The long-awaited AbaQulusi Community Radio (ACR) station has finally hit the airwaves at 90.7 FM.
The ACR concept began in the late 90s, but it was only in 2015 that the station received a broadcasting licence and was issued with frequency spectrum 90.7 in 2016.
According to station manager Mabhuki Nkosi, better known as BookIs, they are currently operating on low power (100 watts), hence some parts of town cannot access the station. Nkosi says they will soon move to high power at 500 watts.
The station was connected last week Wednesday and has been live since then, with coverage around Bhekuzulu, Vryheid, eMondlo, Paulpietersburg and Nquthu.
ACR boasts 60% isiZulu content, 30% in English and 10% Afrikaans, with 60% local music, 35% national music and 20% international music. This means local artists in AbaQulusi will have majority exposure of their talent, so artists are encouraged to submit their music to Church Sibanyoni, who is Head of News and Actualities.
Every Saturday from 9am until 12pm, the show is dedicated to local music, which is a mixture of all genres and is aimed at promoting local talent. Other shows include: local politics every Saturday at 4pm; family issues every Sunday at 9pm; and Isithebe SabaQulusi, which focuses on community current affairs. The latter is a call-in show and does not host discussions. The station has also taken strides in assisting learners during this lockdown period by having an education show weekly from 8pm until 10pm.
Also read: AbaQulusi Community Radio has secured a signal but still lacks funds
The station manager said this has been a long road, but they are glad it has finally come to life.
“People have welcomed the station very positively and we are continuing to work hard to ensure that we give them what they want when they tune in. We did our research and found out what it was that people needed to hear on their very own radio station and we used that as our guideline. This station is for the people of AbaQulusi and we are going to ensure that we deliver our best. We held two sets of auditions in 2016 and 2017, and at that time, we had a team of about 25 people. However, due to delays in going on-air, some have moved on to other things and others have left town. This means we are still going to need people to work with us in making ACR a success. We will announce the auditions date once we are ready to commence with adding more people,” explained Nkosi.
He added that in order for ACR to grow, it will also need support from local businesses and they can contact Nkosi on 082-864-4929 or Sibanyoni on 082-969-7032.
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