For the past few weeks I’ve been working on creating my own public radio station (it’s been a dream of mine since I was a kid). Well now it’s up and running but I don’t know what to do with it. So I thought I’d see what Lemmy thinks about the concept, before I go all in and start investing in licensing fees, better servers, and more listener capacity.
If you’re interested, we’ll need curators to add songs to the rotation when no DJ is on air. It’s simple and straightforward. Just click “Suggest” on the top right of the website and enter the Artist + Song Title on the form.
We will also need DJs and presenters to volunteer any freetime you’re willing to give up and help make this happen. Click “Join” to get started.
All styles and genres are welcome. Hop on the airwaves anytime you want. Take requests, or don’t. Mix and scratch, or just play one tune after another. Host a talk show/podcast if it suits you. Up to you. You can either use your own DJ/broadcasting software, otherwise there is a Web DJ interface for those with no software/experience.
https://radiolemmy.com | Temporary URL if the first one isn’t working
Click Join to sign up to be DJ/presenter, or Suggest to submit your own song suggestions for regular rotation (no signup required to suggest a tune).
FAQ for potential DJs
Lemmy Community: [email protected]
Discord
EDIT: Thanks for all the song submissions so far! I’ve added them to the rotation. Feel free to suggest any tunes for removal as well.
EDIT 2: Looks like I’m going to have to upgrade web servers sooner than expected. If you’re having issues connecting, try the temporary URL
EDIT 3: Gonna take awhile to go through the applications. I’ll take care of as many as I can tonight. Check your inbox (and don’t forget the @ in your username when applying. I can’t reply if I don’t know what instance you’re using.)
EDIT 4: All DJ applications have been processed so far. Check your inboxes! Gonna spend the next few hours uploading more of your song suggestions. This takes awhile because I have to manually check every tune to make sure it’s suitable for airplay! Upon approval, your tune(s) will play at regular intervals. It may take a few hours for it to play for the first time. BTW, remember to use the “Submit” button. “Request” is for one time requests when a DJ is live. I’m brainstorming ideas on streamlining this so that the tune always goes to the right place.
EDIT 5: Well this blew up bigger than I could have hoped for. Gonna call it a night, but I’ll be back tomorrow to upload more of your suggestions!
Also I’m going to dust off the turntables and do a live show tomorrow @ 7-9pm EST (00:00-02:00 GMT, check the schedule on the website). Requests accepted. Catch you on the airwaves then!
Quick question - is there a limit to how many songs a person can request on the Auto DJ?
It’s a brilliant feature (and if you’ve been enjoying R.E.M., Beastie Boys, Fleetwood Mac and Ice Cube in the last few minutes, you’re welcome!) but seems like something that could be abused if someone selected hundreds of different songs.
Will be checking out your show at midnight (GMT), good luck!
EDIT to add another question…
Have discovered that you can stream the station in VLC (probably elsewhere too) using this link: https://a2.asurahosting.com:7010/radio.mp3
This is great, but doesn’t pull through the artist, song title, artwork, etc - is there an alternative link that does? Not a huge issue, but it’d be cool :-)
There is a system in place to prevent a song from playing more than twice per day.
That said, every time I upload a new listener suggestion, the backend running the station resets the playlists, which can cause tunes to play more often than they’re supposed to. Currently working on a fix.