Stacks of eclectic CDs and vinyls, ranging from classic jazz to global indie rock, spill into every corner of the studio shelves. On the walls, colorful merch, certificates and posters reflect a warm lived-in history of local, student-centered music at the 5Cs.
In the basement of the Thatcher Music Building lies KSPC’s studio. Beneath the building’s beige walls, staff members can be found reviewing lyrics before they go on air, volunteers training to become DJs and people conversing about their classes and music tastes — the room is alive.
For decades, KSPC has provided a space for students to come together and celebrate music across genres, styles, cultures and eras.
On Thursday, Feb. 12, KSPC hosted an open house at their studio — which included sweet treats and tours of the studio space — celebrating 70 years of FM broadcasting on 88.7 and 25 years of online streaming. KSPC, founded in 1956, is a 24/7 independent student-run radio station at the 5Cs, with a mission to provide a platform for new, local and underrepresented voices.
KSPC celebrated their anniversary by reflecting on key milestones throughout their 70-year history, noting adaptability and community as key drivers of the radio station’s continued popularity and relevance. Even now, amid an era of rapid digitization when almost everything can be found online, KSPC remains an integral part of the 5C community.
“Across 70 years, [we were] originally a Pomona-only station, and so I love that KSPC is across the 5Cs [now] and that we get students from every college involved,” Lena Bagley SC ’26, a music director and DJ at KSPC, said. “And I think that’s really special, just like the way that the consortium is special on its own.”
For many students, KSPC is a low-stakes way to train in a studio and eventually become an on-air DJ with their own show. For others, it provides an opportunity to engage with music at the 5Cs from behind the scenes, assisting with sound tech, event planning, merch development, fundraising and more.
“We love [having] people just starting out,” Vera Caldwell PO ’26, a KSPC mentor and director, said. “We want it to be sort of a welcoming open space of learning, where we don’t want to be gatekeeping in any way, because so much of the music world is, and that’s a problem.”
Bianca Withers SC ’28, a new volunteer at KSPC this semester, expressed appreciation for the radio station as an outlet for discovering new music outside her usual taste. She described KSPC as a unique space that allows students to discover genres and records that streaming platforms like Spotify or larger radio stations might not offer.
“I feel like with streaming services, especially, it just keeps pushing a sort of algorithm that is tailored to you. It just feeds you the same thing that you like to hear, and that often can be quite limiting,” Withers said. “And so that’s why I like radio in KSPC, where you kind of let music find you instead of you boxing yourself into your algorithm on your streaming service.”
Unlike streaming services, KSPC strives to preserve authenticity in everything they do. One way they do this is through community messages, which are read from cards or pre-recorded and played on-air during breaks. These messages include information about organizations that support marginalized community members, cultural events and political issues — such as spreading awareness about ICE and resources for undocumented immigrants.
Additionally, with the growing presence of AI-generated music and art in the industry, KSPC staff have expressed their intention to continue leading with human-centered music.
“We’re going to make a statement pretty soon, on social media [about our stance on AI-generated music], and that was preempted by Bandcamp’s statement that they did about two weeks ago about wanting to uplift and boost human-made music,” KSPC administrative associate and DJ diA hakinna said. “We don’t support AI-generated music or AI-generated anything.”
Ultimately, KSPC strives to uphold the values of creative expression and authenticity while reaching a wider audience and continuing to make its mark on campus life.
“I think another one of my favorite things about the station that a lot of other college radio stations have given up on is our physical media library, and at other college radio stations, you might just be asked to plug into your computer to their sound system and play off Spotify, but we do not do that,” Bagley said. “We own all of our music.”
In addition to sustaining their radio station, KSPC helps organize popular 5C events such as the semi-annual art and music mart, which most recently took place on Feb. 5. Students interested in volunteering with KSPC can find more information on the KSPC website. You can listen to KSPC on-air here and view their program schedule here.
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