A Reflection: Cheers to 30 Years of “New Rock Alternative”

I realize just how lucky I am to have the job that I do. Let's start with that.

I am also extremely aware of how rare it is to be able to say that you wound up working the exact job that you grew up dreaming of, and to still be at your college internship, 20 years later.

As we head into the 'officially unofficial' 30th Anniversary celebration of this radio station that gave me my start as an on-air personality/DJ at the fresh age of 21, I feel obligated to do a little reflecting.

Back To The Beginning, 2005

WRRV was my college internship during my senior year, spring 2005, at SUNY New Paltz. Being afforded the opportunity to intern with the radio station you had grown up on was a dream, and imagine how excited I was when they hired me upon the completion of the program.

I remember celebrating WRRV's 10th back in 2005, as a 21-year-old CHILD, yes, I was 100% a child, wide-eyed, taking in all that was the radio industry. Little did that child (top left photo below) know that 16 years later, she'd be a wide-eyed adult, freaking out at the opportunity to do an interview with Avril Lavigne.

Working at WRRV for the better part of the past 20 years has been quite a rollercoaster of emotions and experiences. Looking back on the good ol' days of Cruiseapalooza (below, left with Gilmore in 2005, what am I wearing?), and when my dear friend Logan left WRRV during the summer of 2005 (below, right) and we celebrated with an Entemann's cake and a bottle of cheap champagne on the patio of the radio station....

20 Years Later...

Never could I have imagined that WRRV would introduce me to some of my best friends, connect me with local bands that have become like family, introduce me to local businesses that would become a home-away-from-home (Hey Newburgh Brewing), or that I would spend more time at Bethel Woods during the summer than in my actual home.

Working at WRRV all these years has allowed me to get up close and personal with some of my favorite artists and musicians...i'm looking right at you, Justin Furstenfeld, one of THE most down to earth people you will EVER meet.

As you can probably imagine, the radio industry is never boring, as you never know when you'll get the call to broadcast live from fun locations like the Dutchess County Fair (below, right), or Bethel Woods Center for the Arts (below, left).

Or, that time I was told late on a Saturday night that I needed to be at Barton Orchards at 5am the following morning to do a live broadcast from a hot air balloon...OK!

Of course there's all the fun we've had at shows (with Magic Giant at Darkside Records in 2020, below, top left), or at a Boo Ball (below, bottom right). Radio has become such a part of my identity, so much so that the headphones in the bottom left, those were the inspiration for the radio tattoo I got way back in the day to celebrate the fact that 'I did it' - I landed the dream job.

With all of the highs, there's some sad memories associated with the industry, like breaking the news of a musician's passing, when Taylor Hawkins passed in 2022 is one of those moments. Hosting the Taylor Hawkins Tribute Hour (above, top right) was one of my proudest, yet most emotional broadcasts of the past 20 years.

Oh, The Concerts...

Of course, one of the best parts about working in radio is the concerts, we'll call those a #workperk. Did that 'kid' in the bandana in the photo below, doing research for a show back in the 05-06 days know that one day WRRV would afford her the opportunity to stand barricade to hear the best voice in the business from two feet away at SPAC (Shinedown, September 2022, yes, I took that picture and it has also been my phone background for almost three years).

Not to brag, but the following year, thanks to the radio station, my daughter and I were SO LUCKY to get a VIP backstage tour and quite literally bumped into 2/4 members of Shinedown at the Prudential Center (below) - what a DREAM! Side note, my kid, who turned seven that day was the one who spotted them, and initiated the 'hello' - because guess who was too nervous to do it...me.

Let's not forget WRRV Sessions, these shows are always an adrenaline rush and it is such a cool feeling to help YOU, our listeners, get up close and personal with your favorite bands and artists. I still can't wrap my head around the idea that I get to host our Sessions shows now - I am a bundle of nerves before every.single.show.

I Am LUCKY

I'll say it again, and i'll continue to say it. It is not lost on me how fortunate I am, and in turn how damn lucky my own child is that THIS lifestyle is the only one she's ever known. This kid has quite literally grown up in a radio station, and during COVID, actually lived in one as I did a number of shows live from our living room.

Meeting musicians, or seeing different celebrities pass through the radio station for whatever reason, this doesn't phase her whatsoever (she certainly didn't get that from me), and it has been such a joy to watch her love every minute of this alt-rock lifestyle.

All of this to say....thank you. Thank you WRRV for allowing me to be part of the past 20 years of your 30 year existence. Thank you for letting me be totally me on the air; nerding out over new music, talking way too much about concerts, and having full-blown meltdowns when I get the chance to interview one of my favorite people in the industry (or even just be in the same vicinity as them).

Thank you for opening the door to the most insane opportunities, for giving this Hudson Valley girl with a dream of being on the mic a chance, oh, and for all the concert tickets, too. This job will never get old, and actually, it feels weird to even call it a job...

Cheers...to 30 frekin' years of WRRV, and here's to 130 more! Long live local radio.