By Yessenia Sanchez, Managing Editor
Photos by Xochitl Torres, Content Marketing Coordinator
Three Golden Microphone Awards were awarded to 22 West Radio for its shows “Brains Are Sexy Radio” and “Fibandacci” at the 79th Annual Intercollegiate Broadcasting System Conference in New York.
On “Brains Are Sexy Radio,” alumnus Jorgie Sandoval and senior psychology major Olivia Massey take a weekly deep dive into mental health issues. As hosts, their purpose is to raise awareness for college students on how to better cope with the daily stresses that occur in students’ lives and where to find resources on and off campus.
“We are creating a platform for all students on campus to use us as a way to bring up a discussion that is taboo or hasn’t really been brought aware of,” says Sandoval.
“If mental health is a hard subject for people to talk about, then what's something that is a part of everybody’s life that we can connect to mental health? [Because] it really does affect all areas of life,” says Massey.
“Brains Are Sexy Radio” was a finalist for “Best Talk Radio,” recognized at the 2019 IBS Media Awards for their episode, “Relationships and Mental Health,” which was hosted by Sandoval and Haili Summer Ojeil.
“If there is a topic you want to talk about, send us an email or comment on our social media Facebook or Twitter. We want this show to be for all students, anyone can come and sit in on the shows,” says Sandoval.
You can listen to “Brains Are Sexy Radio” live every Wednesday at 10 a.m. or stream their past shows on Mixcloud. Reach them through social media by the handle @brainsaresexy.
The second show recognized by the IBS awards, “Fibandacci,” focuses on bringing light to local up-and-coming musicians with a mission to “honor the present moment.” Senior journalism major Isaura Aceves and senior literature and history major Nancy Soriano welcome artists to their show and upload musician’s performances on their YouTube channel, making Fibandacci the go-to place to find your new favorite band.
“We started Fibandacci as an accessibility thing, a lot of bands in the DIY scene don't get to tour because its so expensive. And so people across the country or across the world that can’t see them, don’t get to see their live performances,” says Soriano. “I always really appreciated going on YouTube and getting to see musicians do stripped-down acoustic sets or smaller radio shows.”
Soriano and Aceves are active in coverage of the local music scene with annual visits to local music festivals like Music Tastes Good and Tropicália. Their coverage includes everything from photography and interviews to videos.
“Whenever I go to a show where I know the band is not going to be able to tour anytime soon, but I really like them, I'll try to take a video of one of their songs and upload it to YouTube so people can see it that way,” says Soriano.
Fibandacci was awarded two Golden Microphone Awards, one for first place in “Best Variety Show” for their video, “King Flamingo - Ghost Stalkin’ Baby,” and finalist for “Best Live Music Broadcast” for “Sunrise Sunset.”
Their video, “King Flamingo - Ghost Stalkin’ Baby” was produced by talent at 22 West Radio and 22 West Video. It was filmed by Aceves, Soriano and Jacob Siciliano and edited by Katrina Santana.
Fibandacci is live every Friday at 1 p.m. You can follow them on Instagram and/or YouTube @fibandacci.
