You get the CLAP, right? That's, uh, the Creative Loafing Alternative Podcast. We're kind of hilarious, so you should give it a listen, for sure. The man behind the curtain (metaphorically — he's actually usually sitting 'round the table with us) is Will Kuncz. Will's funny enough to have his own podcast — which he does. He also works at The Bone 102.5, so if you listen to that thing called "radio" you may have heard his dulcet tones. Also, he wears the best jorts you will EVER see.
If you have and you've always wondered where you could learn more about the man, well, look no further. Herewith, the underpinnings of the Kuncz mind.
What is HMBradio?
#HMBradio is a podcast network based in St. Pete that focuses on life, arts and music in Tampa Bay. It is anchored by my podcast — The Homemade Broadcast which releases Tuesday mornings on HMBradio.com.
What's the toughest part about having a podcast?
The toughest thing about doing a podcast is that it's entirety depends on me. I don't have any help so I do it all myself. I book the guests, record, edit and upload it. I share it on all the social media platforms and by the time all of that is done, it's time to record the next week's show. It's a passion project, for sure.
What's working at The Bone like?
Working at The Bone is great. It's so cool being colleges with a lot of the people I grew up listening to. It's where I always saw myself being when I set my heart on doing radio, so it's kind of a dream come true. The station itself under the leadership and flagship on-air personalities have turned in into a Goliath here in Tampa Bay. I'm very happy to contribute to that in a small way with Stay Woke and working with Anna Hummel and I hope to continue there for a long time to come. (Stay Woke airs Monday through Friday at midnight's on 102.5 The Bone.)
How did you get started podcasting?
I got into podcasting about seven years ago. After I graduated college, I wanted to get a job in radio but found out quickly that it wasn't an easy field to break into. I found a podcast app for my phone and started to podcast from the phone with my roommate at the time. We didn't have microphones and mixers so we just talked directly into the phone. I started a little later to interview my friends who were musicians and artists. Here in downtown St. Pete, everyone is carrying around a stretched canvas or a guitar so then that branched off into interviewing friends of friends and we would talk about what they were working on. I keep thinking I'm going to run out of people to talk to but it's been years now and it's usually someone new every week.
What's better, podcasting or live radio? Discuss.
I record the podcast so I can edit it, trim stuff out if need be. Live radio it just goes out over the air. If you say something stupid (which I do a lot), it's out for the masses to hear. My podcast is pretty much a radio format and I have a romantic affection for radio so I would say I like live radio more. The ability to take calls on radio can also help take conversation in other directions that I maybe wouldn't have thought of so that adds more flair to the live aspect. I think the two are interchangeable, though, and they will kind of meld into each other at a certain point. Radio isn't dying but it has to adapt in order to survive. There's a lot more competition out there now that anyone has the ability to broadcast through the internet. The great thing about radio though is that it's mostly local. The people who are talking to you live in town and are part of the community and can tell you what's happening locally. People will always want that type of content, I think.
What does your average day look like?
I work a day job but they are super cool and supportive of the things I'm doing in my spare time, which helps. I spend a lot of time exchanging emails with upcoming guests throughout the day and working on distribution and updating the website. I'm trying to get my media consulting (homemadepodcasts.com) up and running which has been a challenge, [and I] I don't have the time to spend on that as much as I should. I want to help people and businesses who are interested in starting podcasts to help reach others or existing and potential new customers. Podcasting keeps growing exponentially is now a viable tool for engagement. At night I'm doing the radio show, and sandwiched in between I try to squeeze in a game of tennis with a few buddies.
Just for fun: You can be anyone, living or dead, for 24 hours. Who, why and what do you do?
I'd want to be the president for one day so I could finally find out if aliens exist and tweet out a link to hmbrradio.com.
This article appears in Apr 5-12, 2018.