- Kelly O
- Hollow Earth Radio founders Garrett Kelly and Amber Kai Morgan.
Hollow Earth Radio DJ Explorateur informs us that the web-only radio station has received FCC approval for a Low Power FM license. HER members are currently in the process of choosing call letters, with the lead choice at the moment being KHER. I've contacted station co-founder Garrett Kelly for more information and will report further when he responds.
Hollow Earth Radio is a candidate for this year's Stranger Music Genius award.
UPDATE: Garrett Kelly elaborates on this development.
We applied for 100.3 and our understanding is that now we just need to work towards getting our transmitter and antenna details setup and squared away. Weâll be on the air in no time, though we canât give you the exact timeline. Definitely within the 18 months that have been granted by the FCC, and probably much sooner than that. This is an exciting time for us obviously, and weâve been working hard this past year inviting the community to come take ownership over the station, doing outreach to neighborhood organizations, building more youth programs, and thinking/working towards our transition to LPFM. Anyone who wants to get involved should email us at info@hollowearthradio.org.
Yes, there will be some things that will have to change with what we are doingâour current DJs are used to broadcasting online (with few rules) and will now have to abide by FCC regulations. But that doesnât mean we canât do 19 hours of Erik Satieâs Vexations, or burp symphonies, or hosting live hip-hop cyphers to make clam chowder and invite strangers from off the street to jump on the mic. There will be some small concessions, but we will no doubt continue to be volunteer run, free-form, hyperlocal, and committed to providing a forum for underrepresented and marginalized sounds and perspectives to make their way on the airwaves.
* Side note: SouthEast Effective Development (SEED) in the Rainier Valley also had their construction permit granted today. Originally we were both âMX,â which means that we basically applied for the same frequency (105.7), we're tied for "points" and would have had to come up with a timeshare agreement with each other. Both sides were agreeable to that, and we worked with them for quite a long time. However, we eventually figured out a way for Hollow Earth Radio to âjumpâ to another frequency (100.3) so that we could each run separate stations and have more community radio in the Seattle area. SEED/RVR is going to do great things as well. So this is an exciting announcement for both Hollow Earth Radio and Rainier Valley Radio.
