On The Up: The Hits’ Ben Boyce on Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, going viral on social media and finding his feet after TV

He’s the bubbly radio and social media star whose career spans two decades in NZ media. But with 4am starts, the harsh reality of the media and television industry and a work-life balance juggle, how does Ben Boyce show up with a smile every day for his listeners and fans?

Boyce says he’d be lying if he said he was always positive and that while viewers might not see it, he’s had his fair share of ups and downs.

“Knockbacks and rejection have made it hard for me at times recently even if I don’t let on outwardly to others. I definitely overthink things - probably even overthinking these answers right now!”

Boyce chats to the Herald’s Jenni Mortimer about his mental toolkit, how he fills his cup, and embarrassing his daughters.

What does an average weekday look like for you?

My day kicks off at 4am with an alarm that somehow feels worse as the week goes on. I get ready, make lunchboxes for the family while the cat and dog do their best to convince me it’s actually their breakfast time. Then it’s off to the radio studio around 5am to prepare for the show, which starts at 6am.

The next few hours are a whirlwind of stories, laughs, competitions, chats about what’s going on in the world, and the occasional email clear-out when a song plays! It’s not lost on me how much of a privilege it is to be part of people’s morning routine.

After the show, my day shifts into meetings, brainstorming, interviews, and planning for the next radio day. Afternoons can vary - but usually it’s more radio prep, walking the dog, doing exercise, editing videos and coming up with social media ideas to film (like new ways to embarrass my daughters).

Since my wife works late as a teacher, I take on the after-school “unpaid Uber driver” role, driving my daughters between their various activities like musical theatre, dance, math tuition and netball while looking suspicious working on my laptop in the car.

Evenings are spent cooking dinner and often forcing my family to endure my relentless social media filming. The day ends with me promising I’ll go to bed earlier tomorrow, which, of course never happens.

Megan Papas, Jono Pryor and Ben Boyce on The Hits Breakfast. Photo / NZME

How do you juggle work and family life?

There was a time when Jono and Ben was on both radio and TV, which was an incredible ride, but one downside was missing time with my family. Now that TV work has dried up for me, they’re probably seeing too much of me. During the week, everyone’s quite busy with their own commitments, so I try to make sure we have one or two things planned over the weekend to do together.

I’m an “active relaxer” and love planning things, which probably drives my family nuts. But having even small activities away from work or school helps keep us connected. Lately, making our social media content has become a family affair - my daughters get roped into filming silly videos, and my wife has become my unpaid camera operator. It’s actually been pretty cool to do this together as a family.

Ben Boyce and his family in Orlando. Photo / Instagram

How hard are the early starts in radio?

I do survive on very little sleep, and once that alarm goes off, there’s no turning back. But I love what I do with the radio show, so no complaints.

When I first started breakfast radio, I tried going to bed early, but I found I was missing out on time with my family and saying no to things in the evening. Eventually, I accepted that as a parent, you’re probably always going to be tired. I’ll worry about sleep when my family puts me in a retirement home, which, at this rate, might be sooner rather than later with all the filming I rope them into.

What’s been the best moment of your career?

There are a few standout moments for different reasons. I’ve been lucky enough to end up in rooms with some pretty famous people - one surreal moment was getting my hero, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, to sign my bottom and then getting it tattooed afterwards!

Ben Boyce is such a big fan of The Rock - he got his name tattooed on his bottom.

On the more meaningful side, raising over $400,000 for KidsCan by playing handball for 24 hours last year was something I was proud to be part of.

More recently, creating a podcast with my daughter Sienna and making social videos with both my daughters has been incredibly special - even if they cringe at my “embarrassing dad” antics. Seeing our funny Gen Z videos take off worldwide has been surreal - one video in particular has over 100 million views, including 84 million on Instagram alone. That’s a lot of secondhand embarrassment for my daughters!

What do you do to fill your cup?

I feel I’m just as passionate about creating entertainment now as I was when I first started making TV and radio shows for free. So I still love doing this and work gives me a lot of joy. But there’s more to life than work and I love spending time with my family and watching my daughters grow into awesome, caring human beings is something I’m proud of. Sienna is already better at media stuff than me (probably not hard) and Indie is super organised and driven and will probably be my boss in two years. It makes me tear up every time I think about them moving out one day.

I also find that having something to look forward to keeps me going - whether it’s a family activity, holiday or even the next big Warriors game.

Ben Boyce's trip through the drive through with daughters Sienna and Indie has gone viral. Photo / @ben_boyce_, @siennas_spot

You have a really upbeat persona on air and social media, but how do you handle the lows?

Like a lot of industries, the media world’s been pretty uncertain lately, and I won’t lie, it’s been really tough at times. When the Jono and Ben TV show ended, it hit me hard as it seemed to be pretty successful in so many ways. Over the last few years, I’ve pitched heaps of ideas - and pitched myself for various shows - and faced a fair bit of rejection. At times, it feels pretty lonely trying to find my place in that world again, especially when I still feel like I’ve got a lot to offer.

While I’m genuinely grateful to still be working in radio (and I really love it), I haven’t given up on TV. I’ve got a couple of ideas I’m still backing, and I’m hopeful they’ll get their moment. But in the meantime, I’ve tried to focus on what I can control and thrown myself into creating funny social media content. It’s become such a huge part of how people consume entertainment now, and while it’s been a long journey and a big learning curve, it finally feels like I’m gaining traction. It’s also been cool reaching a whole new audience with it.

As far as looking upbeat on social media, well, we all know social media’s mostly just the highlight reel. If I acted like I do in those videos all day long, my family would’ve staged an intervention by now. I definitely don’t spend every hour in a novelty costume yelling “rizz” and “skibidi” … just, you know, a responsible amount.

Sienna and Ben Boyce.

Who or what helps you stay positive?

I’d be lying if I said I’m always great at staying positive. As mentioned, knockbacks and rejection have made it hard for me at times recently, even if I don’t let on outwardly to others. I definitely overthink things - probably even overthinking these answers right now!

I find that exercising every day helps me feel better physically and mentally and then I try to focus on things I can look forward to. I regularly remind myself of what I’m grateful for - my family, my job in radio, creating videos that people like and when the Warriors win, that helps too.

Do you have a message for Kiwis struggling to stay upbeat?

I know things are tough for a lot of Kiwis right now, and I don’t want to pretend I have all the answers. I’ve had my own struggles, and I know it’s easy to lose hope at times.

But I truly believe that if you’re kind to people and work your butt off, good things have gotta come your way. As my hero, The Rock, says: “Always be the hardest worker in the room,” and he’s doing pretty well for himself.