By Rob Balley
The Journal Gazette
4/18/00

Longneck bottles of beer clink against the bar, pool balls noisily sink into pockets, and the chatter of about 100 patrons competes with the local band The Orbiters during a recent Saturday at Legends Sports Bar.

Amid all this, Chris Wallace focuses his cherubic face intently on a computer screen, monitoring a digital-audio/video feed.

A sprawling mass of electrical chords unite at a 12-foot multimedia table where, after several weeks of working out the kinks of a live Web radio simulcast, all systems are go.

Last December, Wallace, 27, co-founded the Fort’s first “all local music, all the time” Internet radio station at www.fortwaynemusic.com. On Jan. 29, Wallace began his latest endeavor: live audio from 10p.m. Fridays to 2a.m. Saturdays from Legends and live audio and visuals from 10p.m. Saturdays to 2a.m. Sundays.

Formerly known as WEJE, 96.3 FM radio personality Danger Boy, Wallace has joined thousands of virtual DJs Webcasting internationally.

Readjusting his curly brown hair under a baseball cap, the stocky entrepreneur says he thinks on-line radio’s ranks are swelling due to the freedom it offers independent-minded music lovers around the globe.

“You’re not going to find local air stations that will play your favorite music all day through,” says Wallace, who claims he rarely listens to traditional commercial radio. “With the Internet, you can go and find thousands of stations as much of your music as you want.”

Wallace says you never have to worry about “losing air” again when traveling cross-country as long as you have access to a computer, of course. And if a favorite nationally syndicated program gets canceled, don’t call and complain, just access it on-line.

Listeners who are disenchanted with commercial radio’s omnipresent Top 40 tunes and obnoxious morning teams can access special-interest stations via Web listing sites, such as Spinner.com and Live365.com.

‘Wherever you go, it’s the same 20 songs on commercial radio,” says John Jeffrey, executive vice president of Live365.com. For the commercially faithful, nine local radio stations – including WEJE, 96.3 FM and WMEE, 97.3 FM – have Internet counterparts.

Jim Fox, program director for WBYR, 98.9FM, says smart broadcasters see Internet radio as an ally. Still, Fox says the Internet radio’s sound quality and accessibility would have to improve before The Bear would consider it serious competition.

“A lot of stations are a little nervous, but this isn’t the first time we’ve encountered this type of PR machine,” Fox says. “They predicted MTV would be the demise of radio, and that was obviously wrong. I see it as somewhat of an enhancement, not a threat.”

Brian Buckley, of the London based www.live-radio.net, agrees that Internet radio isn’t really practical at this point.

“You need a computer, an Internet account, a phone connection and the knowledge to get things up and running,” says the 30-year-old Internet radio programmer, “For people who aren’t technically minded, this can be a difficult task.”

Jeffrey, however, hopes old school radio audiences will explore all genres of music nationwide and overseas via Internet radio.

“Most of us, young and old, have spent 20 years having programming pushed at us, and we’re tired of it,” Jeffrey, 36, says. “This is empowering people.”

Legends Sports Bar owner Sherry Recht and her brother/bar manager Chris Hoeppner decided last year to campaign for increased awareness of local music but were rebuffed by local air stations. At booking agent Lynn Nicoletti’s urging, she contacted Wallace

Recht admits that at first she was a little bogged down with techno jargon about bandwidths and TDSL (GTE Internet connection) lines.

“I said, “OK guys, let’s go one by one,” Recht says, laughing. “I’m computer friendly, and I use them in my work, but I needed a little help and education for this.”

WXKE, 103.9 FM, recently agreed to simulcast the Legends band performances with Fortwaynemusic.com, and DJ Sharon Rossi couldn’t be more psyched.

“We’re proud to be a part of the hippest, newest Fort Wayne music scene,” Rossi says. “I have friends in Germany, Florida and California – San Francisco specifically- who are having a great time checking out what’s happening musically in their hometown.” And better yet, Rossi adds, it’s free – at least for now.

All you need to listen is a computer and streaming audio software, such as Media Player, Real Player or WinAmp, which can be downloaded free on Web radio sites.

Live365.com took this movement one step further last year by posting software and tutorials to help people create their own Internet radio stations. The site currently boasts 120,000 registered broadcasters.

Perhaps Jeffrey best sums up Internet radio’s appeal: “You can find radio stations from people like you, from all over the world with individual audio content. It provides them with the opportunity to share what’s unique about them.

How to Become a Virtual DJ

There’s always someone at a party who wants to play DJ. Thanks to the Internet, these music misers now have another outlet.

To become a virtual DJ, go to www.live365.com and set up an account. Installation of the necessary software is quick And free. Next, convert songs from your CD collection into the MP3 format. If this sounds too complex, try collecting MP3 files from one of the many Web sites that offer them for free.

Then, Upload the MP3 files onto the Live365.com site, Name your radio station and you’re ready to go.

Once established, your radio station can be heard by an International audience – with one catch. Webcasters must abide by 1998’s Digital Millennium Act, which protects financial interests of the Recording Industry Association of America.

This law prohibits Internet radio DJs from taking requests or publishing playlists. Also, no more than three songs by the Same artist can be played within a one-hour period