Creating A Dose of Disney
Upon starting my journey at Pacific Lutheran University, I would never have expected to have participated on the student radio. I had vaguely heard about this radio, although I didn't know much... or realize what an exciting adventure it could be. For the first two years at my former college, I worked on the student newspaper. This is where I invested my time outside of classes. I wrote articles for all sections of the paper, although I particularly enjoyed writing features about students, faculty, and staff, as well as articles about campus activities. I didn't plan on joining any student media outlet at PLU, although I wasn't opposed the idea. I knew I'd be willing to, but perhaps try something other than the newspaper.
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In one of my classes at PLU, one of my teammates in a group project showed us the radio studio on campus. Upon entering, I knew I was fascinated. The studio was a magical little place, with bright lights strung across the walls. The walls itself were covered with album covers and records. It was a small place with two rooms. The first room contained a sofa, computer, desk, promotional items (like pins and stickers) as well as a wall covered with writing from students who have hosted a radio show. I knew I was coming into a place that emphasized self-expression. I knew the station had a vibrant history with passionate students.
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I emailed the adviser and student manager, expressing an interest in creating a show. It would be all about Disney, although I didn't know which direction it would take. I arranged a time and came into the studio to learn how to use the equipment. It was a bit overwhelming at first, seeing all of the knobs, buttons, and slots. I crossed my fingers that I would be able to manage it all. It seemed like with one click, it might mess up the system. Keep in mind that this radio station is LIVE - a live online broadcast. Once you are "on-air", there's no going back and editing. Everything happens at once.
Looking back on hosting my radio show, I'm so grateful to have been part of the Lute Air Student Radio station. It's one of the greatest highlights of my PLU experience. I went into the studio once a week to host my live broadcast, but prior to that, I spent plenty of time preparing for my show. I got to select Disney music to play on my show. I got to choose a theme for each show and create talking points. I brainstormed for future shows; my show kept me busy outside of my class. Whenever I was in the studio, it felt like an "escape" from the real world. There I was, in the quiet studio on the bottom floor of the AUC, alternating between speaking into the microphone to then playing Disney music. I truly enjoyed all the work I put in. It didn't feel like work. I became so passionate about my show, and couldn't wait until my weekly timeslot to come into the studio.
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Below, I have listed a few core pieces as to how I created my show. Creating it was a journey in itself, in addition to actually hosting it.
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The wonderful studio
The Lute Air Student Radio offers the space for PLU students to host a live online broadcast. You can listen to the current broadcast by visiting plu.edu/studentmedia/lasr/. Music is always played on a 24/7 basis, even when a student isn't hosting their show. The studio offers the technology to host the live show, record the show onto a USB device, adjust the volume, and transition from speaking live with the microphone to playing music. Most likely, I used the basics of the equipment. I didn't use any sound effects or "fancy" stuff. I stayed busy while hosting each show, making sure the volume was at a pleasant level, while typing the information for each song into Spinitron, and preparing my notes for my speaking points.
Logo
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I knew that I wanted to something more with my radio show, other than hosting a live broadcast. I needed to have visual components. I needed to use social media to spread the word about my show. With that, I knew I needed to create a logo. I wanted to have an image that I could use to represent the brand of my show. I ended up with the final product. The photo is from one of my Disney trips. On Main Street U.S.A., Mickey and friends came walking by in a mini-parade. My logo would have to be easily identified as Disney; you can't go wrong with Mickey Mouse and his pals.
I uploaded the photo onto one of my favorite websites: Canva.com. If you haven't used Canva, you can use it to create materials such as posters, album covers, cover photos, invitations... the list goes on. After uploading the photo, I added the text for the name of my show. I wanted to keep the logo simple - simple enough to include the major areas of focus, but make it vibrant enough. I've been told that it's important to "keep it simple." Then came the fun part. I hadn't originally planned on it... but eventually, I added the graphic of a radio microphone, and then added the mouse ears.
Outreach
In addition to using Facebook and Instagram to promote my show, I looked for other ways to do so on the PLU campus. One of these ways was through tabling events. The photo posted above is from my first tabling event. I reserved my tabling slot through the events department, who confirmed my time. Apparently, you can't just use one of the tables, set-up and go for it. It must be reserved in advance. After all, there are many clubs, student organizations and even outside organizations that want time to connect with PLU students.
