Last fall, I spent 3 weeks north of Wakefield, Québec assembling a very interesting cabin for an architect from Ottawa. Every morning we would wake up at 5:30 and drive 40 minutes on dark, windy, bumpy gravel roads through Québec’s hills to the job site. We would work a 12-hour day without breaks and then drive 40 minutes home, also in the dark. Then we’d eat a very big meal and go to sleep. I did this 7-days-a-week for 3 weeks. The entire time we would listen to 106.1 Chez-FM. Chez is the kind of radio station that plays AC/DC 150 times a day.
This particular cabin was to be made of CLT: Cross-laminated timber panels pre-manufactured in Germany. These panels should all fit together like giant LEGO pieces but one day some of the panels wouldn’t fit together. After a few phone calls, it was decided that someone needed to drive half way to Montréal to pick up a skew-notcher in order to precisely modify some of the panels on-site. I left the next morning at 6:00AM and scanned excitedly through the Ottawa radio stations until I found something I liked. It was a reggae show on CKCU 93.1FM, a campus and community station out of Carleton University. After a few songs, the DJ came on and talked about the station. It was their funding drive week.
College and Community Radio Stations are listener supported. Annually, they make a good bulk of their money from listener donations (CKCU’s goal is $250,000, approximately. one quarter of the station’s annual operating budget). The vast majority of these community donations are accepted during a week-long telethon event (kind of like the one in the Muppets Movie, but a week long). Often, the station offers donation incentives like hoodies or t-shirts. Sometimes bands donate records for draw packages (in-kind donations). Bands I’ve played in have donated albums to community stations in the past.
Upon hearing that this was CKCU’s fund-drive, I called in immediately and donated. I have always loved community radio. It appeals to a different demographic than corporate radio. It provides a wide range of diverse shows. I donate whenever I can. On tour, I have often done interviews at these stations. Often, they’ve sponsored a show or festival I’ve played at. Something to put on a CV is a placement on the Earshot! College Charts, which helps musicians with marketing or applying for grants and awards. In Winnipeg, I was quite involved with CKUW and UMFM.
Perhaps I was compelled to donate that day because I was so sick of You Shook Me All Night Long. Perhaps it was hearing DJs talk non-stop about why community radio matters. Perhaps I really do believe in community action and community spaces (including the airwaves) and wanted to contribute. Perhaps I donated out of a feeling of collective identity of which I was a part. Perhaps it was a really good reggae show (it was). Perhaps it was that driving in the opposite direction of Ottawa’s commuter traffic and a beautiful sunrise put me in a good mood. Perhaps I was away from home and homesick, and felt like contributing to an organization that reminded me of home. Perhaps, I was making OK money for the first time in a while and was feeling ‘spendy’. Perhaps, I was making a decent wage and knew the vast majority of musicians played on Community Radio were not.
As I write this, I am currently wearing a hoodie from the CKUW 2013 Fundrive. It was their 50th anniversary as a radio station and they had a great gold logo on the breast that I liked. The hoodie was a donation incentive. Without the hoodie, I would have donated anyway, but I wouldn’t have donated as much. At the time, I wouldn’t have wanted to donate 250$, but the hoodie pushed me over to that amount. This hoodie acts as a reminder about the station, but also shows that fundraising takes creativity and investment.
It is also worth noting that TONIGHT marks the start of CKCU’s 2020 Fundrive. Even if you do not donate, I recommend listening in to what the DJs have to say this week. There is a sort-of open-hearted-story-telling about the station and people involved that happens during Fundrives and it is quite fun to be a part of: LISTEN IN
About the Author: Jesse Matas is a current first year student in the MPACS program. He has spent most of his professional life at work in music, poetry, and carpentry. With music, he has released 4 albums and toured in 11 countries (you may find his music on spotify). He also has a degree in International Development Studies from the University of Winnipeg.
Featured Image: Used with permission from Rob Schmidt, the station manager at CKUW.
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