Greg Hershey
Richmond.com
Wednesday, August 06, 2008

They live among us, selfless volunteers who battle the forces of ignorance and poor taste. They don't respond to spotlights beamed on the underside of clouds, but to sound waves coming from car radios. And possibly free coffee and pastries.

Their goal is, no doubt, to create a more just and equitable society. They have ruthlessly elbowed their way up some form of corporate ladder into one of the most powerful positions in our urban milieu. I am speaking of course of a WRIR Volunteer DJ.

DJs aren't extinct, yet. There are still people who like to hear a human voice between songs. Of course, the disks they jockey have, for the most part, changed from phonograph records to compact disks.

But DJs at WRIR are not throwbacks peddling nostalgia for a lost art form. The claims of radio's demise are greatly exaggerated, at least on the local level. Well, at least in Richmond.

Once upon a time, the idea that the Federal Communications Commission would allow low-power FM stations and, what's more, that Richmond would be granted permission to host one seemed as unlikely as a black man becoming President. But here we are -- a golden age.

WRIR has been broadcasting since January 2005. They now host a wide range of programs, from nationally syndicated programs like Democracy Now, to local news programs, and a whole bunch of music shows.

Nowadays, WRIR has a lot of music, and a lot of DJs. They play music you will not find anywhere else on the radio dial. You doubt? Go check out the playlists for any of the shows on WRIR.

All this makes Radio For the Rest of Us (it's their slogan) an indispensable local resource. But their most overlooked achievement is that their fund drives are shorter and much more fun to listen to than that of Richmond's other public radio station.

What motivates these public servants to donate their time and energy to local radio? It has been proven mathematically that those who listen to WRIR are smarter, more tasteful and even better looking than those who listen to commercial radio.

Needing all the help I can get, one fine morning I huffed it over to WRIR at 7 a.m. to catch Anna Golden in action, hosting the Breakfast Blend Show.

On Fridays, her two daughters, Zoe and Gracie, join her in the studio and the three of them operate the board. Her daughters are part of a program that trains other young people how to write, voice, edit and produce a community on-air calendar.

The Golden girls also host a show on WDCE, the University of Richmond's FM station, called "We're a Happy Family." She was good enough to answer some questions about being a DJ, Richmond music and what driving a minivan means in the modern world.

Why community radio?

I just think it is so important to have local people controlling their media. I have always really loved radio, and can sort of define my life by DJs and stations I listened to. Since radio is dying because of corporate influence, community radio is one of the few places where you can hear voices and music that are out of the mainstream.

Do you think if you went microphone to microphone with Enzo, that you could take him?

Oh, it would be a love match. But I could take him. Enzo and I are the same age, and grew up just a few miles from each other, he in Alexandria, me in Arlington. We both listened to Weasel, Cerfe and Meg, who now lives in Richmond, too, on WHFS. Enzo DJed at some clubs in Washington that I went to as a 16-year-old to dance!

What local bands do you like?

I like Hot Lava a lot, Hamburger James, Dead Goats, Hot Damns and especially Lee Harris and Country Sunshine.

How much local music do you play on your show? I try to play a few songs each hour.

How old are your kids and what do they listen to?

14 and 16. They like Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Old 97s, Sex Pistols and Ramones. They like Japanese punk and French pop from the 60s.

Do you ever have family arguments about, say, the merits of [whatever band]?

Oh, yeah. But it is so cool how much attention they pay to music. We all have pretty similar taste. And we all hate corporate 'modern rock'.

Do you listen to Internet radio?

I listen to WFMU out of New Jersey over the internet and other stations that webstream. I like real radio with DJs, though. I get really bored with Pandora and those types of Internet only stations.

Does radio have a future?

If we can get kids to listen now. Otherwise, I'm afraid it will soon be too late. When the WRIR youth collective goes out to talk to kids about independent radio, many of them don't listen to radio at all, or are content with corporate urban contemporary stations. So many of them want to be rappers or have bands, but don't even think radio can do anything for them. They don't know the possibilities of radio playing local music.

Is punk rock dead?

No way! Go see the Dead Goats or the Detroit Cobras one night, and you'll know. I actually have a really broad definition of punk that includes all music that's raw and rockin'. That's why I like Country, Rockabilly, Surf and a lot of world music. However, if you only listen to stations that play Fallout Boy, you might think punk's dead.

Do you think Richmond has a good/healthy/vibrant music scene?

I think it is way better now than a few years ago. I think WRIR, RVA Magazine, and the new venues that are opening are a good sign. But I worry about ominous signs like the demise of Brick and especially Bopst going off air. The Bopst show made my day.

Do you think DJs get the proper amount of respect? Do they need a support group?

Nah, they just need more records and a place to play them. James Hickman (president of the Virginia Center for Public Press) said something interesting to me about the best DJs being introverts, because extroverts need actual live people to talk to. I think that may be true. DJs are just happy playing the music.

What brand is your minivan?

It's a Ford, but it died on Friday! Now I'm free to drive something else, like a really crappy station wagon! Honestly, sometimes while driving my kids around in it, I wanted to shout, "Hey people, I'm not a soccer Mom! I'm a DJ!" But I guess I have to accept the truth, even if the kids I'm driving have blue hair and are listening to the Blue Hearts.

via Richmond.com