Doing something right isn’t always easy. For Chet Tapp of Salt Lake City, helping radio stations target demographics in the community and playing songs by popular demand instead of based on corporate charts has cost him work. But he hasn’t given up on his idea of the community-based radio station.
Since April, various Utahns have been helping Tapp with KCQNutah.com, and the beginning of October marked the new wave station launch. According to Tapp, the station was set up in his house and can run on a regular radio frequency if hooked up appropriately.
“Doing this by myself would have been impossible. I’ve been lucky getting help from these brilliant and talented people,” Tapp said.
Tapp earned most of his experience in radio in San Diego with 91X in the early 1990s, working directly with the station’s directors.
“I could never forget how they treated the community in comparison to how apathetic corporate stations are,” Tapp said. “There is a huge difference.”
According to Tapp, most views that he holds about corruption in corporations began to grow while employed for 91X.
“Most radio stations are run by corporations. They don’t care what each community wants, they only care what brings in the most money,” Tapp said. “ This is problematic because you hear the same thing on the radio from channel-to-channel and state-to-state.”
The concept behind having a radio station targeting a specific demographic wanting to listen to ‘80s music has been a long time coming for Tapp, giving KCQN an advantage.
“People want stability and want to know that when they turn us on we are able provide what they are looking for, otherwise they give up,” Tapp said. “Right now, no one in Utah has this niche.”
Another advantage, according to Tapp, is that mainstream pop culture constantly uses ideas that originated from the 1980s, references that younger generations are too young to remember.
“I’ve heard a lot of younger bands using older equipment to recreate sounds they heard from these older artists,” Tapp said. “[That’s] understandable because it’s new to them.”
By having appropriate experience, the right personality and strong principals, Tapp has been supported by radio hosts.
“He is a very entertaining host and professional off air,” said Corey Obrien of X96.
Tune into KCQNutah.com
Mister West, Weekdays 6am – Noon
Chet Tapp, Weekdays Noon – 6pm
