Open your ears to the sound of hip-hop with KCR’s popular radio show “the Oven.” A talk and music show, “the Oven,” is hosted by communications senior Michael “Mista’ Mike” Kunzweiler and communications junior Jamillan “Millah J” Jones. The duo first met through mutual friend Mikko Cisco and decided to unite their similar tastes in music to form a radio show.
“We knew there was a radio station on campus and, being that we have similar taste in music, we decided to make the show about that,” Jones said.
The show started two years ago as a hip hop and R&B show, playing all of Kunzweiler’s and Jones’ favorite songs. The show was primarily music-based with little commentary in between. As “the Oven” continued, Kunzweiler and Jones wanted to incorporate more of their personalities into the segments and create new ways to be more interactive with their audience.
“I interned for Clear Channel 933 last summer and learned a lot about radio. … After that internship we became much more structured and knew what we were doing,” Kunzweiler said.
Last fall, their show grew to two hours and evolved from a purely music-based show to 75 percent talk and 25 percent music to entertain their audience. Most of the content is drawn from their own lives or what’s going on with their friends.
“It’s easier to talk about things and elaborate when it comes from our own experiences,” Jones said.
One of Kunzweiler’s favorite segments is “Both Sides of the Coin” where the pair uses their gender differences to debate a topic such as PDA or dating to give both perspectives on a topic. They discuss whatever they find interesting, giving their audience something fun and different to listen to each week. The dynamic of their personalities makes for an entertaining discussion and is a way for their listeners to get to know them as individuals.
Jones’ and Kunzweiler’s objective is to cater to their listeners by providing the right playlist, whether it’s music from different decades or jams to pump up students for finals week.
Being involved with KCR has helped Kunzweiler and Jones prepare for their future career goals. KCR has helped Kunzwelier get internships and gain experience with music and broadcast. He is also the music director for KCR, and connects with bands that want to perform on campus. His goal is to work behind the scenes in management for a music company and KCR has helped him on his path toward that goal.
Jones’ passion is directed toward recording music, and she wants to pursue a career as a performer. The show creates time out of the week for her to focus on the type of music she enjoys and to gain experience with microphones.
“This is my last semester and I just want to have fun. KCR is my favorite thing about college,” Kunzweiler said.
You can listen to “the Oven” every Sunday from 12-1 p.m.
Photo courtesy of KCR
