Hall of Fame | Exceptional DJ Awards

Hall of Fame - Alex Feeman

Alex Feeman, from the class of '08, is our FIRST Hall of Fame inductee. He was chosen March '08 by the staff and members of WSYC. To learn from his experiences, we asked him a few questions...

Hey there Alex. We'll be conducting this interview the old fashioned way, through facebook. Now tell us, how long have you been with WSYC?

I joined WSYC back in fall of '04, my first semester here at Shippensburg. Since then, I've enjoyed eight solid semesters of involvement with the constantly rotating cast of characters that is the institution of college radio.

Describe the trials and tribulations that accompanied your rise to the Hall of Fame?

Well, as anyone who's made it to the top will tell you, it certainly isn't easy getting there! I came to the radio station not really knowing what to expect. Now that I've matured at least a tad, I think what I was looking for, latently, was even one other person into the, at least for me, splendid Chicago area pop-punk scene.

When I didn't find it, my reaction was something like "Wow, these tools suck." I've gotten my share of warnings and have had my share of talks with the station brass, that's for sure. At one point during my sophomore year, I did my shows entirely in the least imaginative monotone voice I could think of as a way of sharing with my listeners how frustrated I was with some of the station's policies.

Eventually, cooler heads prevailed on both sides and I stayed with the station I had come to regard as something stable in this volatile world.

Chuck Norris or Jack Baur?

Ahh, thanks for the break from all of those trials and tribulations! While I'm sure both Chuck Norris and Jack Bauer are good guys, I'm not particularly a fan of either. I'm going to have to take John Locke in this one. The English philosopher of the seventeenth century was a swell man as well, but I'm talking about the one from LOST, perhaps the finest drama on television right now.

What were some of your favorite moments at the station?

I don't know that I have any specific "favorite moments," but I do have generally good memories concerning the people I've come to know at the station. Sure, we had Indie Rock Dance Parties I, II and III (And I'm terribly upset that I had to miss the third), and they've been excellent, but I'm not sure they qualify as station memories.

Being involved in WSYC sports has meant plenty of on-air time with the talented Dan DiVeglio, and before him legends such as Bill Morgal and Ryan Servant (we're going waaaayyy back for the old Skunker...); these are perhaps the most exciting times to be on the air because you never know not only what will happen on the field or court but also how you or your partner will describe it. I can rarely go to the station without running into someone I don't mind talking to; that says a lot about the character of the station. I'm beginning to think that this is what I'll appreciate and miss most about the station; the general character of the members is my favorite memory.

What would you say to those idealistic, eager new comers who want to be on air?

Slow down! This isn't a sprint, it's a marathon! If there is one thing I did do the correct way, it was to get involved with the station as soon as possible while at Shippensburg and also to get myself on the air in whatever manner I could quickly.

That being said, what I wish I could have done better would have been to take the time to play different music from that wall your back spends hours facing during your show. I know I didn't take the advantage of that wall that I should have. Of my favorite half-dozen artists right now, one indeed I discovered back there.

Also for you young pups, talk to the older people at the station! Not only will they bleed experience and station wisdom or folklore onto you, they realize they'll gain from what you have to offer as someone interested in music and the radio. You'll learn from each other and in such a situation, everybody wins!

Tell us of the glory that followed you shortly after this award was given?

Ha! To be honest, it was probably the thirteenth single happiest moment in my life behind my fourth through my fifteenth birthdays. Upon receiving the award, I was put on the spot to deliver a speech which I won't reprint here but will suggest was nothing short of amazing. I left the induction ceremony in a hurry, where I proceeded to play my role in a 6-2 win for my intramural hockey team. I guess the radio gods were shining down on us that evening.

People look at me differently now. You know? I get the "That's Alex Feeman, he's in the hall" look all the time. Kids want my autograph, men want to buy me drinks, women want to be on my shoulder... I really can't complain. Life's been good to me and this honor has made me realize that.

This is Sparta?

It is? In all honesty, I'm not going to fly off on the diatribe I could right now. I'm not too concerned with our status as a rogue nation, whether we are a war machine or not. I will say that we aren't quite as bent on military might as the Spartans were. As evidence, consider that neither I nor a vast majority of my friends have ever been in the armed forces. But let me put aside this pandering for a second and lay it out straight: We are all just here owing to biological happenstance, and we're working diligently towards our own extinction in a startlingly efficient manner. Given this, I choose not to bog myself down with national concerns, and instead do what feels good.

Where will you go now that your undergrad career is coming to a close?

Ahh... the old "now what?" I'm sad to say that I will indeed be graduating in May of '08, and must leave the Cumberland Valley for new experiences elsewhere. As of now, the plan is to work for the state of Pennsylvania this summer before going to graduate school at the Washington State University in Pullman, Washington this fall. Listen for me on KZUU 90.7 in the fall and as long as I'm out on the Palouse. As for long term plans, I just don't roll that way. It takes the excitement away from the day. That excitement is just something I need!

Any words of wisdom?

Don't mistake anyone, especially me, for someone wise. I'll leave you with a quote that says it far better than I can:

"I am wiser than this man; it is likely that neither of us knows anything worthwhile, but he thinks he knows something when he does not, whereas when I do not know, neither do I think I know; so I am likely to be wiser than he to this small extent, that I do not think I know what I do not know." -- Socrates

Tell us about the weatherman (this one's from Skip)

I had a suspicion this wasn't over yet. The "weatherman" Skip is referring to is an alter ego I employed to do my weather reports at half past every hour during my junior year. His name was Jonathan Jackson, and he was a very energetic meteorology major here at Shippensburg. He really loved bringing the forecast to the fine folks of the University and community, and always had words of advice to go along with his enthusiastic weather updates. I decommissioned him for a long while until I decided to dust off the old voice and bring him back a few weeks ago. It just so happened that Skip was in the studio at the time and found the whole experience to be amusing.

Thanks Edi, for the opportunity; you ask good questions. Good luck to yourself while you're here at the station, I hope the experience you have is as fulfilling as mine has been. Take care buddy.