When I reflect on radio and how it has been part of my life for so many years, I now understand how important it is to me. From childhood into middle age, it has been a constant. Music is influential and significant to me as well, mainly songs from the 1980s because they were the soundtrack to my early years and teens.
However, there’s another aspect to listening to radio: that of the appreciation of the DJ, the presenter or broadcaster. Without them giving us their comforting chat, their amusing asides and even sometimes, their own heartfelt anecdotes, it would just be a continual stream of music and news bulletins.
In the aftermath of the Covid pandemic – where radio held its own as a continual companion for listeners – there has been a kind of shift in what radio broadcasting can do for us and what it means in the cultural sphere. Almost like a reawakening of its soul.
We need to keep radio close to us, what with station bosses making controversial cuts in the public and private broadcasting domains. Here then is my dedication to radio and what it means to me, as well as many other listeners. As always, let me know your feedback in the ‘Comments’ section below. Happy reading and listening!
Audio Lifeline
A lifetime of listening and absorbing,
of taking in the two-way chat, the music
and occasionally the national news.
The radio is my connection to the
intangible aural world, one I hope
that I will never have to lose.
The warm and witty presenters surely
know that if they capture my ear
and that of the rest of the audience,
their station’s ratings will reach into
an endless sky, just like their esteem.
Giving them an eternal presence.
Verging on an audio lifeline,
these talented pilots navigate
their happy passengers to safety.
Wrapping us all in golden sounds,
gently coaxing and cradling then
drawing us in so very deftly.
A special voice, like a soothing
remedy washes over me, when
I’m working online or in relaxed mode.
It’s the tone of a friend, one who
treats me with kindness and allows
my cluttered brain to regularly offload.
Various loyal listeners call the regional
radio phone-in and I relish the chance
to learn about their lives and their tales.
A feeling of human connection flows out
to me over the airwaves, filling up my
mind and putting wind in my sails.
Who can resist a classic track from
when we were a little younger?
Not me as I sing along regardless.
The many elements of the radio
days synchronise and I realize:
we must preserve them for all of us.
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