WKDU
Encyclopedia
WKDU is an award winning non-commercial college radio station located in Philadelphia
, USA, broadcasting on 91.7 FM
. It is owned and operated by Drexel University
students, with several Drexel alumni among its on-air staff. It is the only free-format non-commercial FM station in Philadelphia
. Its transmitter
is located atop Van Rensselaer Hall in the University City
section of Philadelphia, while its studio is located in the basement of the Creese Student Center. WKDU is the 2010 and 2011 CMJ Station of the Year.
station WMAX in 1958 (and later WXDT), WKDU began FM broadcasting in 1970. In 1981, its power rating was raised from 10 watts to 110 watts, and in 1996, to 800 watts. WKDU originally shared time on its frequency with WPWT, a station established in the 1950s by Philadelphia Wireless Technical Institute. WPWT ceased operations in the late 1980s, allowing WKDU to extend its broadcast day.
In 2005, a large monetary donation helped WKDU purchase new studio equipment and refurbish its transmitter.
, electronica
, indie rock
, acid jazz
, J-pop
or metal
. The station is highly regarded among Philadelphia's Caribbean
community for the Saturday reggae
programs, most of which have been running for over thirty years.
2011 Champion of the Local Scene, CMJ College Radio Awards
2010 Station of the Year, CMJ College Radio Awards
2010 Champion of the Local Scene, CMJ College Radio Awards
2009 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2008 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2007 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2006 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2005 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2003 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2000 "Best of Philly" College Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine
1999 "Best of Philly" College Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine (August edition)
1998 tied for first in the best radio category of the Philadelphia CityPaper's "Reader's Choice" awards
1997 third place in the best radio category of the Philadelphia CityPaper's "Reader's Choice" awards
1996 "Best of Philly" Truly Alternative Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine
1987 "Best of Philly" Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, USA, broadcasting on 91.7 FM
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
. It is owned and operated by Drexel University
Drexel University
Drexel University is a private research university with the main campus located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. It was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a noted financier and philanthropist. Drexel offers 70 full-time undergraduate programs and accelerated degrees...
students, with several Drexel alumni among its on-air staff. It is the only free-format non-commercial FM station in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
. Its transmitter
Transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications a transmitter or radio transmitter is an electronic device which, with the aid of an antenna, produces radio waves. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the antenna. When excited by this alternating...
is located atop Van Rensselaer Hall in the University City
University City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
University City is the easternmost region of West Philadelphia.The University of Pennsylvania has long been the dominant institution in the area and was instrumental in coining the name University City as part of a 1950s urban-renewal effort...
section of Philadelphia, while its studio is located in the basement of the Creese Student Center. WKDU is the 2010 and 2011 CMJ Station of the Year.
History
Starting as carrier currentCarrier current
Carrier current is a method of low power AM radio transmission that uses the AC electrical system of a building to propagate a medium frequency, AM signal to a relatively small area, such as a building or a group of buildings...
station WMAX in 1958 (and later WXDT), WKDU began FM broadcasting in 1970. In 1981, its power rating was raised from 10 watts to 110 watts, and in 1996, to 800 watts. WKDU originally shared time on its frequency with WPWT, a station established in the 1950s by Philadelphia Wireless Technical Institute. WPWT ceased operations in the late 1980s, allowing WKDU to extend its broadcast day.
In 2005, a large monetary donation helped WKDU purchase new studio equipment and refurbish its transmitter.
Programming
WKDU's musical format is free-form, meaning that playlists are dictated solely by the taste of the on-air DJs. On an average day, one might hear punkPunk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
, electronica
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
, indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, acid jazz
Acid jazz
Acid jazz is a musical genre that combines elements of jazz, funk and hip-hop, particularly looped beats. It developed in the UK over the 1980s and 1990s and could be seen as tacking the sound of jazz-funk onto electronic dance: jazz-funk musicians such as Roy Ayers, Donald Byrd and Grant Green are...
, J-pop
J-pop
, an abbreviation for Japanese pop, is a musical genre that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in 1960s music, such as The Beatles, and replaced kayōkyoku in the Japanese music scene...
or metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
. The station is highly regarded among Philadelphia's Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
community for the Saturday reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
programs, most of which have been running for over thirty years.
Awards
2011 Station of the Year, CMJ College Radio Awards2011 Champion of the Local Scene, CMJ College Radio Awards
2010 Station of the Year, CMJ College Radio Awards
2010 Champion of the Local Scene, CMJ College Radio Awards
2009 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2008 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2007 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2006 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2005 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2003 Best Local Jamaican Radio Station - Best of Jamaica in Philadelphia
2000 "Best of Philly" College Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine
1999 "Best of Philly" College Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine (August edition)
1998 tied for first in the best radio category of the Philadelphia CityPaper's "Reader's Choice" awards
1997 third place in the best radio category of the Philadelphia CityPaper's "Reader's Choice" awards
1996 "Best of Philly" Truly Alternative Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine
1987 "Best of Philly" Radio Station - Philadelphia Magazine