Zumix and Local DJs to Hold Fundraiser for Zumix

On Friday, over twenty local disc jockeys from Boston’s past and present will help Zumix, East Boston’s popular music and performing arts program for youth, raise money for the local non-profit’s 94.9FM Zumix Radio and teen programs. At the Zumix Firehouse on Sumner Street the ‘Boston DJs for Zumix’ event will bring together Boston radio DJs past and present, radio junkies, and music lovers to celebrate 94.9FM Zumix Radio.

The event will feature twenty guest DJs, special guest sets, live performances, and a silent auction. The event will kick off Friday at 8 p.m. General admission tickets are $30 and VIP tickets are $60 and include a private reception at 7 p.m. Local band Nakedly will perform at the VIP reception.

All proceeds directly support Zumix free teen programs in songwriting, performance, community radio, instrument instruction, and creative technology.

Boston radio legends include Anngelle Wood Gallo, Matt Shearer, Adam 12, Henry Santoro, John Shea, Nomadik Soulkore, Tai Irwin, Ken Shelton, Adam Klein, and many more.

“I love our station and it continues to grow in beautiful ways,” said Zumix Executive Director Madeleine Steczynski. “In two years we started building more and more listeners. In fact I went to a house party and two different people told me they listen regularly and that is super exciting.”

Tai Irwin, who was the host of the Morning Guy Tai show on the legendary Boston alternative radio station WFNX, has been volunteering for last two years at Zumix Radio. Irwin has been helping Zumix’s staff and kids envision, promote and really try to marry the strength of the Boston radio community to the budding radio community at Zumix.

“Great tradition in this town of community radio unfortuntly it was never opened to teenages,” said Irwin. “But a lot of kids need something to do. Unfortunately the economy forces lower-income areas to have a lot of unhealthy alternatives. What happens if you are a kid and your not athletically inclined? What are you going to do — go to the library and read every day afterschool? But what’s cooler than the one, two, three punch of this place–audio, radio and music. I would have done anything, I will go on the record and say that I would not have been the trouble maker i was if i had a place like this growing up.”

Irwin said since he started volunteering at Zumix he has tried to foster a culture between the Zumix kids, staff and local DJs to get together for the craft and not the industry of radio.

“There are a lot of people still dedicated to the craft,” said Irwin. “While there’s all this negativity that radio is dead and stuff I see this station and immediate knew we as a community had to do something. So through this event I think we came up with a really nice way to bring people in the industry through the front doors and see what is going on in here for themselves. Because I’ll eat my hat if they don’t love this place as much as I do.”

“We’ve grown a lot in two years and have about 60 youths and adults involved programming,” said Thomas. “It’s really nice to see the station find its power and has real momentum now.”

Zumix Radio is a community radio station broadcasting the voices and culture of Boston’s youth through music, stories, and bilingual conversation. After streaming online for the past 10 years, Zumix Radio began broadcasting as a low-power FM station 24 hours daily in 2016.

Currently 25 youth and 20 adults produce and host weekly shows featuring a variety of programming including talk radio and music.

In 2015 Zumix was granted one of two construction permits by the Federal Communications Corporation (FCC) for a low power FM radio station.

The station, which is shared with Winthrop Art Association, broadcasts on 94.9 FM. Its signal reaches a radius of approximately 3.5 miles from a transmission site atop East Boston High School.  In addition to its new broadcast station, Zumix Radio continues to stream online at http://www.Zumix.org.

Zumix Radio is a youth and community station that serves Zumix’s mission of empowering youth to make strong positive change in their lives, their communities, and the world.  Zumix radio produces and host weekly shows featuring a variety of music styles and topics such as teen life, local news, and labor rights.

Zumix Radio began in 2005 and initially broadcast on 1630 AM.  When Zumix moved to the Firehouse at 260 Sumner St. in 2010, the radio station was only available online.  With the new broadcast station, Zumix Radio has been reaching a broader and more diverse group of listeners.

Zumix’s LPFM license is the result of a 10-year effort by media justice advocates to win passage of the Local Community Radio Act that mandates the FCC to issue new non-commercial FM radio licenses to community groups across the country.  The Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by former President Obama in January 2011.

Since fall 2013 there have been 1,506 LPFM licenses granted across the country.  Only two LPFM frequencies were available in Boston, and Zumix was chosen for one.

For more information, visit http://zumix.orgickets may be purchased online at www.zumix.org or by calling (617) 568-9777.

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