Write, Then Listen: CMA Awards Director David Wild
Robert L. Doerschuk
October 29, 2008
Since 2002, David Wild has authored the copy read by hosts and presenters on the CMA Awards. From the top of the show to the sign-off, from heartfelt tributes to humorous one-liners, what's said at the Awards podium owes much of its eloquence to this Emmy-nominated television writer, Rolling Stone Contributing Editor, former host of the Bravo "Musicians" television series and author of several books, including the upcoming He Is . I Say: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Neil Diamond.
That qualification - "much of its eloquence" - is important, because when writing for celebrities, particularly on live television, the idea is not to lock them into your own language but to more interactively come up with the right things to say. As an example, Wild cited the 2005 Awards at Madison Square Garden.
"James Gandolfini from 'The Sopranos' was presenting with LeAnn Rimes," he remembered. "I wrote this joke along the lines of LeAnn saying, 'I'm here to present the Award for Female Vocalist - an Award for which I was not nominated but James assures me that will not happen next year.' They both loved the joke, but then about 10 minutes before they were going on James came to me and said, 'No one has mentioned the troops tonight. I've got to talk about the troops.'"
Wild had to act immediately. "I went to Walter [Miller, then Executive Producer of the Awards] and said, 'James wants to mention the troops.' Walter said, 'He can do the troops or he can do the joke.' I said to James, 'Do you want to drop the joke?' And he said, 'No, because it's funny and I don't want to take away LeAnn's funny moment.' So, with live cameras rolling, we had to craft a quick salute to the troops and weave it into a joke about the Mafia - and it worked out great."
Wild, who writes as well for the Emmy and Grammy Awards and numerous TV shows and specials, comes from New Jersey and lives now in Los Angeles. Even so, he feels a special affinity for the CMA Awards, in part because Country Music ranked high on his family's playlist but especially because of characteristics that are unique to that event.
"The CMAs give me a week to feel that I'm in the heart of Nashville because it brings so many great figures together," said Wild. "I also happen to love the city and the environment. The warmth of this town is spectacular. There's a realization that there are fans on the other side of the equation, buying the music. The artists actually think about the fans. They'll come to the CMA Music Festival to shake their hands and sign their albums. Unfortunately, there's not enough of that in the rest of the music business."
Typically, Wild's involvement with the CMA Awards begins right after the nominees are announced in September. He will attend the initial production meeting in Los Angeles to take note of who Producer Robert Deaton is planning to book for the show. That lineup becomes firm in October, so by the time Wild arrives in Nashville, a week before the broadcast, he's usually submitted his first drafts to the producer for approval.
But as the Gandolfini story illustrates, none of it is chiseled in stone. "When they rehearse it onstage, or even when they read it backstage right before making their entrance, I'll listen and hear people change a word here or there - and I'll put those words into the final copy because they sound better than what I wrote. I can only guess at how someone might say something, so I always ask, 'What can I change to make this more comfortable for you?' I want the people I write for to sound like themselves; if you're aware of my writing in what they say, then I'm probably doing a bad job."
Another story illustrates the point, this time harking back to 2006, when Billy Ray Cyrus and Miley Cyrus appeared as co-presenters. "I'd come up with this idea," Wild recalled. "Miley was born the same year that Billy Ray won his CMA Award [in 1992, when "Achy Breaky Heart" garnered Single of the Year honors]. So you've got a father and a daughter, and she's young, so my instinct was to make that a sweet moment.
"But I think she must have thought it was a little too cute," he added, laughing. "So she added a little barb about his former mullet. I normally would have written something like that myself, but I didn't know how playful their relationship was. The point is that everyone brings something to the party; when I write, I'm just sending out the invitation."
Wild will be reading form his new book, He Is . I Say: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Neil Diamond at Davis-Kidd Bookstore at the Green Hills Mall in Nashville on Friday, Nov. 7 at 7 PM. Drawing on exclusive interviews with the legend himself, The New York Times bestselling author delivers an intimate portrait of Diamond, the singer/songwriter behind hits including "Cherry, Cherry," "Sweet Caroline" and "America."
"The 42nd Annual CMA Awards" will be held Wednesday, Nov. 12 at the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tenn. The three-hour gala will be carried live by the ABC Television Network from 8-11 PM/EST, 7-10PM/CST.
Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will co-host the CMA Awards and perform. Trace Adkins, Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, the Eagles, Alan Jackson Kid Rock, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, George Strait, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, The Wailers and others will perform on Country Music's Biggest Night. Visit www.CMAawards.com for updates.
Tickets for the CMA Awards are on sale now and can be purchased at www.ticketmaster.com; (615) 255-9600; or at the Sommet Center box office, 501 Broadway (corner of Fifth Avenue and Broadway in Nashville). Ticket prices begin at $110 for Upper-level; $327.75 for Club-level; and $382.50 for Lower-level. Prices include sales tax but exclude applicable service/handling fees.
Fans can order the official CMA Awards Program book and merchandise including long and short sleeved T-shirts, hats, a vest, a mug and a commemorative Hatch Show Print Poster on the www.CMAawards.com online store.
"The 42nd Annual CMA Awards" is a production of the Country Music Association. Robert Deaton is the Executive Producer. Paul Miller is the Director. David Wild is the writer. The special will be shot in high definition and broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound. Premiere Radio Networks is the official radio packager of the CMA Awards, including a stereo-radio simulcast of the gala event. American Airlines is the official airline of the 2008 CMA Awards. Chevy: The Official Ride of Country Music. Mary Kay is the Official Beauty Sponsor of the 2008 CMA Awards.
