Career as a Radio Jockey: Sound job

If you are talented enough, commercial radio promises exciting opportunities and moolah for aspiring RJs, says Tuhinanshu Chaturvedi, an RJ with Fever 104.

The Lowdown

A radio jockey or an RJ's job includes music programming, scripting and presenting radio shows. An RJ does voice-overs for TV, radio advertisements and lends his/her voice to audio magazines and documentaries. RJs also anchor TV or live shows, or events. They involved in conceptualising, planning and executing various jingles, which revolve around topical issues. A good RJ should be able to engage listeners with banter as well as music

Clockwork

6 am: Wake up

6.30 am: Leave for yoga class

8.30 am: Reach home

11 am: Have breakfast

12 pm: Leave for office

1 pm: Reach office

1-5 pm: Attend studio meetings, pre-plan the day's programme, read papers, websites, search youtube

5-9 pm: Conduct live show

9.15 pm: Leave for home

The Payoff

At the entry level, a radio jockey can start with a pay of around Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 a month.

The pay increases according to your job profile and experience.

Senior RJs make around Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 2 lakh a month

Skills/Traits

• Ability to talk impromptu on any subject
• Presence of mind
• Good knowledge of various fields - news, music, films, etc
• Good sense of humour
• Good general knowledge and awareness
• Familiarity with sound equipment and computers

Getting There

Though there is no specific educational qualification that can help you become an RJ, there are several courses that can help you pick up the skills required to become one. It's strongly advisable to pursue a communication programme for better understanding of the profession and its technicalities. Students from any stream can opt for such courses at the undergraduate or postgraduate level

Institutes

• Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi, www.iimc.nic.in
• Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai, www.xaviercomm.org
• The Radio School, Mumbai
• EMDI, Mumbai, www.emdiworld.com
• Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, www.jmi.nic.in
• University of Carbondale, Southern Illinois, www.siuc.edu
• University of Cardiff, UK, www.cardiff.ac.uk
• MICA, Ahmedabad, www.mica-india.net

Pros and Cons

• The job is a fusion of performing arts and music
• There's a sense of mystery about an RJ, which keeps listeners hooked on and wondering what s/he looks like, etc
• Not paid as much as TV artistes
• Long and rigid working hours
• Can get extremely monotonous at times
• No matter how bad your mood might be, but you still need to sound cheerful and upbeat to your listeners

Source: HT Horizons

Date: 17th March, 2011

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