My sophomore year as a journalism major, I had to choose which track I wanted to pursue- broadcast, magazine, or newspaper/online. My long-standing obsession with magazines won out over my budding interest in radio broadcast, but I recently got to experience what my life could have been like if I made a different decision.
A few Fridays ago, I sat in on a session of Your Weekly BJ, a rock show at Northwestern’s radio station, WNUR. My music taste is varied but doesn’t include much that could legitimately be called rock. I figured it would, at the very least, expose me to some new stuff to listen to.
When I got to the station, peoplewere crowded into a room filled with speakers, computers, microphones, and soundboards. I came with the intent of asking to guest DJ in some way, but decided to just observe as I realized how much goes into creating a radio show. As I watched, the DJs flipped switches and turned dials as if it was second nature, all the while joking around or talking about what to play next.
I walked around the small studio space, then went into the room they call “The Library.” There were so many CDs and records on vinyl, categorized by show, and many had notes on the covers about the albums’ content. The room was packed and I spent time just wandering around, realizing that they had everything from Burial to Brahms in stock.
The DJs, Breanne Ward and Josh Brechner, made an interesting duo. Breanne, dressed in a vivid and potentially partially spandex outfit, exuded energy even though painful knee issues irritated her. She and Josh, who is sarcastic but endearing, played off each other really well. Even when they weren’t on the air, their banter was often times laugh out loud funny.
My goal was to simultaneously get a feel for being a part of a radio show while being exposed to new music, and that was definitely a success. A highlight of the afternoon was when the DJs played a song by Carla Bozulich called “Evangelista,” which was a nine minute long spoken word fused with music piece, which reached a crescendo when Carla shrieked with barely-contained emotion. Another attention-grabbing choice was by a Chicago cabdriver with musical aspirations.
This is one experiment that wasn’t an eye-opening, life-changing experience. I think that’s a good thing. After my visit at WNUR, I realized that branching out doesn’t need to be something that is alwaysmind blowing- it can simply be good times with good people.