19/01/2023
When we were teenagers we loved to listen to Radio 1 and 2FM to discover the latest bands and it was nothing short of a miracle to hear a local band on Dave Fanning or John Peel. But Colum Arbuckle played local bands on Radio Foyle every Friday, and even before we were allowed to go to the pub we would go to the pub to see these bands. Inspired, we then made our own bands and then they got played on Radio Foyle and the cycle continued, right up to the present day.
Make no mistake about it, getting your first radio play has a huge impact on the confidence and motivation of any young songwriter or musician. It’s validation outside your friend group. I still see it on a regular basis and it’s one of the reasons I love my work. I also have no doubt that the support of Radio Foyle is one of the reasons that Derry continues to punch way above its weight in the music department.
If you talk to any music business head they will tell you that the most important thing for any town’s musical life is to build a scene. Although the music business model has changed a lot over recent years, several elements to building a scene remain essential; practice facilities, venues which are willing to take a chance on new music, recording studios, a radio station to spread the word to an audience etc. etc., but most importantly you need dedicated people in all of those areas. For the last 40 years there has always been a dedicated and passionate team at Radio Foyle willing to play the best of local recordings, regardless of genre. A lot of the staff are, or have been musicians - they get it.
Take this away and you lose a key element of that music infrastructure.
Take this away and you lose a part of Derry’s soul.
Save Radio Foyle