To the Editor:

As promotions director and music director of Vanderbilt's esteemed college radio station, 91.1 FM WRVU, we are writing this letter in response to Scott Greer's editorial (“Vanderbilt must broaden its musical horizons,” April 24). While we agree with Greer’s intention to encourage students to pursue music choices outside the Billboard Top 40, it is astonishing he fails to mention Vanderbilt’s own student-run radio station. WRVU has been in existence since 1953, two years after station founder Ken Berryhill began broadcasting music over a one-mile radius from his dorm room. Now our signal encompasses a 60-mile radius, and more than 100 volunteer DJs from within and outside the Vanderbilt community help to provide music programming truly “left of the dial.” In fact, our station's mission statement explicitly states, "It is the official policy of the station that we will focus our programming on 'non-mainstream music,' and we will not play mainstream music on the station." We invite both Greer and the entire Vanderbilt community to tune in and listen to the indie rock, punk, funk, hip hop, soul, bluegrass, country, blues, jazz, metal and electronic music WRVU broadcasts 24 hours a day. Our award-winning programming is sure to broaden your musical horizons.

Kelly Taylor
WRVU Promotions Director
Senior, A&S

Sam Patton
WRVU Music Director
Peabody Graduate Student
A&S ‘06