For eight consecutive years, WNIN has broadcast a Summer of Music Series on its 88.3 FM NPR station. During each Summer of Music, our radio hosts attend major music festivals in our area including ROMP, W.C. Handy Blues Fest, and the New Harmony Music Festival. At each festival, we record live audio from the performances and either broadcast that audio live in real time or record it to be aired in the following week. Then, we use this content a second time to produce a program containing audio from all the festivals we attended throughout the summer. That program airs on Labor Day as a conclusion to our Summer of Music.
While we’re at each festival, we have a booth with prominent signage that helps us engage with festival-goers in the community. The success of the series has enabled us to bring in revenue from corporate sponsors. The goal of the WNIN Summer of Music is to celebrate the rich, cultural heritage of live music in our area. Our execution of this summer series helps us produce local content for broadcast, gives us opportunities to engage with the community, and brings in revenue for our station.