrestrial radio landscape is filled with many questions and few answers. He says that radio is still playing catch-up to all its competitors and has been for many years.
“I don’t think the industry itself has innovated to the level that they needed to. I think we branded things wrong for many years across the industry, and that really bothers me,” Johnson said. “As an industry, we shot ourselves in the foot by not embracing where people were consuming the content.”
Not only does Johnson feel that the industry has been slow to move where the audience is going to consume content, but the monetization model of how people are consuming is also lacking in the radio industry.
“I don’t care how they consume my product. I just want them to consume the product. Then once we have the data, we should be able to monetize that product,” said Johnson. “Radio as a whole has done a horrid job, frankly, just following that simple thing—by pushing against the current rather than going with it and trying to innovate along with it. Everybody that was working in the industry at that time was better than any podcaster, because none of the podcasters had any experience. I just think that was a huge loss. I do wonder if it’s too late to make up for some of those mistakes industry-wide.”
Johnson says he is unsure of his next steps following his departure from 97.5 The Fanatic but would be open to the idea of getting back into the business if the right opportunity presented itself. However, because of his “toxic” relationship with radio, his view on what his next steps could be includes much more than ever before.
“I’m much more open to other things. For years I could have done other things, and I didn’t because I loved it so much. I still love it to that degree, but I have to just be realistic,” Johnson explained. “I still think that if it’s done correctly with the proper support, it can still work. It takes a lot of commitment from people to really do it right, and it takes a lot of work ethic from the talent. Any other job in the world—not everybody has the same work ethic. At this point, it must be a spot where everybody’s pulling in the same direction, and it feels almost impossible if everybody isn’t.”
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
