There’s a famous saying that goes “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”. It is very true. I have always believed that statement to be the case even when I used to imulate Gary Thorne’s voice while practicing doing play by play broadcasting. I can listen to the man call baseball and hockey all day and never ever get tired of it.
Then one day, I heard a piece of advice that absolutely changed me and impacted my life.
It was May 2012, I was a undergrad college student at Long Island University in Brooklyn, New York. I was at work inside the Information Technology computer lab when I was listening to to “The Mike Francesa Show” on WFAN 660/101.9 FM New York. He had announced something that I got genuinely excited to hear.
”Coming next, Los Angeles Dodgers play by play broadcaster Vin Scully will be joining the show”.
I immediately took care of all of my menial tasks that I needed to take care of so I can listen to the Vin Scully interview. Anyone who has known me for a very long time know that my favorite broadcaster of all time is Scully whom I absolutely adored and revered. I listened to the interview with such intent and hung on to every word he said. I vividly remember the question Francesa asked Scully to this day that truly stayed with me even nine years later.
Francesa asked “What advice would you give to any young aspiring broadcaster looking to break into the industry?”
Scully said “I remember my mentor Red Barber once told me don’t listen to other broadcasters. I asked why, Barber said because by listening to other broadcasters you begin to water down your own authenticity. Always be yourself”.
This was the moment as a aspiring broadcaster that I had my life changing epiphany. “Be Yourself” was something that truly resonated with me from that moment on.
See, we live in a copy cat world. A world in which that people want to try to be someone else. Especially in sports media where people often times than not (broadcasters, opinionist, sports radio hosts) try to be something that they are not. I find it comical that people try to box other people into being who they want them to be and it’s wrong.
I think we have gone too far done the rabbit hole of not know who we are as individuals and try to overcompensate by being who we think others wants us to be.
Even as someone who is a sports radio broadcaster, play-by-play broadcaster, blogger, writer, I vowed to myself that I am going to be the greatest version of Shukri Wrights can ever be. I’m not worried about trying to be another Michael Felger, Bob Costas, or Bruins avengers and that is no shot as any one of them because they are phenomenal at what they do. However, I am saying that I am here to be one thing and one thing only. Shukri Wrights.
It is powerful to have people see you being your authentic self, not someone who others want you to be. There’s power in authenticity. Don’t ever lose yourself and don’t ever forget who you are as an individual.
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