After broadcasting rock and alternative music for over 50 years, WMCX, Monmouth University’s student-run radio station, will be expanding their music catalog to include a variety of new genres including pop, dance, and more.
Professor Aaron Furgason, PhD, and the WMCX Advisor, as well as the members of the WMCX Executive Board, decided on the addition of the new genres into the station. Furgason and the Board said the decision of expanding the catalog has been in discussion for the past few years, but the expansion will now take place over the next few months, with the full process taking up to a year to complete because of the data entry process. They also said one of the main reasons for this expansion is to encourage more students to go on the air, while also trying to extend the station’s listener base.
Although alternative music is WMCX’s main genre, Furgason said that it’s time for a change at the station. “Fundamentally, there is nothing wrong with alternative music. What has certainly changed is how people interact and listen to music…people who like classic rock and alternative for example, they just like songs they don’t necessarily like genres anymore,” said Furgason. The professor explained that instead of focusing on a specific genre, people today just like individual songs regardless of what style of music they come from. By WMCX expanding into more genres, Furgason said that not only will it attract new students to want to have their own show on the air, but it will also expose brand new genres and artists to a wide range of listeners.
Furgason also emphasized how large of a listening audience WMCX currently has.
Based on the data from the RadioFX app, as well as another radio streaming app that he did not specify, he said that around 250,000 people worldwide listen to WMCX every single day. “Yes, it seems like a small number, but those 250,000 people are really dedicated,” said Furgason.
Luke Moleski, the WMCX General Manager and a senior communication student, said that with the help of Kaitlyn Sullivan, the WMCX Music Director, along with communication professors, and student employees, the station has already started the expansion. “Personally, I love classic rock and we did add a bunch of classic rock and pop songs into the station…Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Lynryd Skynyrd, and Queen are all big artists that a lot of people are interested in and I think that it’s going to help grow the station a ton,” Moleski said.
Moleski explained that even though the station is planning on expanding genres, that does not mean that the music already being played on WMCX is going to disappear. He said, “The rock music will still be there and all of the songs will still be in the station that you’re familiar with listening to on WMCX…It’s not going to be a major change throughout the station, it’s just going to be a little bit different than what we have known in years prior.”
Ava Marton, the WMCX Program Director and a junior communication student, said that although the inclusion of new genres is very exciting, the transition should be smooth and that not all of the different genres should be played at one time. “Even if we wanted to have it scheduled where one specific hour is more directed towards pop music and then once that hour switches off it goes into alternative or rock again. I think that it would make it a lot easier for people to transition and get used to the change in sound,” Marton elaborated.
Frank Hoarle, a junior communication major, said, “I personally feel like the music on the station is very repetitive. “I’m a huge country fan, if they could get Morgan Wallen, Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett, Post Malone, I would love that.”
Furguson explained that there is one genre of music in particular that he does not want added into the system, country music. He said, “Listen, this is a bias…I think there are enough places for country music to be heard. I don’t think country music offers anything interesting or exciting.” Furgason elaborated that if there are students who do have their own radio show and enjoy country music, they can still connect their personal device and play as much as they want on air.
Professor Eric Reisher, the Director of Broadcast Engineering and a Communication Professor, explained that one of the reasons this expansion took so long to occur, is because of how much time and effort the data entry process requires. Reisher said, “It’s a long tedious process and it’s not necessarily something that goes quick. I would say it takes maybe three to four minutes a song to fill out all the information correctly and upload it. If you have someone who’s really good and really fast, it goes faster.”
As far as the information that Reisher refers to, all songs that enter the central server, where WMCX stores its music, must have digital markers placed exactly when the song begins and ends, then filled out manually with the title of the song and the artist, the date the song was added into the system, and more. All songs uploaded into the system come from multiple sources, including CDs, vinyl records, cassettes, and digital record pools.
Professor Nicholas Messina, an Audio Productions Specialist Professor in the Communication Department, said that the addition of the new genres will be beneficial for both the students and the professors. “If students see more artists that they are familiar with, that will encourage them to be on the air more often and I think it will also cause them to be more curious into seeking out new music,” Messina said.
Messina teaches an Intro to Radio Production Class where students are required to host a one hour radio show on WMCX every week and then are graded on their performance. Messina explained that by the station expanding into new genres of music, it’s going to make it a lot more interesting for both the students to decide what to play for the hour and for the professors to hear the songs that they decided on when listening to the recording. Messina elaborated, “We aren’t giving up the spirit of the X, it’s just a reexamination of what that spirit is.”
Megan Kelly, a Monmouth University Alumn who graduated in 2024, who now has a part time role at Press Communications as an on-air host for Thunder 106.3 and B98.5, said that the alternative genre started to feel repetitive. “It definitely made sense for a college audience at one point, but over time it felt a bit outdated,” Kelly said.
Kelly said that there may be some risks that are involved with expanding genres, but she feels like the potential reward is greater. “Music trends today are so diverse, so it makes sense for the station to reflect that,” she said.
Dean Heidel, one of the WMCX Production Directors, and a senior communication student, said, “I am really excited for adding more music into the station. This has been something we have been talking about for a while on the Executive Board and I can’t wait to hear a more diverse soundtrack.”
Natalee Mattei, a daily WMCX listener, and a sophomore communication student, said, “Including new music in the X’s catalogue is going to be great for not only listeners, but also for [WMCX] members to enjoy different genres of music and to get more attention from possible Newcomers.”
Furgason said, “We do an amazing job, the students do an amazing job of recognizing what the possibilities are here and making them happen, there’s really nothing more that you could want.”
