BVZ Radio:
"The Mixtape" with Elena Greenland
BVZ Radio is host to a variety of sounds, from a variety of genres to talk radio ranging from politics to dating.
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Elena Greenland, a senior Arts Administration major with a focus in music, puts her own unique spin on her time on the air through use of live sessions.
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Her show, “The Mixtape,” began two years ago, when Greenland collaborated with a friend. With her cohost, Greenland discussed different genres as these genres fit each week’s theme, talking about what they each liked about the theme and why it was important to them.
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After her cohost graduated, Greenland reconstructed the show to fit her own interests. Now, Greenland includes live performers in the studio with her, basing her show off of live sessions she started listening to as a child.
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“I have been really into live sessions since I could find them, since I was little. There was something really interesting about live music to me,” said Greenland. “Now ‘Mixtape’ is based on live sessions, like NPR Tiny Desk or KDXP, Audiotree, stuff like that because I’m very inspired and influenced by those things and I would like to create my own live sessions.”
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This semester, “The Mixtape” has featured musical performances from students Memourie Cunnigham and Maddie Hepler, Julia Guerrein and, most recently, incorporated the spoken word of Ahtalie Vanloo, a friend of Greenland’s who performed slam poetry on the show.
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“I’m very interested with the relationship between spoken word and music and where that intersects--kind of that idea of deconstructed rap,”said Greenland on the incorporation of non-musical performers into the show.
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When preparing for her weekly shows, Greenland frequently pays special attention in catering her show to each week’s guest performer.
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“I bring the performer into my home, we hang out, and we do some rehearsals,” said Greenland. “So, I have them just play a few examples of what they sound like, ask them a bit about who influences them and what they listen to.”
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This method, according to Greenland, makes the show more interesting: instead of just her opinions, her show offers a variety of perspective.
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“I don’t want it to be random performances with random songs that I like. This is a profile on them,” stated Greenland.
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As for how she hopes to see her radio show grow this year, Greenland is interested in incorporating a visual aspect alongside the audio she already provides.
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“For me, what’s really important in a live session is not just the audio but also the visual, because that’s what makes live performance so erotic, if you will. That’s the interesting part, to me, is seeing a regular person making something beautiful,” she stated. “So, I think filming it is very important, I just have not found a way to make that happen yet.”
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“The Mixtape,” can be heard on BVZ Radio through Tunein Radio on Friday evenings from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.
