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.
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!
This is a cool idea and I'll be submitting some songs as soon as I'm back on my laptop.
But in the meantime, since this thread is full of people who apparently appreciate both internet radio and the Fediverse, you should check out https://radiofreefedi.net as well! Music from actual fellow Fedizens, it's kind of great.
What's the legal basis around this project? One can't just hop on as a DJ and start broadcasting the newest Taylor Swift songs without getting DMCA'd, can they?
I submitted a song and also submitted a form to be a dj. I'm a musician and did a radio station on twitch for a while (I really should start that up again when I have time).
Mostly I'd be spinning synthwave, industrial, electro, future pop, etc if accepted. Stuff like that.
If I was a lawyer, I'd say that this sentence could be interpreted in a way that the audio stream is licensed as cc-by-nc-sa, too, i.e. you are sublicensing the songs to anybody. This is even more illegal than simply broadcasting music without licensing it. It's a fun and games until RIAA comes to break your knee caps.
I managed to get wifi on this long haul international flight and it sure made my whole 18 hour flight to hop in right as Ass-N-Titties was played. Gave me a great laugh, thanks for that person who suggested and you for allowing it 😂
This is so cool!! It's a great initiative, people need to take back control of their live and its individual initiative like that are part of the solution.
We cannot expect any thing from big Corp or government, it will have to come from us.
I really see a decentralised future.
I wish it was that easy to find comparable alternatives for other areas of lives.
Thanks OP it might just be a radio station , but it's really inspiring.
Hi there! Looks like you linked to a Lemmy community using a URL instead of its name, which doesn't work well for people on different instances. Try fixing it like this: !radiolemmy@lemm.ee
reminds me of an irc-connected system i wrote once.. used some kind of audio casting (spatial audio and some winamp casting plugin).. but you could request/search/dedicate/query current status from the website or irc channel etc
Would it be possible to get your station added to RadioGarden? It's essentially a collection of radio stations which you can browse by spinning a globe where all the stations are geolocated. Having it on RadioGarden will make it much easier to listen to the station from a phone! They have a submission form under Settings > Submit a Radio Station, and here's a direct link.
I love the idea of unrestricted request radio stations, looking forward to requesting some favorites myself at some point! I myself listen to Rainwave every now and then which also streams 24/7 random music, though this one's strictly videogame soundtracks :)
I love the initiative. This sort of thing feels REAL and I will absolutely submit some songs from my Playlist :)
I really like radiostations as well, not just for music, but the way people can talk over radio in a anonymous way (at least before caller id) . I don't know if you watched the show Midnight Caller but it was one of my favorite ones growing up.
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!
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 :-)
Nice! Any chance you could support playing this with desktop applications that can play internet radio stations? Tried the url with Rhythmbox but doesn't seem to work
Hi there! Looks like you linked to a Lemmy community using a URL instead of its name, which doesn't work well for people on different instances. Try fixing it like this: !radiolemmy@lemm.ee
That it will have to compete on its own merits and that the whole lemmy tag adds nothing to it. Not to be too sarcastic but just to drive the point home, what are your thoughts on a user-driven officially unofficial radio station for IMAP/POP3.