THE NEWSROOM
Mr Kennedy’s Guide To Media Training
March 1990, Newcastle City Hall.
Aged 13, I was taken to see Nigel Kennedy perform Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. It blew my mind.
35 years later and I’ve just seen him perform the work again.
He’s a funny fellow – and if you’ve never heard of him this gives you a flavour. But he’s beyond brilliant, and the more I think about his concert the more I think he’s actually an (extremely) unlikely media training poster boy.
Keep your content fresh
It’s Vivaldi’s Four Seasons for heaven’s sake. If you’ve spent time on hold to a utilities company or travelled more than three floors in a lift you’ve heard it. But in his hands it sounded like it was composed yesterday. Let’s face it, in interviews we’re often discussing content we’ve lived and breathed for years. If Mr Kennedy can take a 300 year old cliche and make it sound fresh, then you can do the same with your stuff.
Don’t aim for perfection
Because the concert wasn’t perfect. He fluffed notes, the orchestra missed a cue or two. And in interviews this is the equivalent of your stutter, your um, or momentary pause. Think about why we love live music – it’s precisely because it isn’t slick, rehearsed and corporate. So why on earth should you aim to sound like that as a spokesperson?
(There obviously comes a point where imperfection compromises credibility. But that point is often further down the line than you might think.)
Bring the energy
So much so that the horse hairs come off your bow. Literally for Nigel. (Metaphorically for you.)
Bring the unexpected
Halfway through the second movement – Summer – the sound morphed from the familiar tune to an arrangement of Mungo Jerry’s In The Summer Time. Shouldn’t have worked. Did work. Don’t fall back on the same examples and illustrations in interviews. Mix things up. Bring your Mungo…
Sound authentic
What can we all hide behind? On a classical music stage perhaps it’s tuxedos, formality, and convention? In interviews is it sanitised messages (devised by committee) delivered in report-speak? Kennedy dressed the way I do for an early morning dog walk in February*, ambled around the stage, and deliberately defied every one of those conventions. Of course he only gets away with that behaviour because he’s secure in what he does, and his ability to communicate that to the audience. But could you get into a headspace where you begin to feel the same?
*I’m obviously not advocating you dress for an appearance on Good Morning Britain like you’re about to walk the dogs on a dark morning in February, but you get my point…
Be generous
It wasn’t all about him. He gave constant credit to the orchestra. He allowed the spotlight to fall on different players and carved out space for them to shine. Be generous on panels and in discussions. Don’t judge your performance on how much airtime you seize, judge it on the quality of your content when you do get your chance.
And enjoy it
As Kennedy launched into an impromptu Bach partita encore I heard someone behind me say “he just doesn’t seem to want to leave the stage.” He was genuinely enjoying himself, and for an audience member it creates an instant, powerful connection. This final one is undoubtedly easier for a musician than a spokesperson, but it allows me to finish with a concept I often return to in media training sessions:
When you’ve prepared in the right way. When you know how to control interviews. When you know you’ve got something newsworthy and impactful to say, there is absolutely no reason why media engagement can’t be something you can enjoy.
It’s a superpower. Thank you very much, Nigel.
Media Training update w/c 19th May
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Media Training Update w/c 12th May
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Media Training update w/c 28th April
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