San Diego native and radio industry legend Tom Irwin, better known as “Shotgun” Tom Kelly, has been inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame (HOF).
The induction ceremony was held Oct. 8 at the Fairmont Hotel Millennium Park in Chicago.
“It was such an honor,” Irwin told Times of San Diego. “I was overwhelmed to be inducted at the same time as Charlie, who made me a boss jock.”
The class of 2026 included Boomer Esiason, Helen Little, Rickey Smiley, Bob Pittman, Dennis Green, Fred Winston, Irwin and his mentor Charlie Van Dyke.
In 1970, Van Dyke, working as a program director, recruited a 21-year-old Irwin and San Diego native, to return to his hometown from Bakersfield to work at San Diego radio station KGB 1360-AM.
At age 19, Van Dyke started working in major-market radio stations, starting with Dallas’s KLIF. Programmer Bill Drake brought him to CKLW in Windsor, then KFRC in San Francisco and eventually to Drake’s flagship KHJ in Los Angeles, where Van Dyke served as program director. Other stops included WLS Chicago, WRKO Boston and KGB San Diego. Throughout the 1980s, Van Dyke was the primary fill-in for Casey Kasem on American Top 40.
In his acceptance speech, Irwin, 76, said, “I am humbled and so pleased to be inducted at the same time as my friend, Charlie Van Dyke.”
Irwin told the crowd, “One hot, sweaty, smoky day in Bakersfield, I got a phone call. And on the other end of the line it was the voice of Charlie Van Dyke. Charlie said that he had received my cassette. Charlie told me, `I think it was really good. In the next couple of weeks, I’m going to be coming up to Bakersfield to hear you on the air, so you better sound good.’”
Irwin continued his story: “A week later, Charlie showed up in beautiful Bakersfield. We went out to dinner and Charlie asked me, `How bad do you want to come to KGB?’ I told him, more than anything else in the world. So Charlie extended his hand and said, `Welcome to KGB.’
“Charlie believed in me and (he) gave me my first big gig back home in a major market. Had that never happened, if Charlie had never called me and gave me that job, none of you in this room would have ever known who Shotgun Tom is. But, I’m glad he did.”
Irwin’s deep baritone voice has been heard over the air for more than 60 years.
After KGB, Irwin worked at several other San Diego radio stations, including KPRI, KFMB, KCBQ and KBZT, before a 22-year stint as afternoon host at the top-rated KRTH (K-Earth 101-FM) in Los Angeles. After a nationwide search, he was selected to fill the coveted afternoon drive slot at KRTH, succeeding the late Real Don Steele.
Then in 2018, Irwin joined SiriusXM. He continues today voicing an afternoon radio show from his home studio in Fletcher Hills. He’s identifiable by his trademark Smokey Bear-style ranger hat and signature sign-on, “Brrr-yah, you better believe it baby.”
The HOF honor is the latest in a celebrated career for Irwin, who attended St. John of the Cross Catholic School in Lemon Grove and graduated from Mt. Miguel High School in Spring Valley in 1968.
His memoir, “All I Wanna Do is Play the Hits,” was released in July 2024. The 280-page autobiography is a collection of interesting, fun stories and anecdotes mixed with customary biography details, including the birth of his daughter, drug use and rehabilitation and heart surgery.
The book’s title comes from a conversation with a nun at St. John of the Cross Catholic School. At age 12, Sister Mario ordered Irwin, “Thomas, get over here.”
Two years earlier, at age 10, Irwin had decided he wanted to grow up to become a disc jockey. He created his own mock radio station in his Spring Valley bedroom using two record players and a microphone.
As he tells the story, Irwin dutifully responded to Sister Mario. “What can I do for you?” Irwin asked.
“Thomas,” the nun said, “You need to learn how to read and write and write a sentence properly in a paragraph.”
Irwin replied to the nun, “Sister Mario, all I wanna do is play the hits.”
Irwin’s other career awards include being inducted into the California Music Hall of Fame in 2023; Billboard Magazine Air Personality of the Year; and Radio and Records 2020 Oldies Air Personality of the Year.
In 2013, Irwin was honored with his own star on the iconic Hollywood Walk of Fame and superstar Stevie Wonder was one of the presenters. His star is located at the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and La Brea Avenue.
“I’ve had a wonderful career,” said Irwin.
* * *
Radio reaches 92% of U.S. adults every month
Radio reaches 92% of U.S. adults every month, or more than 242 million consumers, making it a larger-reach platform than connected TV devices, smartphones and live television, according to a new Nielsen report.
As reported by Inside Radio, a radio industry trade news outlet, radio’s monthly reach extends across demographic groups, including 92% of Black adults, 93% of Hispanic adults and 87% of adults ages 18-34, a group often characterized as primarily digital consumers.
Also, Americans spend nearly four hours daily with audio, and radio and podcasts together, accounting for 82% of the ad-supported audio time available to advertisers vs. 16% for streaming music services, according to Nielsen.
Radio also benefits from listening outside the home. About 65% of adult radio listening occurs away from home, with most of that activity taking place in vehicles. During weekday drive times, the share rises to 73%. More than 80% of ad-supported audio listening in cars goes to AM/FM radio, according to Edison Research.
In the 48 largest U.S. markets, Nielsen uses wearable Portable People Meters to detect codes embedded in station audio. In more than 200 additional markets and outlying counties, listening diaries record where radio use occurs, including in vehicles. Nielsen says its audio measurement covers every U.S. county.
* * *
Report: Independents favor podcasts, Republicans prefer radio
A new Edison Research report is offering fresh insights to political advertisers as campaigns make their final advertising decisions before November’s midterms.
While AM/FM leads in reach across the board, Edison’s Share of Ear data found that listeners who identify as Independents spend a larger share of their audio time with podcasts, compared to Republicans and Democrats.
Also, Republicans spend 41% of their daily audio time listening to AM/FM vs. 31% for both Democrats and Independents. The figures include listening to ad-supported radio stations over the air and through commercial free online streams, including SiriusXM.
That 10-point difference highlights radio’s particularly strong position among Republicans, reported Inside Audio Marketing, a radio industry trade news outlet.
Meanwhile, podcast listening presents a different picture, said Inside Audio Marketing.
Independents devote 15% of their daily audio time to podcasts vs. 11% among Democrats and 9% among Republicans. That puts podcasting six points ahead among Independents compared with Republicans and four points ahead of Democrats.
Streaming music shows even a narrower divide, said the report. Democrats devote 27% of their daily audio time to streaming services vs. 25% among Independents and 21% among Republicans.
Inside Audio Marketing said Edison’s numbers mean that among Republicans, radio commands nearly twice the share of listening time as streaming music. Among Democrats, radio’s share is only slightly ahead of streaming music.
