When I applied to college, I always checked off the college I was applying to would be preferred if it had a newspaper, magazine or radio station run by the students. When my first year at Stonehill College came around, me and my roommate went to the introductory meeting and signed up to be DJs. Now heading into my junior year, I am Associate Music Director on the executive board for 91.3 FM WSHL Stonehill College Radio. Joining my college radio station has been a life-changing experience and I am sharing my favorite parts of my radio DJ journey. Below are some of my favorite, or at least the most common, reasons people love being college radio DJs.
1. You get to be on the radio, the actual radio, like what you hear in cars if you don't plug in your phone.
Radio isn't mainstream communication technology anymore, but that's even better because not being mainstream is cool now, right? So...
2. You are instantly seen as the "cool radio station hipster."
As soon as I say I DJ for 91.3 WSHL, I get a similar reaction to what I get when I say I'm in a band. While I can't complain about being seen as cool, considering it's usually quite the opposite, this outside perspective can also cause major "DJ in Name Only" Syndrome. Everyone assumes you are like the cool radio DJs in movies, but with that comes a bunch of people who aren't as committed as others, because they are just dying to be like Becca from "Pitch Perfect," but the passion isn't quite there.
3. Radio station people are the best people, no lie.
Although seen as cool, DJs in movies are also construed as music elitists that are judgmental toward who is "cool enough" to join the team. This couldn't be further from the truth. At least since my first year at Stonehill, everyone on the Executive Board has always been super inviting, open, nonjudgmental, friendly and willing to help you learn anything and everything about how to make the show of your dreams.
4. You can play literally anything you want. If you want to play two hours of yodeling music, you can play it.
This is probably the best part of being involved in the radio: seeing all the creativity at work. Of course, we need to keep it FCC clean, but any kind of show is possible. Focus on any genre of music, multiple genres of music, sports, news or you can even have a talk-based show with music. In my few years as a WSHL DJ, I have even seen a theatrical production like the early 20th century radio shows, including a script each show with dialogue and sound effects (right down to the sound of someone opening a door and walking into the scene).
5. You get to present yourself as anything you want.
Your two-hour show every week is a performance, so you can make a character and be completely different from your typical personality. Play around with all of the possibilities, you might find something that you never knew would be your passion!
6. The studio's speaker system allows for the best jam sessions.
There is nothing better than being in the studio alone and having your body flooded with the sound from the speakers. It puts you in your own little world, which can feel strangely sanctuary-like considering most sanctuaries aren't blasting rock music.
7. It helps with your communication and technology skills.
In order to make your show have a presence, you have to market yourself to get listeners and to book bands, so my communication skills have greatly increased. If you want to make your show more professional, you can add in DJ drops and an introduction, which you can make on various programs (Audacity is my personal favorite). Plus, learning a new program and making something for your show makes you feel really accomplished.
8. Sometimes, you get to do awesome interviews and hang out with bands you hire.
If the bands are willing, and they often are, they will agree to an interview with you, either recorded before they go on stage or will come back for your show time! The Quins, a local band that came to play at Stonehill, were friendly to the radio staff and talked to us all throughout their time one Friday night. Not only are these almost always awesome experiences, but they help with your networking by making connections with the band and leave opportunity for future work.
9. It helps with any sort of stage fright you might have.
Before the radio, I was very shy and didn't like asking people for things I needed or wanted. For those that are afraid of speaking in public, radio is actually the perfect introduction to facing that fear because you are broadcasting to an audience without seeing them stare back at you as you talk. It also helps to take the "shame" out of the "shameless self-promotion" of your show because you have to make yourself known in order to get an audience, which helped me a lot with my inability to ask people for things!
10. It helps you stay up to date on music and news.
I work at Newbury Comics, a New England music and pop culture merchandise store, but combining that with my DJ position has helped so much with allowing myself to spend time on music. Now that looking for new music and staying up to date on new releases counts as a job, it feels less like procrastination on that paper you haven't started, just don't get too sucked in!
11. Radio is a passion I never knew I had.
When I joined WSHL DJs my first semester, I had always been interested in radio and had formerly written for my school newspaper. Yet, I had never expected it to become such an integral part of my life as it is now. It has become something that I enjoy, but also something to look forward to when I have had a particularly bad week.
If any of the above reasons interest you in the slightest, I highly recommend checking in with your college radio station. It might just change your life.
