Rhodes Music Radio gave campus artists a platform to show off their stuff at its 'Work Hard Play Hard’ 32nd anniversary celebration.
Rhodes Music Radio gave campus artists a platform to show off their stuff at its 'Work Hard Play Hard’ 32nd anniversary celebration.
RMR is South Africa’s oldest campus radio station and performers drew a crowd of about 300 people to the student union buildings last Thursday 29 August.
Station manager Rungano Zendera said the event “was a show of support for our campus community by only using campus musicians and artists as performers”. These included the Bua Poetry Society, NatCaf improv-comedy group and hip hop duo Mdu and Tsukudu, among others.
Zendera says RMR has made bigger efforts to boost talent from the university this year.
It’s been increasing its volume of musical and cultural talent on air and at its events. This is besides the station’s usual recruiting of students, where they’re trained in a live radio and a workplace environment, offering them real challenges and valuable insight into the media industry.
The station is “training programme for our recruits”, Zendera said, and he hopes that RMR will be able to celebrate its next birthday with an even bigger weekend to showcase young talent.
It’s been a great year for RMR overall, he said, mentioning improved programming output, better listener feedback and a refreshed approach to community engagement as highlights.
In the year to come RMR plans to launch an intensive and creative marketing strategy focusing on growing audiences throughout Grahamstown.
RMR currently has a staff of 60 people, almost entirely student volunteers, catering to over 6 000 people. You can tune in to RMR at 89.7 FM.
