Graham is a music writer for the paper and is essentially that new-wave journalist more journalists need to become like in order to succeed in this face-paced society which journalism has suffered in so far. He understands the importance of Twitter, he maintains a wonderful pop-culture blog, and often uses audio and video (which he takes himself) to accompany his articles.
The piece that I will be taking excerpts from is called "Mike Posner renews local ties in CMU tour stop." As a friend of Posner and as someone who has even reported on him, I generally read a lot of features that come out about him. Overall I really like this feature because Graham manages to perfectly embody the type of guy Posner is, and I know Graham is being truthful in what he writes, because well, I grew up with the guy. However, let's get more specific.
In a few hours, Mike Posner will perform for more than 1,200 students at Central Michigan University's Plachta Auditorium, but first he needs a haircut.
Through Twitter, he's arranged for a friend of a friend to come to his hotel room and fix up his closely shorn locks, and $30 later the barber is on his way and Posner is stage-ready.
Social networking has afforded Posner more than a convenient way to get haircuts in college towns. Tonight's concert -- which sold out in less than two days -- was booked after CMU students started a Facebook group requesting the 22-year-old born-and-bred Michiganian perform on campus.
This is how Graham perfectly begins his feature. He focuses on what's made Posner so popular to begin with and connected it with the show he was covering. Posner's rise in popularity was primarily due to the internet and social media. Posner was highly active on both his Twitter and Facebook accounts to promote his music and get his friends to promote his music when he first really started. Graham successfully sets the scene for the reader while referencing both Twitter and Facebook. He also uses the interesting story about the haircut to make the reader laugh and instantly want more.
Following his haircut, he shows up for a sound check at Plachta Auditorium alone, the same way he comes into town.
"I don't need a babysitter to help get me to my show on time," says the singer, who bares more than a passing resemblance to Justin Timberlake.
After the sound check, he heads downstairs to a dressing room where a university staffer informs him there's a problem getting him the CMU basketball jersey he requested. A hoops fan, he usually wears a basketball jersey for the school he's performing at during the encores of his shows, but CMU couldn't round one up.
Since this excerpt also addresses the haircut, one would think that it comes directly after that last one. Nope. Graham manages to throw in a good amount of grafs on Posner's back story for those new to Posner. He manages to also keep those familiar with Posner and keep them reading to this excellent passage. One of the things I learned in feature writing that class that was of dire importance was quote selection. Graham's decision to include the quote about not needing a babysitting was great. It was good insight toward the fact that Posner does have his head on straight (he did graduate from Duke), and can manage his own life. Many artists need a tour manager, but when Posner hits the road, he's able to do it alone. Graham also decides to include the factoid about Posner asking for a jersey from every school he plays at. It's little things like that that readers would want to know. Graham probably collected a lot of information and quotes from Posner while hanging out with him for the show, and what he decided to use in the actual feature is what I really liked about the piece as a whole.
Posner skips the after party in nearby Alma and heads back to his hotel room with two high school friends in town for the show. The next morning he's off to Arizona for another performance, another crowd and another pair of packs of Trident.
Though he hasn't seen the movie, the jet-setter says his life these days is a lot like George Clooney's character in "Up in the Air," who spends the majority of his life in transit.
In "You Don't Have to Leave," Posner sings a line that sounds like it could have been written by Clooney's character -- "open up your eyes, I'll be in the sky" -- and which, for the students in Mount Pleasant the morning after the show, turns out to be true. By the time campus wakes up, he's gone.
This passage is just awesome for any pop-culture reader. A great reference to "Up in the Air," while getting a taste of what Posner's life is like. The reader learns the type of personality he has, while understanding why he has everything in him to become successful. I'm sure lots of people are interested in what artists do after shows cause living that kind of life is what people dream of. Rocking hard, partying hard, and meeting lots of female fans. Yet, Posner is not one to indulge into that kind of stuff, and often puts his music first and the social life that comes with it, second.
Graham is not a complex journalist, but a smart one. His writing is simple, so the average reader can enjoy it. He knows the right kind of content to use, he knows how to interact with his readers, and he knows technology. Those are three things I feel that all journalists need to master. As an aspiring pop-culture journalist, Graham is great journalist to learn from.
Here's the video Graham had accompany the feature:
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