Save the Only Blues Station in Ohio
Donation protected
I manage a non-profit, low-power radio station in Marion, Ohio licensed by the U.S. Drum & Bugle Corp. We are WDIF-LP 97.5 FM. In April 2016, I took over and turned it into the only radio station in Ohio dedicated to playing blues music 24/7.
It was a story straight out of UHF (Weird Al movie from 1986, one of my favorites)! The managing company (Del Mar Communications) was about to dissolve the license and shut down the station because no one was sponsoring it. They also had experienced huge setbacks (someone stole the radio equipment and hocked it on ebay), and it just wasn't worth the effort of staying on the air. I approached them (quite randomly, might I add) with the idea of changing the format away from soft rock 70s, 80s, 90s, and 00s since every other station seems to play that background noise stuff. They told me the situation and offered me full management rights if I was able to put some money up. I had a 401k at the time and thought it would be a great thing to turn this into a blues station and be able to run a radio station. I loaned myself $15,000 and took it over. And let me just mention: I'm not rich. That pretty much wiped my savings.
I also did this for my dad. We used to have a blues radio station within range of Marion, OH that he loved since he's a huge blues fan (It was WBBY out of Dublin, OH). But about 25 years ago, it changed formats. I remember he would go out to the garage with a stack of cassette tapes and record as much as he could of that old station before it changed over. I thought wouldn't it be great if I could get that station back for him someday.
So to keep this station on the air, we need a minimum of $2,000 per month to cover all of our expenses - we rent broadcasting power from a local tower, music licensing fees, hardware upkeep, dedicated T1 line, etc. The monthly cost is so low right now because this is almost a one-man organization! Other than the company who manages this and 5 other stations in one location, I do everything from programming to selling to cleaning the toilet. Once we start earning more than that, we can start funding our "Blues Crew" campaign.
The "Blues Crew" is our way of giving back to the Marion community and sparking children's interest in learning music. We are giving free music instrument rentals to disadvantaged children who live and go to school in Marion County. They join our group, do some volunteer work in town like clean up a park or downtown, (nothing too demanding) then we pay for 3 months worth of instrument rentals. If they end up enjoying and thriving with their instruments, we see about extending those rentals. We've had a couple of successes early on that I personally paid for.
I've come to learn that blues music is a dying art these days. I'm not happy to learn that because the music is so good. It's genuine, it's real, it's moving and powerful. I want to keep this station alive and provide a home for the blues. We play everything from the earliest recordings to the newest stuff I can find. There's an extra focus on blues bands from Ohio, too.
So because I'm such a bad salesman, I really could use some help keeping our radio station afloat in 2017. Please consider donating to help keep the blues alive in Marion, Ohio and to help us get musical instruments in the hands of our kids here in Marion.
Bottom Line: All of the money earned from this Kickstarter will go towards keeping this station alive and on the air in 2017. It basically "keeps the lights on." This money does not go towards any person's salary. I plan to continue trying to raise money locally for the station so that a) I might earn a paycheck at some point and b) so we can fund our "Blues Crew" project.
Thank you so much for reading,
Spencer Phelps
Station Manager
It was a story straight out of UHF (Weird Al movie from 1986, one of my favorites)! The managing company (Del Mar Communications) was about to dissolve the license and shut down the station because no one was sponsoring it. They also had experienced huge setbacks (someone stole the radio equipment and hocked it on ebay), and it just wasn't worth the effort of staying on the air. I approached them (quite randomly, might I add) with the idea of changing the format away from soft rock 70s, 80s, 90s, and 00s since every other station seems to play that background noise stuff. They told me the situation and offered me full management rights if I was able to put some money up. I had a 401k at the time and thought it would be a great thing to turn this into a blues station and be able to run a radio station. I loaned myself $15,000 and took it over. And let me just mention: I'm not rich. That pretty much wiped my savings.
I also did this for my dad. We used to have a blues radio station within range of Marion, OH that he loved since he's a huge blues fan (It was WBBY out of Dublin, OH). But about 25 years ago, it changed formats. I remember he would go out to the garage with a stack of cassette tapes and record as much as he could of that old station before it changed over. I thought wouldn't it be great if I could get that station back for him someday.
So to keep this station on the air, we need a minimum of $2,000 per month to cover all of our expenses - we rent broadcasting power from a local tower, music licensing fees, hardware upkeep, dedicated T1 line, etc. The monthly cost is so low right now because this is almost a one-man organization! Other than the company who manages this and 5 other stations in one location, I do everything from programming to selling to cleaning the toilet. Once we start earning more than that, we can start funding our "Blues Crew" campaign.
The "Blues Crew" is our way of giving back to the Marion community and sparking children's interest in learning music. We are giving free music instrument rentals to disadvantaged children who live and go to school in Marion County. They join our group, do some volunteer work in town like clean up a park or downtown, (nothing too demanding) then we pay for 3 months worth of instrument rentals. If they end up enjoying and thriving with their instruments, we see about extending those rentals. We've had a couple of successes early on that I personally paid for.
I've come to learn that blues music is a dying art these days. I'm not happy to learn that because the music is so good. It's genuine, it's real, it's moving and powerful. I want to keep this station alive and provide a home for the blues. We play everything from the earliest recordings to the newest stuff I can find. There's an extra focus on blues bands from Ohio, too.
So because I'm such a bad salesman, I really could use some help keeping our radio station afloat in 2017. Please consider donating to help keep the blues alive in Marion, Ohio and to help us get musical instruments in the hands of our kids here in Marion.
Bottom Line: All of the money earned from this Kickstarter will go towards keeping this station alive and on the air in 2017. It basically "keeps the lights on." This money does not go towards any person's salary. I plan to continue trying to raise money locally for the station so that a) I might earn a paycheck at some point and b) so we can fund our "Blues Crew" project.
Thank you so much for reading,
Spencer Phelps
Station Manager
Organizer
Spencer Phelps
Organizer
Marion, OH