In winter 2018, Pike County Extension Fine Arts and WMMT, Appalshop’s non-profit community radio station, began developing a partnership to produce a monthly radio show focused on all things Pike Arts. After receiving specialized training in the operation of recording equipment, which WMMT has provided continued use of at no charge, and receiving some professional guidance on interview technique and audio production software, it wasn’t long before our first episode aired in January 2019.

Arts Across Pike, which is recorded and edited in full by Pike Arts, airs the second Wednesday of each month at 6pm, but is currently on hiatus due to COVID-19. Listeners can catch the program by turning their radio dials to 88.7 FM, streaming online at wmmt.org, or via post-air date uploads at SoundCloud.com/UKPikeArts. Previous episode topics have included Pikeville Poetry, Appalachian Symphony, Artists Collaborative Theatre, and more. Each episode features interviews with Pike Arts volunteers of all ages, discussions with our regional partners about the advancement of eastern Kentucky through the arts, and a personal look into the various programming and events we offer, such as listening in on poets reading their work, dulcimer players strumming together, or actors on stage during a moment of high emotion.

Founded in 1969, Appalshop is a media, arts, and education hub headquartered in Whitesburg, KY. An incredible regional partner, WMMT’s current public affairs schedule includes five community-produced shows, one of which is Arts Across Pike. WMMT’s air waves reach a coverage population of 300,000—not including the 5,000 unique local and international users who stream their audio online in a 30 day period on average. This is obviously an incredible addition to our previous marketing plan, not only by way of listeners, but through our ability to utilize an entirely new avenue of social media networks through Appalshop and WMMT, reaching additional thousands of people in eastern Kentucky, and truly, around the globe.