Black Country Radio celebrates 10 years broadcasting and celebrating the good work of the region

Express & Star

Watch Black Country Radio celebrates 10 years broadcasting and celebrating the good work of the region - Express & Star on Dailymotion

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00:00so we're here at black country radio which is based at the waterfront 10 years old

00:04billy spatemont even has his own studio how's that happened i don't know and here he is here's

00:09the man in question how you doing gents cool so we've got billy spatemont we've got keith

00:15hallesford i'm chair and you've got dave brownhill so you've got the main team here today the dream

00:20team how long have you been at the waterfront here now lads about four years we've been here

00:28we actually came here before before the redevelopment and then we moved back in

00:32yeah we need four years now yeah and you stay to the art studios as you can see they look fantastic

00:38and you're celebrating 10 years look at this they've gone all out look we've got balloons happy

00:43birthday banners 10 years is it flying boy uh yeah that's because it's been exciting it's been a ride

00:50of ups and downs but now we're on and up so every year's been a progress yeah yeah yeah yeah well

00:57you're black country radio and of course as we can see the banners here black country extra so

01:01what's all that about what's the difference between black country radio billy i'll tell you because he

01:05runs it go on bill uh well i was conned into i was conned into starting black country radio about four

01:12years ago when extra extra yeah um yeah it's been keith and dave's vision really to have a radio that

01:20supports the community so you can have anything from uh 11 year old kids to drug rehabilitation

01:27charities to special needs charities all coming to use this studio and we're just the supporters of

01:33them we just facilitate them oh wow raising the awareness for whatever they do really so it's

01:39basically putting a mic in their hands and amplifying that that community voices of different

01:43organizations we work with about 50 uh groups from across the local community many of whom wouldn't

01:51well most of them wouldn't have this opportunity to as it were tell their story uh and we know that

01:58it has a major impact when they've been on our shows we know that has a major impact in other people

02:03who are in similar situations getting in touch with their organization and saying i heard you on black

02:09country extra uh can you help me true and you've um you've poached a few of our express and star

02:15reporters along the way james vukmidovich and paul jenkins will do a bit for you

02:19we started here did they i didn't know that so we've poached them off you right i'll have a track of

02:25that statement a few going back yeah we've sent a few the other way as well so we we started we had

02:31james he started here went to the express and star we got jenco he started here went to the express and

02:37star i was listening to him doing his football commentary the last weekend yeah um uh walton

02:43dan walton i didn't know that i did not know that there you go the girl who left uh and went to the

02:51express and oh she's left now um i can't remember her name way back so nurturing talent to then feed into

02:57um so what how talk me back initial conception where was the idea born interesting one go on

03:05so which i ran a radio i ran a radio station with normally in a pub yeah but i ran a radio

03:11station called black country community radio yeah keith was the chairman of uh an already an

03:16established radio station in stairbridge yeah called black uh called the bridge oh yeah and

03:22we'd won an award for the black country festival so we went to london to collect the

03:27the emirates indeed yeah for the cut the award for the black country festival on the way back

03:33in the car 120 mile talking about both of our difficulties and said why don't we get together

03:42and join both stations together yeah uh the following week we had a meeting with both stations on black

03:47country day and then a couple of months later on the 14th of september we uh we started black

03:56on the clocks and every year since then has been progress and it's been fantastic not only for us as

04:03a radio station but for the community of the black country so where was that first broadcast broadcast

04:09from uh what is now side space but the old st john's church on the ring road in stowbridge okay

04:16interesting oh yeah i don't know where you mean yeah yeah just opposite the weather spoons almost

04:22that's where the first meeting happened yeah there are other pubs

04:27their meetings always happen in pubs by the way

04:30and over the years you must have had a few nice guests and perhaps some that were a bit more

04:35challenging we'll brush over them ones but any particular guests or people you've come across

04:41who kind of have stood out to you don't don't necessarily have to be someone off you know

04:47as regards black country extra yeah because black country extra one of the groups that we have here

04:52from st michael's school yeah and they're based in around the very region oh yeah yeah i know it and

04:58they come here and they and they bring their kids in uh and do a do a program they was um filming

05:05something at the school with roman kemp yeah yeah it was all about mental uh health yeah and mental

05:11illness and stuff like that and they filmed this at the school but they said to him roman we've got

05:16to stop now we've got to go and do our radio show yeah so he said what do you mean your radio show and

05:22they said oh we do our own radio show and he says well come on we'll go with you wow so he came down

05:27here and he filmed some stuff which went out on the bbc oh fantastic so that was good the local

05:33politicians love us they come in every single week we have we have uh from all parties coming here to

