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While I have everyone's #XPN2020 attention :) Some thoughts (a thread) before we reach #1 and we all disperse ... (1/14)
First of all -- chatting with you for the last week+ has been SO MUCH FUN. I have cherished this conversation with known listeners/members, meeting new ones, the communal excitement, the communal groaning, the jokes, the criticisms ... *all* the #XPN2020 tweets. (2/14)
Thank you for voting, thank you for listening, thank you for spreading the word, thank you for supporting public radio, thank you for being part of this experience. We all needed it after this craptastic year. Hooray for the healing power of music and the #XPN2020! (3/14)
That being said ... I got a DM this morning from someone who was born before me and has loved the station for a long time that said, "Realizing I am not WXPN’s demographic ... white boomer men voted early & often!!!" and honestly, it broke my heart. #XPN2020 (4/14)
THAT'S why I admitted day 3 that I stood w ppl who could do w less Springsteen in #XPN2020. Not bc I don't respect him, but bc there's a crowd who act like if you don't adore classic rock, you're not a real music lover & you don't belong at XPN. I'm here to say, YOU ARE & YOU DO.
As @AdaKase mentioned in this #XPN2020 thread, "the music industry was (is) dominated by white men and that's who decided who to sign, who to sell." I am here with my colleagues, 100 years into radio's existence, fighting to make space for everyone. (6/14) https://twitter.com/AdaKase/status/1339334557510852608?s=20
But this thread isn't about me, and it isn't about the white men who dominated #XPN2020. It's about who's missing, and why. "Where are all the Gen X and Millennial voters?!" I've seen many tweets asking. Well ... (7/14)
Millennials & Gen-Xers are currently 25-55 and a lot are too friggin busy for #XPN2020. While many of us have clung harder to the radio during the pandemic, more have abandoned it w/o commutes. No exaggeration - ONE MILLION LISTENERS disappeared in Philly earlier this year (8/14)
People aged 25-55 are currently juggling their kids' virtual schooling while also doing their own work from home, they're caring for their elders, they're performing "essential" jobs, they're crushed under the weight of student loan debts, etc. #XPN2020 (9/14)
So maybe that's partially why they didn't vote? Also, I saw plenty of people admit they didn't vote because it truly was a challenging task, and others admitting if they had voted on a different day, their #XPN2020 list would have been different. (10/14)
And besides ... you know there's really no such thing as a "greatest <insert piece of art here>" anyway, right? Art is not quantifiable! It's all subjective, personal, and passionate. And FUN to discuss. (Respectfully.) (11/14) #XPN2020
So, again, *thank you* for the thoughtful and enlightening discussion. There are so many #XPN2020 tweets it's hard to find all the great comments, especially about diversity, so I'll point to @timothymalcolm's tweet from this morning: (12/14) https://twitter.com/timothymalcolm/status/1339578189740466181?s=20
He's right. This IS the future of XPN we're talking about. As important as it is to honor the past, it's equally important to make sure we're moving forward. I hope that you will stick around after #XPN2020 and be part of that, and push for the evolution you want to see. (13/14)
In closing, whatever your #XPN2020 takeaways, please know that this 35yo DJ doesn't program for a certain demographic. When I turn on that microphone every morning, I talk to MUSIC LOVERS of all ages & backgrounds. It's impossible to please everyone, but I always try! (14/14)
