Author Spotlight
Catherine Erickson
“That was ‘Guitar Beat’ by Prelow here on 90.9 the Bridge, and coming up we’ll listen to ‘Kids’ by Current Joys which is a bop and three-quarters,” senior Skylar Rochelle said into a microphone in the 6 feet by 7 feet soundproof recording studio. “But first, ‘Everything Apart’ by Foxwarren from their 2018 self-titled debut album. Okey-dokey here’s Everything Apart.”
As soon as Rochelle finishes talking, her scuffed white Converse stop bouncing nervously on the foot bar of her stool and the forced smile — which she thinks makes her sound more enthusiastic — disappears from her face and is replaced with pursed lips of concentration. She reaches for a purple mechanical pencil with her left hand, revealing a small 90.9 tattoo on her wrist and a record player on her arm.
After taking over as host of “The Z Show” on 90.9 the Bridge, Rochelle’s passion for music, which stems from childhood, has expanded to accommodate more local artists and has helped raise her confidence while talking on the air.
Last summer Rochelle began working as an intern at the Bridge, a local radio station which specializes in indie and alternative music. After only five months, she began hosting “The Z Show” which airs every Saturday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. and highlights local and undiscovered artists.
Aside from the show, Rochelle is a notable regular at Mills Record Company, self-taught in piano, guitar and drums and works for Manor Records, a company which organizes release shows for new albums and other concerts.
This clear dedication to music encouraged Rochelle’s father, the general manager at Tower Tavern, a local bar and grill, to share her email with Tower Tavern regulars who worked at the Bridge. The regulars connected her with the internship when she was 17, making her the youngest employee at the station.
But her age was not a barrier, and in-fact fit the theme of the show. “The Z Show” was named after Generation Z, those born between the mid-1990s to mid-2000s. Rochelle’s age and interest in local music and concerts made her stand-out to the Senior Director of Radio Operations Bryan Tutra as a potential host.
“Skylar started interning in [the promotional department] in our company and the supervisor there came to me and said, ‘Hey I got this girl who loves music, loves the Bridge and I think she would be great on the air,’” Tutra said. “About the same time we were looking for a new host for the show so it was kind of just perfect timing and her obvious interest in undiscovered music made her a great pick.”
“The Z Show” is meant to showcase underground and local artists. Recently, Rochelle played senior Will Tulp’s song “Ooh Yeah.”
“The point of [“The Z Show”] is [songs] that aren’t really played on the radio, and then sometimes I like to throw in some oldies just for funsies,” Rochelle said. “I just look over Spotify to find songs. Also, I intern for Manor Records and that helps me find out about a lot of local stuff.”
In addition to discovering local artists through planning their shows at Manor Records, Rochelle searches Spotify and recommendations from friends to create a playlist of around 30 songs and then writes the script to interject after every three songs. She finds most of the information for her script — which she uses to share information about the artists or her feelings towards the song — by watching interviews with the bands or reading Spotify bios.
Unlike most shows on the Bridge, “The Z Show” is pre-recorded. Reading from the script during breaks between every three songs has been Rochelle’s biggest challenge. She describes herself as a generally shy person and senior and friend Stuart Hanson recalls her running into one of her favorite artists in a coffee shop and initially being too shy to introduce herself.
“Oh my god I get real nervous [because] I’m not really one to public speak,” Rochelle said. “I just have to remember to slow down or pause because that’s how people normally talk, and smiling through it helps because it makes it sound more enthusiastic instead of just monotone.”
But Rochelle has become a lot more comfortable while recording her script. During her first episode, she recalls sitting next to Tutra and re-recording most takes, tripping over her words and speaking too fast. While recording the most recent episode, Rochelle used her smiling tactic and recorded most breaks in just one take.
“She’s gotten more comfortable around the mic and is now open to putting some humor into the show and really just letting her personality shine through,” Tutra said. “Every show she drops some slang like ‘heckin’ rad’ or talking about some ‘cool bops’ and that is totally Skylar. She has our whole building talking like that now.”
Rochelle’s dedication drives her to spend five or more hours creating the playlist and script each week. Hanson recognizes her passion, even how she passed up the option to see East’s production of “The Little Mermaid” with Hanson to stay home and write her script. To help her create playlists, he even occasionally suggests songs.
“I’m a men’s style consultant at Ulah and we play it in our store whenever we’re open,” Hanson said. “I’ll send her songs every once and awhile that I know she’ll like. There’s one, ‘40 Day Dream’ by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros that I sent her and she played. I felt so special.”
Hanson believes Rochelle will pursue music in the future and sees her going into the work she does at Manor Records. Rochelle also sees a career in music in her future, but is not set on a certain industry.
But, wherever Rochelle finds herself in a few years, even if it’s not in the radio industry, she’ll be thankful for her aux breaking and leading her to listen to 90.9 the Bridge.
Click here to watch a video about Rochelle hosting the Z Show!
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