PHILADELPHIA – Since 1945, Philadelphia’s National Public Radio station, 88.5 WXPN, has been broadcasting the new and the old, the fast and the slow, the rock and the classical, and the musical connoisseurs alongside the up-and-coming; blending all these sounds, styles, and artists into music their audience loves.

Starting in the University of Pennsylvania, WXPN was born an AM station. In 1957, the station upgraded to an FM slot at 88.9, becoming a student based program and utilizing one of the ‘first freeform radio’ formats. With new professional programming starting in the 70s, the station took flight as a cradle of high-quality folk, jazz, new and avant-garde music.

One of the most important things about the station, however, is that it is publically sponsored, thus keeping the stream of music on the airwaves constant without commercials. Not being funded by a corporate organization, the station thrives directly off their audience’s support of National Public Radio.

In 2004, the station’s headquarters moved to Walnut Street, where they joined with the World Café Live, where aspiring musicians have the opportunity to expand their music careers.  It is dedicated to live performances, by both new artists and the already popular. Some include Sir Paul McCartney, Mumford and Sons, Pearl Jam, Vampire Weekend, and many others.

The station also appeals to its younger audiences, too. Hosted by Kathy O’Connell, Kids’ Corner is an interactive science-based show that conceptualizes everyday science topics into lessons that children can understand. These aspiring ‘young learners’ also have an opportunity to call the show and talk with real life scientists and specialists that can answer their questions.

Other radio shows and programs are also hosted, including the Blues Show with Jonny Meister, the Folk Show with Gene Shay, and The Geator’s R&R, R&B Express with famous Philadelphia deejay Jerry Blavat. There is Sleepy Hollow, a show for the early morning coffee drinkers. Echoes with John Diliberto is the place where one can find electronic, ambient selections. For the diverse musical pallet, there is The Mountain Stage with Larry Groce, or The Many Moods of Ben Vaughn, playing traditional music alongside the modern. And even the college sports fan can turn to 88.5 to cheer on the University of Penn. Quakers basketball team.

The students also significantly contribute to keeping the station functioning. Bruce Warren, the Program Director at WXPN, makes sure the students get involved as much as possible.

“[Students] work in almost every department; Programming, Marketing, Sales, Web, and Production. We have a team of students who produce the Penn basketball games. We have students in production help set up and record bands and help edit those recordings. We have students who help curate our arts and news coverage. We have students help produce topical pieces to run on air. We have students help our street teams when we go to concerts. The list goes on but these are just a few,” Warren explained.

For the station’s listeners, every day is a trek into the musical lands of the undiscovered. They are always in tune with the innovative styles of the artists being broadcasted, but at the same time being backed by the familiar music of the past ages.

In a mere hour, any person who turns on the station could hear the organ-piping Doors song ‘Light My Fire’ while the next could be the garage-band style ‘Lonely Boy’ by the Black Keys. The contiguous track could be the somber, love-stained lyrics of Jeff Buckley’s ‘Hallelujah’, and possibly followed by the rich, folk melody of the Avett Brothers’ ‘Live and Die’.

But why does WXPN designate such a distinct emphasis on all of these different aspects of their station? Well, there are many answers to that.

For one, they like to appeal to almost all ages and musical tastes through their varied playlists and shows. Not only do they want to appeal to a large, heterogeneous group, but the station also strives to keep their audience multifaceted in what they listen to.

“Having a diverse audience is important because it’s a reflection of the broader community. Philly is a diverse city. A local public station should reflect that,” Warren acknowledged.

Highlighting new artists is definitely a staple to their airwaves, too.

“Our mission is to connect audiences with artists. One of the things we say a lot is that we like to help artists quit their day jobs. So, if getting played on XPN can help build their audiences so they can concentrate on their careers full time, then we’re accomplishing our mission,” said Warren.

And anyone can obviously tell that the station is accomplishing a substantive mission; providing the greater Philadelphia region with quality music, arts, news, and knowledge.

“I think generally what we hope to accomplish in the future is to help continue to connect more great music to more audience.” Warren said, when asked about the future. WXPN has a bright future ahead of them for sure.

So next time you’re looking for something new, something to expand your horizons, do yourself a favor and switch to 88.5. I guarantee you’ll be singing along.