WPCR Spotlight: Brianna Coykendall

You wouldn't be wrong in thinking that a lot of shows on 91.7 WPCR feature similar music and genres.  While there might not be anything wrong with that, variety is the spice of life, which is why Brianna Coykendall's show feels like a breath of fresh air. Coykendall, a junior at Plymouth State, hosts the show “Runaround Sue” every Friday night from 5 to 7. The show is named after the popular sixties song from doo-wop singer Dion. Coykendall opens her show every week with the song, which leads into a show that predominantly consists of music from the sixties and seventies. “It's funny, when most people meet me they don't expect me to listen to music their grandparents listened to” Coykendall says  about her unique music taste. Coykendall grew up surrounded by music and networks like NPR, where a lot of her radio interest comes from. Her interest in classic pop music stems mostly from her shared love of music with her grandmother, and films, both older and from directors like Quentin Tarantino (who frequently features older tracks in his films).

While Coykendall's show may feature a lot of music that predates the Clinton administration, it isn't the sole focus of her show. The first half of “Runaround Sue” consists of music from the fifties to the seventies, while the second hour features music from more relatively recent artists like The Pixies, Fiona Apple, The Ramones, and Kate Nash. While some may consider her taste in music old fashioned or tame, Coykendall points out that a lot of music from the era her show covers deals with similar topics of today, only with a little less vulgarity. The song her show gets it's title from, “Runaround Sue” is about a woman who sleeps around to the dismay of her ex-boyfriend. She also points out that our generation is probably more familiar with this music than we realize due to sampling from rap and hop-hop artists (even “Runaround Sue” has been sampled before, namely from rapper G-Eazy).

For anyone interested in being apart of WPCR, Coykendall says it's worth it. Though she's only been a member since last semester, she says that it's “a really fun way to relax but still be involved on campus”.

Runaround Sue airs every Friday night from 5 to 7pm on 91.7 WPCR and online at www.wpcr.org