In order to serve an extremely diverse student body, The LION 90.7 fm caters to a wide range of musical preferences. All this while battling the ever-present iPod for control of the listener’s ears.

Matt Steiner, the president and general manager of the student radio station, which goes by the call signal WKPS, understands the rivalry between radio and a listener’s own MP3 player.

“We combat this by playing deep cuts and rare live tracks in our classic rock,” Steiner said. Also, by playing “the newest, edgy indie and urban tracks” Steiner believes the station can give listeners an experience that iTunes cannot.

The shows at The LION 90.7 fm cover many different genres. Here are two shows that demonstrate the station’s impressive commitment to musical diversity:

Indie 500
Looking to fall in love with a new band? Want to hear deep tracks from a favorite artist? Staff head Mike Moynahan thinks Indie 500 can help you with your search.

“We are in constant contact with promotional companies that are relaying the newest artists and albums to us so we can bring them to the community,” Moynahan said. He also stressed how “rewarding” it is to expose others to new music: “The nicest thing our shows have to offer is the fact that we play what we want and what our listeners request.”

Artists include: The Avett Brothers, A Place to Bury Strangers, Interpol, R.E.M., and The Zombies.

The Jazz Spectrum
Yes, jazz is still around and it is more alive today than ever, especially with shows like The Jazz Spectrum on the air.

According to staff head Shadé Olasimbo, there are numerous styles of jazz to experience. “There is New Age jazz, which expresses and experiments with different chords and sounds, and there are more recognizable forms like funk, blues, swing, and big band,” she said. With only a two-hour time slot, the listener gets a taste of everything.

Olasimbo enjoys listening to jazz because it “soothes” her. “I like being able to sit back, relax, and enjoy my time listening to crooning voices and soothing melodies,” she said. After a few stressful days of classes that sounds very rewarding.

Artists include: Skip Wilkins Trio, Lauren Hooker, The New England Jazz Ensemble, Sonny Fortune and Meade Lux Lewis.

Radio’s future looks promising because of the passion and enthusiasm of stations such as The LION 90.7 fm. “We fight an uphill battle being in radio,” Steiner said, “but at the end of the day, local, relevant radio is a true art form that many people enjoy. We don’t see that being taken away from us anytime soon.”