College radio heavy-hitters to headline WXOU’s 50th Birthday Bash

College radio heavy-hitters to headline WXOU’s 50th Birthday Bash
wxou bday bash

A mix of college-radio appeal and local flare will be featured Thursday, March 24, as Oakland University’s on-campus radio station, 88.3FM WXOU, celebrates its 50th Birthday Bash at The Crofoot in downtown Pontiac.

 

Free tickets are still available to students at the Center for Student Activities ticket window, and the public can also purchase tickets through The Crofoot box office, located at 1 S. Saginaw Street, for $15.

 

Lauren Barthold, general manager of the station, said WXOU has come a long way since its inception. The nonprofit, free-form station has been broadcasting from the lower level of the Oakland Center since 1966.

 

“Over the past 50 years, we have become the soundtrack to Oakland University and the surrounding communities,” said Barthold. “We can't wait to celebrate the accomplishments, all while toasting to another 50 years of great college radio."

 

Local bands Flint Eastwood and George Morris and the Gypsy Chorus will be featured acts for the event, and college radio favorites Alvvays will be headlining. Barthold said Alvvays – an indie pop group from Toronto, Ontario, that have grown in popularity thanks to college radio stations across the country – was a perfect headliner choice because WXOU plays them daily.

 

“We wanted a group that got their start on college radio airwaves and grew from there,” said Barthold. Alvvays, which peaked at No. 1 on the College Music Journal Top 200, has been featured on the popular NRP and KEXP stations and is slated to play at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April. 

 

 

The first 100 students to pick up a ticket to the Bash will get VIP wristbands at the event, which grants them access to the Crofoot’s “VIP Lounge” that offers free (non-alcoholic) drinks and food all night long, along with other surprises. At the event, the first 200 people in the door will receive a free, limited edition 50th anniversary T-shirt.

 

The OU Bear Bus will also be available as a shuttle service to the event, organizers said. First rides begin at 6:30 p.m. in parking lot two (P2) and will shuttle students to and from the venue throughout the night.

 

Barthold said the event was also strategically planned to be held in the City of Pontiac, as the university continues its OU/Pontiac Initiative to strengthen the rising partnership between Oakland and the city. The station and its leaders hope the Bash will serve as a catalyst in the effort, she added.

 

WXOU offers music, talk, news, sports and more, and is a three-time Michigan Association of Broadcasters Station of the Year. For more information, visit wxou.org.