(November 3, 2011) Alex Del Barrio has twice watched the Harlem Globetrotters when they have visited his current hometown of Edinburg, TX. The next time the Trotters visit, Del Barrio might be behind the mike. An STAA client since 2006, Del Barrio has been hired as a public address announcer for the internationally renowned clown princes of basketball.
“I’ve always enjoyed watching them on TV. I am obviously impressed with what they are able to do. Its always a big deal when they are coming down,” Del Barrio smiles. “When people leave Globetrotters games they leave with a smile on their face. That is something different. I am looking forward to it.”
The Globetrotters season tips off on Christmas Day. Del Barrio will start with a part-time schedule that will provide him with several weeks off scattered throughout the year. “I think I get to go to Seattle, Phoenix, Houston, Portland, Boise and Calgary [among other cities],” Del Barrio says. “I’ve always enjoyed being on the road and have always loved traveling.”
Basketball has long been a focus of Del Barrio’s career. He spent four seasons as radio voice of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA D-League. He has also broadcast games for the men and women’s teams at the University of Texas-Pan. Del Barrio reached a point, though, where he wanted to take his career in a different direction, so he sent his demo and resume to a variety of different employers including the Globetrotters and WWE.
“I had an old employer who told me ‘if you throw a lot of spaghetti at the wall, something is going to stick,’” Del Barrio says.
Several months after contacting the Globetrotters, Del Barrio was surprised to receive a reply requesting additional material. He studied the public address announcing in several Globetrotters online video clips, then incorporated what he heard into a two and-a-half minute demo.
Del Barrio is excited to be associated with such a monumental brand for the first time in his career. “I’ve had a chance to do a lot of great things – I’ve called games in Staples Center and I’ve done national broadcasts on NBA TV but this is the first time I’m truly associated with a brand everyone recognizes, and no one has a bad thing to say about them.
When someone remarked to Del Barrio that, as public address announcer, he was going to hear the Globetrotters signature song, Sweet Georgia Brown in his sleep, he replied with a grin, “I think I already am.”