2008 CMA Close Up News® Service / Country Music Association,® Inc.
That qualification - "much of its eloquence" - is important, because when writing for celebrities, particularly on live television, the idea is not to lock them into your own language but to more interactively come up with the right things to say. As an example, Wild cited the 2005 Awards at Madison Square Garden.
"James Gandolfini from 'The Sopranos' was presenting with LeAnn Rimes," he remembered. "I wrote this joke along the lines of LeAnn saying, 'I'm here to present the Award for Female Vocalist - an Award for which I was not nominated but James assures me that will not happen next year.' They both loved the joke, but then about 10 minutes before they were going on James came to me and said, 'No one has mentioned the troops tonight. I've got to talk about the troops.'"
Wild had to act immediately. "I went to Walter [Miller, then Executive Producer of the Awards] and said, 'James wants to mention the troops.' Walter said, 'He can do the troops or he can do the joke.' I said to James, 'Do you want to drop the joke?' And he said, 'No, because it's funny and I don't want to take away LeAnn's funny moment.' So, with live cameras rolling, we had to craft a quick salute to the troops and weave it into a joke about the Mafia - and it worked out great."
Wild, who writes as well for the Emmy and Grammy Awards and numerous TV shows and specials, comes from New Jersey and lives now in Los Angeles. Even so, he feels a special affinity for the CMA Awards, in part because Country Music ranked high on his family's playlist but especially because of characteristics that are unique to that event.
"The CMAs give me a week to feel that I'm in the heart of Nashville because it brings so many great figures together," said Wild. "I also happen to love the city and the environment. The warmth of this town is spectacular. There's a realization that there are fans on the other side of the equation, buying the music. The artists actually think about the fans. They'll come to the CMA Music Festival to shake their hands and sign their albums. Unfortunately, there's not enough of that in the rest of the music business."
Typically, Wild's involvement with the CMA Awards begins right after the nominees are announced in September. He will attend the initial production meeting in Los Angeles to take note of who Producer Robert Deaton is planning to book for the show. That lineup becomes firm in October, so by the time Wild arrives in Nashville, a week before the broadcast, he's usually submitted his first drafts to the producer for approval.
But as the Gandolfini story illustrates, none of it is chiseled in stone. "When they rehearse it onstage, or even when they read it backstage right before making their entrance, I'll listen and hear people change a word here or there - and I'll put those words into the final copy because they sound better than what I wrote. I can only guess at how someone might say something, so I always ask, 'What can I change to make this more comfortable for you?' I want the people I write for to sound like themselves; if you're aware of my writing in what they say, then I'm probably doing a bad job."
Another story illustrates the point, this time harking back to 2006, when Billy Ray Cyrus and Miley Cyrus appeared as co-presenters. "I'd come up with this idea," Wild recalled. "Miley was born the same year that Billy Ray won his CMA Award [in 1992, when "Achy Breaky Heart" garnered Single of the Year honors]. So you've got a father and a daughter, and she's young, so my instinct was to make that a sweet moment.
"But I think she must have thought it was a little too cute," he added, laughing. "So she added a little barb about his former mullet. I normally would have written something like that myself, but I didn't know how playful their relationship was. The point is that everyone brings something to the party; when I write, I'm just sending out the invitation."
Wild will be reading form his new book, He Is . I Say: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Neil Diamond at Davis-Kidd Bookstore at the Green Hills Mall in Nashville on Friday, Nov. 7 at 7 PM. Drawing on exclusive interviews with the legend himself, The New York Times bestselling author delivers an intimate portrait of Diamond, the singer/songwriter behind hits including "Cherry, Cherry," "Sweet Caroline" and "America."
"The 42nd Annual CMA Awards" will be held Wednesday, Nov. 12 at the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tenn. The three-hour gala will be carried live by the ABC Television Network from 8-11 PM/EST, 7-10PM/CST.
Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will co-host the CMA Awards and perform. Trace Adkins, Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, the Eagles, Alan Jackson Kid Rock, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, George Strait, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, The Wailers and others will perform on Country Music's Biggest Night. Visit www.CMAawards.com for updates.
Tickets for the CMA Awards are on sale now and can be purchased at www.ticketmaster.com; (615) 255-9600; or at the Sommet Center box office, 501 Broadway (corner of Fifth Avenue and Broadway in Nashville). Ticket prices begin at $110 for Upper-level; $327.75 for Club-level; and $382.50 for Lower-level. Prices include sales tax but exclude applicable service/handling fees.
Fans can order the official CMA Awards Program book and merchandise including long and short sleeved T-shirts, hats, a vest, a mug and a commemorative Hatch Show Print Poster on the www.CMAawards.com online store.
"The 42nd Annual CMA Awards" is a production of the Country Music Association. Robert Deaton is the Executive Producer. Paul Miller is the Director. David Wild is the writer. The special will be shot in high definition and broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound. Premiere Radio Networks is the official radio packager of the CMA Awards, including a stereo-radio simulcast of the gala event. American Airlines is the official airline of the 2008 CMA Awards. Chevy: The Official Ride of Country Music. Mary Kay is the Official Beauty Sponsor of the 2008 CMA Awards.
2008 CMA Close Up News® Service / Country Music Association,® Inc.
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