New station to hit the airways

Radio fans on Leeside will soon have another station to tune into.

Freedom FM begins broadcasting to Leeside on 106.7FM with the station launching on Saturday playing music from the ‘90s and noughties.

Sean Power, Station Manager, said: “Like many people last year during the extended lockdowns, I found I had more time on my hands than I wanted. So I roped in two friends, Paul Kavanagh and Ralph McGarry, to establish an online radio station. “Before we knew it, we had over 24 people from around the world playing music from the ‘90s and noughties.

“All of our presenters and DJs are in their late 30s and early 40s. They are having fun on the radio and enjoying the music of their youth. This feeds into the sound of the station; it is all about reliving your youth for people who grew up during those two decades. I think one of our station promos says it perfectly ‘Freedom FM - broadcasting to Generation Y. Why? Because someone has to’.”

Promising to cater for the musical taste of Generation Y, Freedom FM will play a mix of chart, dance, R’n’B and rock music from their extensive music library of songs which stretches from 1990 to 2009. The station will also air specialist music programmes, and features helping listeners to relive the ‘90s and noughties.

Established as an online station in August 2020, the station has been able to use modern technology to allow DJs broadcast from studios in their own homes, from anywhere around the world, with shows coming from as far afield as Vancouver, New York, and Sydney, as well as closer to home in Limerick, Galway, Meath, Kildare, Louth and Dublin.

The success of the online version encouraged the team to consider bringing the music of their youth to the FM band, and so submitted an application to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) in May, and signed contracts in September. The station will broadcast to Cork on 106.7FM, as well as Limerick, Galway, and Dublin on different frequencies under a 30+day temporary broadcast license from the BAI.

The station continues to broadcast around the world online so those living outside the city’s reception area can still tune in across Munster via the website freedomfm.ie or through a smart speaker.