GLOBAL A GO-GO: Program April 15, 2015

Photo by Alyssa C. Salomon

Richmond Independent Radio's Spring 2015 Fund Drive is currently underway; it continues through Tuesday April 21. We're intending to raise $35,000 in this spring's drive, which will keep WRIR doing all the great things it does 24/7 for the next six months.

We'd really appreciate your support in keeping community radio radio strong in Richmond -- WRIR is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, and we're building to make the next ten years even better. You can make a donation in one of three ways:

By visiting our secure online donation site at http://bitly.com/Donate2Wrir
By calling 804-622-9747
Or by visiting us in person at 1621-B W. Broad Street (2nd floor)

As always, I have something special lined up for my listeners during the fund drive. The Afro-Zen Allstars, one of Richmond's most exciting new bands, will be performing live on Global A Go-Go on Wednesday April 15; the band is scheduled to hit the airwaves at 3:15 PM.

Afro-Zen is an octet led by George Lowe, formerly of Rattlemouth; the band plays George's arrangements of classic African material by Mulatu Astatke, Thomas Mapfumo, Bembeya Jazz and others. And it's a true all star ensemble, featuring members of some of Richmond's most illustrious groups: Bio Rimo, No BS! Brass, Hotel X and many more.

As a special incentive to get you to donate, I will personally match the first $500 that is donated during my program, starting on Wednesday at 3 PM. So put my money where my mouth is -- donate during Global A Go-Go and your contribution will be doubled. And don't forget to tune in, on the airwaves at 97.3 FM or online at http://wrir.org/tunein.

Thank you for your support in the past, and thank you for considering making a donation during WRIR's Spring 2015 Fund Drive!

Follow me below the fold, if you'd like, for a little more inspiration ...

Last weekend, I told a story at Secretly Y'all's "Spin Richmond" event at Plan 9 Music. I talked about how difficult it was back in 1981 (the year I moved here, and coincidentally the year Plan 9 opened) to navigate Richmond's creative scene. It turned out there was plenty of cool stuff happening -- it was just hard to find out about it if you weren't already in the know.

Talk about a 180 -- in 2015 Richmond's creative community is seemingly at the center of every discussion. Whether it's food, music, visual arts, urban development, education or even history, Richmond's DIY (Do It Yourself) cultural creatives are now one of the first things you think of when you think RVA.

And Richmond has its own DIY radio station -- WRIR 97.3 FM, Richmond Independent Radio, the megaphone of the people (see photo above). Many communities now have low-power FM stations (and many more will get one in the next few years), but few of them are like WRIR: broadcasting 24/7/365, powered by 200 volunteers, creating 121 hours of original programming every week, open to participation from any community member, funded by a thousand individual donors each year.

DIY radio means DIY funding, of course: it wouldn't be Richmond Independent Radio if the bills were paid by the government, or by a hedge fund billionaire, or by ads from Proctor & Gamble -- it would be Richmond Wholly-Owned-Subsidiary Radio. That means you the listener, you the member of the creative community, you the person who benefits from a true media alternative -- you are the person we rely on to help us pay the bills.

GLOBAL A GO-GO

April 14, 2015

Program April 15, 2015

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