Photo by Darwyn
A group of bluegrass fans announced a non-profit today in hopes of saving a local radio station with nearly 50 years of history. The newly formed Bluegrass Country Foundation is raising funds and creating a proposal to take over Bluegrass Country 105.5 FM, a station that WAMU put up for sale earlier this summer.
WAMU’s bluegrass offerings began as a half hour show before growing into a 24-hour music station, with an online streaming option. But in July, WAMU said it’s selling the station due to D.C.’s changing demographics, and if they can’t find a new owner by December 31, the service will stop altogether.
The group of industry professionals, listeners, musicians, and other bluegrass enthusiasts formed shortly after WAMU’s announcement, Randy Barrett told DCist. The foundation has until October 17 to raise $200,000 and submit a proposal to WAMU. And as far as Barrett knows, they’re the only group in the running. “This is really a labor of love and it’s not a surprise that there’s not another organization lined up for this—it’s a big challenge,” he says.
The foundation has raised $35,000 toward its goal. Barrett, who is also president of the DC Bluegrass Union, says he hopes to raise the remaining amount from individual and large donors, including major record labels that have already expressed interest in supporting the cause. “This station has been around almost 50 years, so they’ve played these artists and labels hundreds and thousands of times,” Barrett says. The full amount will be used to continue operations while a long-term strategy is implemented.
The business plan will include integrating jam grass, acoustic, Americana, and folk music because “one of the challenges as far as programming is to create programming that’s attractive to younger people,” Barrett says. He also hopes that many of the stations’ current hosts and employees will stick around under the new management.
The foundation currently has five board members and a small team to put together the proposal. The foundation’s president is Jeff Ludin, who also heads the Lucketts Bluegrass Foundation, which puts on an annual bluegrass concert series in Leesburg. “Bluegrass Country radio is a jewel in the history of public broadcasting in Washington and in bluegrass music nationally,” Ludin said in a release. “We simply cannot let it disappear.”
