The beat continues at University of Richmond’s student-run radio station
STUDENT EXPERIENCE
When senior Avery Piantedosi started her show, Avery Down by the School Yard, in fall 2023, she was one of only 17 student DJs on the air at WDCE 90.1 FM. Today, more than 90 students and 17 community members host shows on the University of Richmond’s campus radio station.
“We are incredibly proud and have worked so hard to grow the station,” said Piantedosi, the station’s co-general manager alongside senior Livi Palalay. Growth has been fueled by the promotions team’s marketing efforts, as well as what she calls a “snowball effect” — one student joins, then brings friends along.
WDCE offers students a space to share their musical tastes and connect with others, said Piantedosi, a leadership studies and music double major, who was encouraged to join by faculty advisor Joanna Love.
Student-run organization
The University of Richmond’s student radio station, which began as WCRC, has been student-run since 1961. Posters lining the walls reflect the station’s longevity, where advertisements for the Ramones and Live Aid vie for space next to Camila Cabello and Josh Groban and indie bands like Skorts and Babe Lewis.
The executive board meets weekly to discuss programming and operations. The promotions team manages social media, designs promotional items, and runs the station’s website and blog.
DJs are on air daily from 7 a.m. until midnight or 1 a.m. During off-hours, music directors curate playlists, spending hours reviewing new tunes and adding them to the station’s database.
“We've been lucky to have stellar student leaders,” said Mike Clifford, the station manager and a 2001 alum. “They show others how fun it is to work here.” He added that collaborations with other campus organizations — where WDCE provides music at their events — have also helped spark student interest.
Learning the ropes
New DJs quickly find support from experienced staff. Promotions manager Sarah Wirth helps newcomers get comfortable in the booth through shadowing sessions.
“The first time I was on air, it felt liberating,” said Wirth, now a senior, who is a visual & media arts practice and creative writing double major. “It was nerve-wracking being behind the mix board alone for the first time, but it is such a unique experience to share an hour or few with the world, without knowing who might be listening or getting inspired.”
Wirth gravitates toward folk and rock on her show Lucky Bug but also enjoys mixing it up with themes. Recently, she and the other Tuesday night DJs played only disco music from 7 to 11 p.m.
The station also hosts all-nighters, where each hour brings a new theme and new DJs.
“The first time we did this, three of us didn't make it past 5 a.m. and fell asleep on the couch,” Wirth said. “We woke up to an email of photos of us asleep from a community DJ who starts her show at 7 in the morning.”
Creative energy
For many DJs, the station is a place to explore both music and medium. Some learn to work with analog formats like vinyl records and CDs.
Senior Brigid Flanagan hosts an all-CD show, Flux and Flow, drawing from a personal collection built through secondhand finds and hand-me-downs from her parents. “Collecting is a hobby of mine,” said Flanagan, an English major. “Owning physical versions of the books and albums I love makes my fondness for them more concrete.”
Lately, she’s been playing Magdalena Bay, The Last Dinner Party, and ‘90s artists like the Indigo Girls and Liz Phair, who she said have influenced many of today’s musicians.
“Radio is a time for me to forget about schoolwork for an hour and focus just on music,” said Flanagan, who creates her shows in real time, once she’s in the booth.
On a recent show, the senior lamented that with the end of the school year around the corner, she only had two shows left. She played a request from her mother, “Hey Jack Kerouac” by 10,000 Maniacs, mixed in disco from Donna Summer, and closed out the show with one of her favorites, “Only Happy When It Rains” by Garbage.
“I wanted to share a bit of myself,” she told listeners.
WDCE streams and can be heard around the world from its website.