In this edition of Meet Your Wizards, we bring you DJ Ed, host of Eighties Schmeighties, Fridays from 10am-noon.
Born: Atlanta, Georgia
Home: Nashville, Tennessee
Drafted into WXNA: 2016
Spins: Left (always left)
Fades: Lefter
I think I discovered independent radio growing up in Atlanta listening to the college radio station from Georgia State, 88.5 I think. Then when I went to school in Mobile, Alabama I was shocked to find out there was a very tiny college radio station, all of 10 watts. (Shout out to WTOH!) It was such a small-wattage station they didn’t care whether or not we followed FCC rules. That’s something I had to learn when I became a DJ at WXNA. Hey, you’re not a real DJ unless you’ve been suspended at least once! I love being the selector on Eighties Schmeighties. It beats therapy!
Most played song: “Clampdown” by The Clash
Vinyl, CD or mp3? All of the above. Whatever works. Love vinyl, but not a fetishist.
Fave WXNA shows: Free Association, Works Progress Radio Hour, Reggae University, and Punk Not Punks
Pinch-me moment: Interviewing some great artists such as Kosmo Vinyl and Vanessa Briscoe Hay.
When I die: Enjoy Every Sandwich…
DJ Pete of 
Wherein we pull back the curtain for a personal visit with one of the wonderful wizards of the X. In this case, the DJ keeping us on 
Born: Sixth-generation Nashvillian, but
You may not be surprised when I tell you this is Pete writing this. You surely will not be surprised when I say Sirena is my favorite DJ. I admire her great work as host of Bring Out Your Dead, but her co-hosting of Music for Grownups is closer to my heart. Before WXNA went on the air I knew I wanted to do a show of good old pre-rock pop music, jazz vocals and show tunes. To my mind when I was a youngster in the 60s and 70s, Bing Crosby, Peggy Lee and Nat King Cole were the Music for Grownups–NOT the Eagles or the Stones or the Allman Brothers or even the Beatles. I wanted a show that would appeal to the inner adult inside each of us. Or even the inner nerd–at one point I wanted to call the show “Music for Squares,” which I guess might have been heavier on polkas and Lawrence Welk. Randy is still mad that I abandoned that name, but I wasn’t sure listeners would want to self-identify as Squares.
“I think, to a lot of musicians, listening and playing are almost inseparable. If you think of the most awful, confused, disjointed band you’ve ever seen, the foundation of their horribleness was probably a lack of listening. The act of listening, sometimes seen as mere fertilizer used to serve the playing / creation, is really the soil itself – at least half of the entire equation. If you are a musician, compare the flow states achieved when playing with a tight band where the synergy is palpable and powerful, and being absorbed into a beautiful record through headphones or what-have-you. They are not the same, but I think they’re intrinsically linked. If you’re not a musician, you actually are! Haha. Gotchya. At least if you’ve ever actually 
“The link between deejaying and creating music can be identified as mutual growth. All of us should strive to master our chosen craft and ideally we can link different creative endeavors to inform one another. For instance, if a musician is exploring a new genre that technically challenges them, why not explore similar music while deejaying on the radio? For a DJ it is important to allot time in the week to sit down, drop a needle on a record and listen to uncharted territory. The unknown is the edge of understanding and future growth. As the student, if we only study what we know, then the creative in us has been sealed in a box, only to imitate our narrow scope of understanding. The next time a creative block obstructs our output, it may be time to listen to worlds and stories we do not know, because they may become our own.”
If you are a musician, how do you know when something is Done? Good? Decent? Listenable? Play it on the radio. The radio does not lie. The airwaves are more Democratic than the Bill of Rights. Is loud or just full of volume? Does it sound deep or bassy? Is it loud or dynamic? As a DJ, I’m flummoxed (flabbergasted) and surprised at how often records made by cool people under cool circumstances–impeccably dressed with excellent smelling hair tonic wearing never-seen-in-stores posh vines–will make records that do not hold up the thrilling prom-heard-round-the-block chaos that is The Kingsman’s “Louie, Louise,” the steel factory smoke of Bo Diddley’s “Pretty Thing,” or the shiny chrome of B.B. King’s “She’s Dynamite.” 
“When Shout, Sister, Shout! used to be late at night, I’d often leave a show I’d either played or attended and race on over to the station with a new record in hand from the merch table. I loved cueing up some brand new vinyl and trying to quickly track down a song I’d just heard over at Betty’s or wherever. Nothing seemed more appropriate for Nashville’s airwaves than an echo of her own shows, still hovering in the air. I think there is a natural overlap between performing and playing music on the radio in their real-time urgency, their inescapable live-ness, never existing in isolation or a vacuum, like how recording or writing can sometimes be. Curating a playlist helps me think about “flow”– the way songs can move in succession as almost a meta-song of its own, another art form altogether. Doing this helps me to consider “flow” in my own music– how I want to ease into the hour or so of programming, how I want to transition or pause, when to play a cover song, etc. Digging for radio gems also keeps me on my toes with listening to new stuff for inspiration and never drawing solely upon the same well of influences over and over again.” 