05:39get their messages across there are some other little stories that if you like the other end of the fame

05:45spectrum yeah we work with an organization called discover you which works with special needs adults

05:50okay um there was uh there's a young person there who uh can't speak uh and she runs her own radio show

06:00so she uses a laptop to produce what she wants to say puts the laptop in front of the mic and produces

06:07her own radio show how cool that's mad isn't it there's when you tap into it you know and actually get

06:14your fingers into the community it's just some amazing people doing amazing work isn't that and much like

06:19you you know like we do express and star that's what you're all about isn't it really highlighting

06:24what we've got here and keeping that sense of community is to give the local community a voice

06:29in their letter to promote what they're doing that's that's what we want to do interesting one yesterday

06:34just yesterday we had a school come from great bar was it from the hive yeah called the hive came over

06:41yesterday had the most fantastic day they sent us a lovely letter and just one point they said they

06:47wanted to to to um let you know someone was going to go into written journalism right and now they've

06:55seen a radio station and see what that's about they now want to change from what they want to do so it

07:00includes radio radio um to help them so we do transform lives as well yeah that's awesome and billy you've

07:09used it as a vessel for promoting the the good black country dialect and song yeah i mean there are there are

07:16arts specific programs for art so again although we you know that we we support these community

07:22groups we also support local performers writers poets and all that really yeah and um yeah the more

07:28we can keep you know the way we speak alive the better yeah totally i mean i just say um really extra

07:36would never have come about if black country right these two blokes hadn't worked so hard on black country

07:41radio yeah five years before it was time for the you know the second phase really so so is it where

07:48you had hoped and dreamed it would be now or is it bigger and better or you know do you want to maintain

07:54what you've got or have you got other do you want to take it elsewhere i mean it we never thought

08:01when we were in a freezing cold old vestry at the back of the church that we'll be in studios that look

08:07like this yeah uh four studios uh we now are broadcasting across a much wider region that was

08:15just stowbridge so wolverhampton uh south birmingham sandwell we're looking to expand in other local

08:22areas and and and provide the service for some of the areas that don't get a radio station at all

08:28yeah so uh yeah we're um we're we never stand still here and i think any organization that stands

08:36still goes backwards one thing billy's not mentioned because he he's too proud to is busking for charity

08:43which is our linked charity yeah and they many people appear on extra and on the black country radio

08:52uh give up their time on street corners in pubs in clubs on football matches all sorts of things to

08:58raise money for a local good causes always local in nine in 2024 we raised 21 000 pounds wow and we're

09:07on track for a somewhat similar amount and always local yeah billy masterminds it but lots of other

09:13people um contribute to make uh a big difference fantastic work i do yeah it's it's really appreciated

09:20there's always got i mean we always say there's always got to be somebody that's the focal point

09:25yeah so if we're out in the street with tim or something they'll come oh you're the bloke who does

09:29this yeah no you're you're the person that people identify with you but there's hundreds of people

09:35who just give up the time you know which is amazing and all the people who who offer us venues um

09:42it's really the same the same as both stations very little of it you go out to try and get

09:48yes word them out yeah and one person might come in and and then somebody will phone and say oh

09:53you had so and so in last week you know is there any chance i can do it there's always a chance that's

09:58what we're here for yeah and the venues are for for those sort of things with football clubs you know

10:04national league football clubs that say yeah use our ground yeah and and and and so many of the

10:11hostelries around the area and other halls that say come and do it uh and chuck the money in the

10:17bucket as we uh yeah and if there's any community groups we haven't reached out to yet um get in

10:24touch get in touch yeah we're there today well you guys do amazing work whether having billy spate

10:30one is the pinup boy for black country radio i think we ought to mention one of our latest successes

10:48yeah one of our uh presenters here lauren redfern has now gone on to radio one oh okay presents early

10:56morning breakfast on the saturday on radio wow that's great going yeah we've gone uh british forces

11:03overseas we had one of our young women she now is a key breakfast presenter on bfbs yeah and people

11:09harryford and worcester all over you know we've we're a lot of commercial radio stations people have

11:15taken hours have gone on and we lose them but that's okay yeah because we're you know other people come in

11:21and take that take their place and go on we're we're always still here we're we're we're not going

11:28to be a radio one so if you walk into a pub and you see all three of us sitting down talking don't

11:35disturb us because we're planning something it's a business meeting there will be a cunning plan i'll be

11:41the one with sparkling mineral water top up top up the jars from the bar but don't disturb well cheers

11:47gents thank you you do a great job here and happy birthday lads happy birthday and thanks for the

11:51support from the experts anytime that's anything you guys

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