by RJ Wagner, staff writer

The PPSC student-run radio station is eager to announce the launch of a new app, and an improvement to the listening experience.

The app will help to solve the problem of poor signal service hindering song clarity. The signal that the radio uses now is not a strong one, and the app that implements streaming is meant to help with that technological obstacle. The app is available on iOS in the App Store.

KXRE 102.1 and 89.1 FM pride themselves on variety. With over 2500 songs currently in rotation, from 1970 to 2023, there is an abundant selection for whatever type of person you are. If you are a proud child of the 80’s, or just enjoy Netflix’s Stranger Things, then weeknights at 8:00 PM are for you. Retro 80’s are the feature of the timeslot, 90’s takes up the noon slot, and Sunday morning will pair the day of rest with a slot named Acoustic Brunch. The new app now offers increased accessibility to these various timeslots, and an easier way to listen to your favorite jams, whatever the genre.

The station is non-monetized, non-commercial, and student-driven and student-run. Staff curate the songs, and students take it from there. It has been a fundamental building block for budding Deejays and students looking to pursue a career in the field of radio.

According to AJ Matthews, a faculty member who heads up the radio program, “more than 50% of internships see themselves broadcasting live on air and working on air, whereas with other internships around town students might work background and with off-air projects strictly and never see the air,” he says.

Students are so crucial, that they went as far as saving the station. In the midst of the devastation COVID-19 left, Matthews described how incredible it was to see the students rejuvenate the station and rescue it. January of 2022 was crucial for the station to survive, and the students lived up to the challenge. “The 2022 spring semester students single handedly gave life to the station,” Matthews said. Student-run, student-driven, and student-saved.

KXRE 102.1 and 89.1 FM’s new app is a big moment for the station, and will allow an easier and more coinvent way for listeners to enjoy the most variety a station can offer, but it is because of student’s efforts that the station thrives.