I knew the Momentum conference was different before I arrived in Orlando .
You could see it in the pre-planning. The design aesthetics. The social media. The way Christian Music Broadcasters presented the event before anybody checked into the hotel.
I have walked through countless carpeted convention hallways wearing a lanyard and carrying a branded tote bag. I’ve watched grown adults nod thoughtfully while someone recycles the always-popular “We need to meet the audience where they are.”
Then I came to Momentum.
I am writing this from Orlando, where I was asked to speak on the main stage at Christian Music Broadcasters’ Momentum conference. My session was called “Perception Is The Real Problem.” I shared how radio is perceived, how we got here, and why we allowed it to happen. Most importantly, I presented a no-cost, no-financial-loss formula for how we can start fixing it.
My Conference History
I have attended CRS, Morning Show Boot Camp, NAB, The R&R, Gavin, and The Conclave. I have also produced my own conventions. Plenty of smart people and valuable conversations happen at each.
This is not a takedown of any of them.
However, the education, inclusion, logistics, and production level at Momentum exceed every radio convention I have attended, including my own.
The stage design, screens, audio, lighting, pacing, selected speakers, performances, and content all prove that Michelle Younkman and her team understand that audience experience is the mission.
Practicing What It Preaches
Imagine that: a radio event practicing what it preaches about audience experience.
Meanwhile, half of mainstream radio is still trying to improve the listener experience by running a PUMM report to find the best hours to hammer people with spots.
There is also an accessibility here that mainstream labels should notice. The record community and artists are not simply dropped in for a photo and a fast exit through a side door — which is also the name of my new single at country radio.
They are available. They appear willing to connect and work alongside the people helping audiences discover their music. Apparently, community works better when people are actually allowed to commune.
The conference is held at Sapphire Falls Resort in Orlando. Time is built in for attendees to go to Universal, rather than spend four days wandering a fluorescent hallway. That beats texting someone to ask if they can meet you at the Red Bar in the Encore lobby.
Although that bar does have some killer peanuts on the table — which, ironically, is the name of my second single at country radio.
The Real Problem With Radio
Radio spends an extraordinary amount of time talking about ratings, revenue, and resources. All important. All real. But we often discuss them like separate problems, when, in reality, they are outcomes of the bigger issue: perception.
How are we perceived by listeners? By advertisers? By artists? By young talent? By our own employees? By ourselves?
Lazarus Didn’t Come Back for Panels
There are many who wonder if the business is dying or how to keep our revenue alive. Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead for a purpose. He did not bring him back to moderate a panel called “Monetizing the Tomb.”
Meetings at Momentum do not begin with, “How’s business?” They begin from a place of mission. The room is filled with hopeful, inspired people. They do not need yet another breakout session about authentic storytelling.
Momentum feels different because Christian radio is not gathering around its decline. In fact, it is thriving. As of last month, Christian radio became the most popular format by total station count in America.
Not Asking You to Convert
Mainstream radio does not need to become Christian radio. That is not my argument.
But it may need to borrow a little faith.
Faith that talent is worth developing.
Faith that radio can still be more than a delivery system for contesting and commercials. More than playing songs everybody already heard on TikTok and pretending discovery is happening.
The DJ With Every Name
Especially when the person calling it new music is a host named DJ Kidd Shotgun T-Bone Big Daddy Bubba Broadway Ace Hollywood Seabreeze. That host is telling listeners to lock it in and rip the knob off like the knob has not been gone since 2008.
The industry has spent years asking for more: more ratings, more revenue, and more resources.
The first move is not receiving more.
It is becoming something people want to believe in again.
That was the foundation of my message on stage: the better we are perceived, the more we can achieve, and the more we will receive.
For an industry searching for resurrection, it might be worth paying attention to the people who still believe in one.
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Phil Becker is a weekly music columnist for Barrett Media who has built his career at the intersection of creativity, strategy, and operations leading brands, marketing, and content teams across more than 200 radio stations worldwide.
Known for being ahead of the curve, he was the first to integrate social influencers into broadcast brands, launch station apps years before his peers, and pioneer AI air personalities before anyone else in the world.
With leadership roles at Clear Channel, Citadel, Cox Media Group, Alpha Media, and international ventures—as well as owning and operating stations—Phil blends entrepreneurial vision with operational discipline in the messaging and marketing space. He also hosts the Phil-Osophy podcast.
