By Jilleen Barrett, Features Editor/Managing Editor
Ever wonder what it’s like to host a radio show? With WRCM back on the airwaves, some Manhattan students have decided to do just that.
Colin Sweeney, a senior at the college, hosts “BoingYoingYoing!” from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesdays. He had been hoping to join the club radio for a few semesters but with the water damage in the booth the hosts broadcast from in the Research & Learning Center (RLC) on south campus, he was not able to.
Sweeney explained the meaning behind the unconventional name of his show, where he and his guest Jasmine Montenegro talk about psychology, mental health and meditation in addition to playing music.
“You see that name and almost can’t equate any sort of like expectation … it’s also supposed to be kind of light hearted [and] humorous a little bit as well,” Sweeney said. “The show is more, you know, it is kind of like art, and then we can make jokes and all that.”
Soren Juelsgaard hosts “cool girl monologue,” named after the speech Amy Dunne delivers in “Gone Girl.” Juelsgaard transferred to Manhattan after spending a year at Moravian University, where she co-hosted a show with the same name along with her then roommate, Brianna Whalen, for Moco Radio.
Now, Juelsgaard and Whalen host their own versions of the show on the two different radios at separate times, tuning into each other’s and texting throughout. Juelsgaard, who hosts from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursdays, says speaking into the microphone solo is an entirely different experience than when she had her close friend by her side.
“So when we were together, it was just the mic was just there and I was speaking to her,” Juelsgaard said. “I know the people that are listening because they’re a lot of my friends, so I’m speaking to them. But also I’m in a room alone and it’s dark … So I’m just saying things that are coming into my mind.”
Whalen is appreciative of the opportunity to continue participating in each other’s shows about one hundred miles away from each other.
“I love hearing the songs she picks out each week and her commentary on them, but I also miss doing the show with her,” Whalen said. “We end up texting each other and responding on air anyways, so we still participate in each other’s shows in small ways.”
Playing music is what brought the pair together, and it’s what WRCM and other college radios are all about. Emily Daly, the program manager and host of “No Pressure” as well as “Em and Em’s Rock History” with Emily Lavelle, says “even if I am playing to empty airwaves, it’s a great feeling to share the music that I love.”
Playing music isn’t the only part of the club Daly gets involved in. She is also the program director, which is a position on the board.
“My job as program director is to make the schedule for the semester,” Daly said. “I am a lot more committed in a time sense to the club. I am most closely in charge of scheduling, attendance, and some administrative communications, but we also split a lot of the responsibilities of running the club amongst the board.”
Daly said the club has changed in the last few years, but she hopes to be part of its comeback. She started as a host when she was a freshman in 2019, and since then, they have had a few issues arise with airing between COVID-19 and the water damage in the studio.
“I think it was far more present my freshman year than in the two years where life was very affected by COVID, but it’s one of our goals that we can return the club to that place again this year,” Daly said. “Stay tuned for upcoming on campus and off campus events!”