When the time came, I was nervous. I wasn't sure what to expect. The thought of sitting before crowds of students walking by was a bit daunting. I wanted to do everything I could to promote my show, and share all the essential information. I had fun setting up the table. I put thought into what I would bring. I brought LASR stickers, a pair of Mickey ears, a Disney castle decoration, a Mickey cupcake decoration, as well as paper advertisements I printed and cut. I also provided paper if students wanted to write down a song request, and add it into the Frozen box (to request a song to play on a future show). Then, there was also the sheet where students could write down their name and email address if they were interested in starting their own show.
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I gave out nearly all the stickers, as well as my advertisements. I did receive a few song requests, although I had envisioned receiving a whole lot more. I had envisioned that many students would see the booth and rush over, simply because it's Disney. It wasn't quite the case. Students were minding their own business, for the most part. Some students, however, were excited and expressed their love for Disney. The event was much calmer than I anticipated. I was ready to constantly greet students and share information about my show, but at times it was very quiet. In addition to this tabling event, I hosted another one at another point, and it was themed to the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge expansion at the Disney Parks. I wanted to promote one of my upcoming shows which would fully focus on the expansion. So, in total, I had two tabling events in the AUC, and it was so great to have a presence on campus.
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Another way I wanted to promote my show was through an annual event in the residence halls on campus. It was an art exhibition, and so students could submit their art - whether it was photography, a painting, sculpture, drawing... and probably a whole lot else. In my case, it was my radio show. I filled out the online application and was thrilled to have the opportunity to showcase my work. I created a collage with Disney photos and the name of my radio show (this was before I created my updated logo with the mouse ear microphone). I brought along pieces of paper, pens and a Disney cups so that students could submit a Disney song request. I participated in this event for both years during my time at PLU. For the first event, the organizers of the event even set up a tablet with headphones... so students could listen to bits and pieces of my show!
The memories
The Lute Air Student Radio station became the highlight of my PLU experience as a student. It allowed me to take my passion for Disney and express it through student media. I had the freedom to play Disney music and talk about Disney every week. It allowed me to come into the studio and use the equipment while wearing Mickey Mouse ears. Nothing felt better than sitting in the cozy, private studio, listening to the Fantasmic soundtrack theme song or any range of other songs. It felt good knowing that I represented Disney during my time slot, and anyone could listen if they had internet.
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Looking back, I am proud of all the work I contributed, and I laugh about the occasional mishaps... the moments when a piece of equipment wasn't working, or the computer wouldn't cooperate, or my show had to start late because the USB device wasn't able to record my show (which was a serious issue to me... I wanted to record each one of my shows, considering all the work that was required to even host the show). I'm not sure how many listeners I had for my show; I didn't have that information. All I know is that my family listened to my recordings.
My dad even visited the studio a few times. I'll never forget the one time when he came to listen to one of my live shows; I thought I had everything prepared. I had my script ready, my playlist ready, my USB device ready to go. But then I realized I couldn't log into one of the computers... the computer I'd use to type the information into Spinitron about each one of my songs. My show simply couldn't go on without that computer. It wouldn't allow me to log in to the computer with my own login. It was logged into someone else's account, and I didn't know the password, obviously. I tried putting in potential passwords, but of course, they didn't work. I contacted the student manager and she suggested a password that was posted near the computer, but it didn't work. Growing frantic, as my show was supposed to start, my dad left the office to try and find someone to help (he's always bent over backward to help me). He ends up returning with the student president of campus, who saves the day. I can't imagine what this young man was thinking... but hey, it was an emergency, right? ;)
We simply restarted the computer or something simple like that. My show was late, but better late than never... it's not like many people were listening, anyway. I didn't host my shows for the number of listeners. You can't worry about something like that, unless you were making a profit, I suppose. This was student media, after all. My main concern was trying new things:
learning to use the radio equipment
creating social media pages for my show
hosting tabling events on campus
creating advertisements through Canva
going to student media workshops on campus
traveling to Seattle to check out the KEXP station with a group of other LASR student DJ's.
This is what it was all about: experimentation. Thinking outside the box. Being creative. And, of course, using your imagination.