KXDU is much more than a radio station. While you can tune into the station from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, it’s the people within the booth that make this club stand out from the stations in DU’s past.
Prior to KXDU, DU has had several radio stations, but now none remain. In 1970, KVDU shut down due to staffing shortages. Its replacement, KCFR, broke away from the university, becoming a founding entity in what is now Colorado Public Radio. Another attempt was made in 2014, and after two previous stations disbanded, this effort ending in failure as well. It’s a history well known to members of KXDU, but it’s one they are determined not to repeat.
“[KXDU] was started by students who wanted to do something, and was built up by students who… just had a passion,” said Cameron Preisler, the PR, Events and Social Media Manager of the club.
The common thread that weaves KXDU together is members’ love for music, but the club is more than just a space for music lovers.
Much like a playlist can blend together songs from unique genres, the club is a conglomeration of diverse passions, each person bringing their own unique interest to the table, from film to sound production. The club offers members the chance to interpret radio as a medium used for expression on their own terms.
One medium the club has found success in is with their Tiny Dorm Concerts. In a format inspired by NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts, the club offers local bands the chance to present themselves to audiences in a unique manner.
The production of these hasn’t always been smooth sailing, providing a learning experience for the members. Grady Dionne, the sound tech director, remembers the first time he did sound was for Exhaler’s Tiny Dorm, Dionne being a guitarist and vocalist in the DU band.
“It went horribly… setting up took like three hours, and we were all so upset at each other by the end,” Dionne said. “Then we got Fat Shack. That was the only thing that would fix it.”
Fat Shack, and what Dionne refers to as his “new fancy soundboard” have resulted in a much smoother experience. Since its publication in Nov. 2023, eight more videos have been published to the KXDU Youtube channel, with the most recent being Bella Kraus’s “teeny tiny dorm” published Jan. 2025. Each production offers unique challenges, but the team views these as opportunities for growth.
For Anya McCaan, Vice President of KXDU, it was the production element that led the Film and Production major to join freshman year. McCaan’s first experience was in Surprise Soup’s Tiny Dorm Concert, published Oct. 2024.
“It was just a really positive experience. We had a lot of people from the club there, like almost too many,” McCaan said. “It was awesome.”
Their latest event, Open Mic Night premiered last Tuesday. The idea came during Dionne’s shift at the Lamont Music Library, where he and a coworker came up with a way to show both KXDU and the Music Library in a new light
“I want people to view both [KXDU and The Music Library] as open and inviting places for people to go and meet new people and make connections in things that they’re interested in, like music,” Dionne said.
The event was deemed an overwhelming success, with a turnout greater than anything the library has seen in the past. Talks of making Open Mic Night a KXDU recurring event have already been underway.
If you missed out on this event, you won’t have to wait much longer to hear from the radio club. On Feb. 27, KXDU will collaborate with DUPB for the Battle of the Bands. The radio club will take the DUPB Stage outside of Nagel Hall to MC and DJ between performances featuring DU student bands.
The club will also be tabling the event, offering students the opportunity to join the club and see firsthand that KXDU is much more than just a radio station.
“The most meaningful thing I’ve gotten from radio, I would say it’s the community,” Sofia England, president of KXDU, said. “I’ve met my best friends in college… [and] a lot of good role models through the radio.”
Both England and McCaan are sophomores at DU and were elected this past winter quarter. With two years to continue growing the club, becoming the role models that have been instrumental to their college experience is at the forefront of their minds.
“They [England and McCaan] are both very good people at setting the example for what a college radio station should be,” Dionne said. “I think that they will be great for the future. ”
With each new event, new member and successful broadcast, KXDU adds a new chapter to what is sure to be an impactful and lasting history.
