SOCC now heard in Rastall and Benji’s

By Sylvie Scowcroft ’14

The SOCC (Sounds of Colorado College), the student-run radio station, is now streaming in Rastall Cafe and Benji’s. According to Jake Brownell ’12, the general manager, this has been a goal for a long time. When the radio station was first broadcast in 2008, it was on HD3 and needed a special radio. Rastall used to have one of these radios and played SOCC, but in its early stages the radio station’s reception proved inconsistent. In the early days of the SOCC, there weren’t as many shows, and students occasionally wouldn’t show up for their shifts, so there would be dead air. Now the radio station streams KEXP from Seattle when they are not broadcasting, so that is no longer a problem.

Jake and the rest of the staff worked with Bon Appétit and the AV department to kick-start this initiative. The radio station is now constantly streaming in Rastall Cafe and Benji’s. The process began at the beginning of year, but it wasn’t implemented until the end of Block 5. 

This project has generated very positive reactions. Most students welcome the diversity of music now available, as opposed to the repetitive radio pop music that had been playing before the switch. The one complaint received is that some students find some types of music annoying at certain times of day (for example, some people do not appreciate electronic music in the morning). To that end, Jake invites students to take the initiative and get more involved in the SOCC.

This innovation was a real morale boost for the staff. It is primarily an online radio station broadcast from a studio in Loomis Hall. Now there is a guarantee that someone is listening to a show, which inspires the DJs to take shows more seriously. They feel like they are providing a service to this campus.

This success has served as an impetus for other projects. According to Jake, “Student radio should be a real hub of sound-rich content.” He is constantly looking for ways to expand the SOCC beyond just the music. There are plans to launch small radio journalism projects focused on campus culture. This would entail five-minute segments to be run at the top of the hour featuring some topic relevant to the CC campus. Jake also would like to see student poetry or other forms of radio journalism be incorporated into the station. These projects will allow the organization to expand and will include new people and other interested parties.

Jake was a DJ for two years before becoming the general manager this year. The other positions on the staff include the events and promotions manager, Jitu Varanasi ’13; operations manager Teo Price-Broncucia ’14; and program director, Jamie Haran ’12. The SOCC tries to sponsor at least one event each block. They have recently partnered with The Ninth Block to host DJ nights. This is a great opportunity for the SOCC DJs to do a live set. They also sponsor events that feature student musicians and occasionally they bring in nationally touring bands.

The SOCC is a great resource for other student events that want music. They see it as part of their mandate as an organization to facilitate the availability of music around campus.

Anyone who is interested in getting involved in any way should contact Jacob.Brownell@coloradocollege.edu or check out the website http://thesocc.org/.