[The following is from the official press release.]
On August 7, WMOT accomplished a goal that’s been in the works for years: opening a satellite studio for broadcasting and events in Music City at Riverside Revival, a non-profit music and events venue on the Boedecker Campus in East Nashville. On Wednesday, leaders from the station, Middle Tennessee State University, and Riverside Revival took part in a ceremony formally opening the 800-square foot space at 1610 Porter Rd., which will be home for on-air shifts, live in-studio performances, and production of WMOT specialty shows.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony, complete with giant blue scissors, was carried live over WMOT radio and the web by way of a video livestream produced and directed by the crew that helped build out the space and that will facilitate audio and video content from the new room. Executive Director Val Hoeppner acknowledged them: Chief Engineer Gary Brown, Operations Director Mat Ozee, Video Director Jessica Rigsby, and Audio Engineer Erika Nalow. The ceremony was followed by a live broadcast of WMOT’s series Words & Music featuring a performance and interview with country singer Sunny Sweeney and Program Director Jessie Scott.
“Being in Nashville is crucial for the future success of WMOT as the largest Americana radio station in the United States,” said Hoeppner. “The satellite broadcast and production studio will allow us to better serve our music community by providing a Nashville base for in-studio performances…it will allow us to be where the artists are.”
The studio was made possible in part through a partnership with Nashville’s Boedecker Foundation and its collaborative campus. Opened in 2020 and anchored by the Riverside Revival music venue and events space, the campus serves as a modern, affordable space to allow nonprofit organizations to connect and build community. As a NIVA (National Independent Venue Association) music venue, it has played host to Brittany Howard, Margo Price, and the great Emmylou Harris, among others. With a newly updated acoustics and lighting package and booked by Nashville industry veteran Santo Pullella, Riverside Revival aims to be one of Nashville’s most premiere listening and performance rooms.
“The Boedecker Foundation is endlessly grateful to partner with WMOT. Our shared commitment to advancing community well-being through music and education contributed to a seamless, albeit a bit long, alignment,” said BOE Foundation’s Executive Vice President Brianna Healy. “Establishing a studio for WMOT on our campus is a shared dream, years in the making. We are eager to collaborate further.”
“It’s been a long time coming and we’re very excited about this day,” said MTSU Provost Mark Byrnes. “It gives us a home to produce higher quality audio and video without the need to borrow space, move equipment, and work within others’ schedules. It will also give WMOT a Nashville presence that we hope will increase our funding from Nashville sponsors, business, and grant making organizations.”
Byrnes also stressed the track record of WMOT as a source of hands-on training for future professionals in media. “Our students will have tremendous opportunities to learn from established and upcoming artists and become proficient in the new technology that is being utilized. This will give them invaluable experience as they move on to establish their own professional careers,” he said in a statement.
“This marks a new chapter for WMOT,” said College of Media and Entertainment Dean Beverly Keel. “This satellite studio will allow artists who are touring through Nashville to stop in our studio and have important conversations about their music. I am so proud of all that WMOT has accomplished. It is a national success story in the world of public radio stations, and this new studio will allow that good work to continue.”
About WMOT: WMOT, 89.5 FM, MTSU’s flagship public radio station founded in 1969, is dedicated to an all Americana music format. WMOT Roots Radio, provides the Nashville region with a powerful radio station (100,000 watts) dedicated to the music most deeply connected to Music City’s legacy: classic country music, bluegrass, singer/songwriter, folk, soul, R&B and old-school rock and roll. WMOT also continues to offer award-winning jazz programming on secondary channels (89.5HD2, 92.3FM in Rutherford County and 104.9 in Williamson County).
About Riverside Revival: At the corner of Porter Road and Riverside Drive in vibrant East Nashville, Tenn. sits a 73 year old church turned music and event space with old bones and a new soul, aptly named Riverside Revival. Stewarded by The Boedecker Foundation and part of the greater Boedecker Collaborative Campus, all actions at Riverside Revival are guided by a simple ethos: have fun, do good. The fun part? With newly updated sound and lighting design, the room has borne witness to musical performances by Brittany Howard, Margo Price, and the great Emmylou Harris, among others. And through the weddings and event offerings, has happily played host to some of life’s most defining moments, both personally and professionally.
