WMOT Roots Radio Celebrates Decade As A Leading Voice In Americana

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WMOT Roots Radio 89.5 FM, an NPR affiliate and public radio station operated by Middle Tennessee State University, is gearing up to celebrate 10 years as one of the country’s leading voices in Americana music.

Since flipping its format to Americana on Sept. 2, 2016, the 100,000-watt station has been an early supporter of artists including Billy Strings, Sturgill Simpson, Tyler Childers, Sierra Ferrell, The War And Treaty, Allison Russell, and more. WMOT has grown during the decade from a regional radio station into a national and international destination for Americana and roots music, with an online and app-based audience now reaching roughly one million and growing.

“At WMOT we’re celebrating 10 years as THE Americana music station in Middle Tennessee,” says WMOT Executive Director Val Hoeppner. “I think our success is because we are a public radio station, charged with following the interests of our listeners, not stockholders. At a time when algorithms and computers drive songs on streaming platforms, WMOT plays artists’ careers. With authenticity as the core of our brand we employ human hosts that handcraft playlists for exploration and music discovery.”

WMOT is inviting listeners to celebrate the anniversary alongside station staff at two longtime Nashville institutions on Sept. 2. The festivities begin at 11:30 a.m. at Brown’s Diner, where listeners can join the WMOT team for lunch and performances from Roderick August at 11:30 a.m. and Lucciana Costa at 12:15 p.m. From 4:30-6:30 p.m., the celebration moves to Robert’s Western World for happy hour and live performances from Paul Kramer and Kelley’s Heroes.

WMOT first went on the air in 1969 and became a charter member of NPR in 1970. After three decades as a jazz station and a later period of mixed programming, the station underwent a dramatic reinvention in 2016. Then-MTSU media and entertainment dean Ken Paulson proposed an all-Americana format built around the music being written, recorded and performed throughout Nashville. Hoeppner backed the vision, and WMOT partnered with the nationally syndicated Music City Roots to develop Roots Radio. Veteran programmer and DJ Jessie Scott joined as program director, and the new format launched September 2, 2016, with a live broadcast from the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum featuring Jim Lauderdale, Suzy Bogguss, Mike Farris, Will Hoge and a cast of bluegrass artists.

In the decade since, WMOT has developed an ecosystem that includes Finally Friday, which presents three artists live each week from Nashville’s 3rd & Lindsley; Wired In brings leading Americana artists into intimate performances for sustaining members; and The Local Brew provides a dedicated platform for emerging Nashville artists. Its specialty programming explores bluegrass, old-time, gospel and the outer reaches of roots music.

WMOT also produces the official AmericanaFest Day Stage in collaboration with NPR Music and World Cafe, an annual partnership that began in 2017 and has become a centerpiece of the festival. The station has expanded its live video production through performances at its East Nashville studio and the 30A Songwriters Festival, while its YouTube channel has surpassed one million cumulative views.

Lorie Hollabaugh
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