Shady Pines Radio: Portland's Creative Community Radio
From video production company to online radio, follow the epic journey of Portland's creative community station Shady Pines Radio.
Covid changed everything. In the height of lockdown back in 2020, video production company Shady Pines Media launched a bold new station to help creatives stay connected, inspired, and building during the pandemic. Shady Pines Radio was born.
Meet Brian and Callie, the driving force behind Portland's most collaborative community station. With 90+ diverse DJs and regularly hosted events, discovering fresh new music just got a whole lot easier.
Shady Pines Origin
Shady Pines Media started back in 2016. The video production company was born from a project collaboration Brian and Callie worked on together. The name 'Shady Pines' came about whilst hiking in Big Sur, coupled loosely with song lyrics Brian was singing at the time.
Focused on mini-documentaries and live music performances, the production company got their feet wet doing passion projects for cheap or free. But over time, hosting events like EastBurn Open Mic, the duo realised a community was starting to take shape.
Building a Creative Community During Covid
Portland isn't short of creatives like poets, musicians, and comedians. As Shady Pines grew, the arts community became part of their mission statement to create an environment for people to express themselves.
But then the global Covid pandemic hit. So video production ground to a halt, stopping everything for safety reasons.
Although people locked down, Shady Pines opened up an opportunity. With plenty of connections in the local scene, Brian and Callie were in a perfect position to start a community radio station. Shady Pines Radio was born.
Shady Pines Radio
The Portland community radio station came about at the right time. As people were shut behind closed doors, Shady Pines Radio brought the music and good vibes to them.
Our goal is to amplify underrepresented music. There's so much amazing music that isn't getting played on mainstream stations.
At the beginning, just Brian and Callie uploaded music from past projects. Then as time went on, more friends got involved. From sending in music to hosting live shows, the station was broadcasting 24/7 with the help of Radio.co.
Radio.co is pretty sweet. It makes creating a radio station obtainable.
Now with over 90 DJs and 75 shows, the station is jam-packed with a diverse lineup of music you wouldn't hear anywhere else.
Passion Project Turned Side Business
To keep everything ticking over and the lights on, Shady Pines Radio turned their passion into a side-business. Stickers, t-shirts, hats, posters, and drink koozies are just a few items from the Shady Pines merchandise store.
And passionate listeners can support the station through donations on Patreon. The different memberships give supporters exclusive access to behind-the-scenes content, sticker packs, and shout outs.
Conclusion
Unprecedented times calls for innovative and modern solutions. Covid changed the way we think and act, giving life to projects like Shady Pines Radio.
The Portland community radio station showcased emerging new music throughout the pandemic, proving artists can stay connected to their audiences and even reach new people online.
