Baldwin Wallace University radio station, WBWC 88.3 The Sting, has made an effort to highlight and promote local artists including hosting events, giving them airtime and attending local shows.
Joseph Tarantowski, the director of broadcasting and chief operator at WBWC and professor of lighting and sound design at BW has worked with the station since 2002, and the coverage of local bands has been a staple of the station since before then.
The WBWC has strived to highlight local bands and artists through their broadcasts. The artists would send emails and CDs to the radio station for those smaller local artists to be featured.
A rotating playlist of different local artists plays every other hour, which is something that staff at the WBWC have been working towards for a long time.
“That’s something that we’ve been dedicated to for decades,” Tarantowski said.
WBWC tries to balance playing mainstream artists and giving a stage to local acts as a way to differentiate itself from other stations.
“If we just paid attention to the charts, we’d just be like any other top 40 station,” Tarantowski said. “We want to be new, and fresh, and edgy.”
WBWC also partners with local venues, such as the Agora and Grog Shop, and has a segment called ‘On Stage Update’ which tells listeners which artists are playing nearby.
Staff working at the radio station recently attended a show at the Grog Shop, headed by the artist Joe P and was opened by the Temple Bros, a band whose members are BW students.
Arta Tashi, a general manager and a BW student, stressed the importance of supporting both local artists and artists that attend BW.
“That’s how we build connections,” Tashi said. “It helps everyone, the station, the artists, and the fans that enjoy the shows.”
WBWC recently held a concert series during the school’s ‘Week of Welcome’ ceremony, with artists performing on campus, including multiple artists that go to BW.
One artist that the station just recently added to their rotation is a BW student artist with the stage name ROSIE.
“When she heard herself on our station, it was the first time she ever heard herself on the radio,” said Tashi. “It’s cool to be a part of people’s stories like that.”
