NU 107
 |
|
| City of license | Pasig City |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Mega Manila |
| Slogan | Home of NU Rock |
| Frequency | 107.5 MHz |
| First air date | August 31, 1987 - November 8, 2010 |
| Format | Modern Rock, Alternative Rock |
| Power | 25,000 watts |
| Callsign meaning | DW NU (pronounced as new) Now Underground |
| Owner | Progressive Broadcasting Corporation |
| Website | NU 107 (no longer maintained) |
NU107 was the flagship radio station of Progressive Broadcasting Corporation in the Philippines. The station's last studio was located at the ground floor, AIC Gold Tower, F. Ortigas Jr. Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig City.
NU 107 signed off for the last time a little past midnight on November 8, 2010. The station was reformatted and renamed 107.5 Win Radio.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Early Days
Banker Atom Henares started the radio station in 1987, playing new wave music for about six weeks on the 107.5 MHz frequency. After that, when the station's tagline "The Home of New Rock" was aired and their telephone number was announced, the station's telephone rang for three hours straight.[1] President Corazon Aquino issued an executive order requiring radio stations to air at least three Original Pilipino Music (OPM) hourly; the station asked for contributions from listeners, under the program In the Raw. The station also instituted the NU Rock Awards, in which the inaugural edition had guests such as Joey Pepe Smith, Freddie Aguilar and Grace Nono, to honor the country's best rock musicians.[2] With Henares were Mike Pedero, who would later become its vice-president, and Cris Hermosisima who would later become the station manager.
[edit] Market Dominance
By 1994, NU 107 emerged as the number one in the AB market, or the upscale listeners, among commercial radio stations in Metro Manila at 32% according to the Radio Research Council, Inc. The station also opened their fourth station in Davao City to go along with its flagship Metro Manila station, and Cebu City and Iloilo City stations in the Visayas.[3]
This period saw NU 107 introducing a number of innovations in the Philippine music scene.[1] On Easter Sunday in 1997, they debuted Against the Flow, the first Philippine radio program catering specifically to Christian Rock enthusiasts. Another innovation was the idea of the NU 107 Pocket Concerts, which were concerts held in various malls. Prior to this, concerts of that size were simply not held. They became relatively common after the success of the first NU107 Pocket Concerts.[1]
In 2007, the station celebrated its 20th anniversary with the 2007 NU Rock Awards. Hermosisima, the station's network operations head, remarked to the Philippine Daily Inquirer that the station will continue on its current format "and we exert every possible means to keep it alive, especially in relation to the local rock scene."[4]
[edit] Signing off
However in late 2010, the Manila Bulletin reported that the station will sign off-air on November 7, 2010. Musicians and the recording industry "expressed sadness over developments regarding the station," the Bulletin reported.[5]
On the 2010 NU Rock Awards on October 29, Hermosisima announced that it was the last Rock Awards, and that the station will be reformatted and will injected with new capital.[6]
On the week leading up to the final day, a Facebook page was set up to formally organize the final day of broadcasts. More than a thousand fans responded to the call. Barangay officials in Brgy. San Antonio in Pasig City were informed of the matter beforehand.
On the final day of NU 107 on November 7, speakers were set up outside the station's studio where a large crowd had gathered, carrying candles as a sign of support. The crowd, which included musicians and supporters, stayed at NU 107's studios at Ortigas Center, Pasig. Some of them wrote on a freedom wall their sadness and memories, as well as their wishes for the station and its staff. The final edition of In the Raw had rock bands Urbandub and Itchyworms playing live music. The disk jockeys openly wept as they thanked the supporters during the station's final hour. Hermosisima was the last person on the microphone with the final words: "This has been NU 107, the Philippines one and only Home of NU Rock. This is NU 107, we are signing off", with The Eraserheads' "Ang Huling El Bimbo" as the final song of the station. The crowd that gathered outside, sad as they were, joined in the singing, and there was loud chanting afterward. NU 107 signed-off on November 8, 12:05 a.m, after the usual sign-off notice and Lupang Hinirang, the Philippine national anthem, was sung by everyone gathered in the station and outside the building premises[7] especially the final line of the anthem, which was sung very loud. Footage of this can now be found on Youtube as well as on other internet sites, as well as commentary and analysis of that final day of broadcasts.[8][9]
Lumapit by Archipelago was the last song that stayed at the number 1 spot on the NU107 Stairway to Seven charts before the station closed down.
According to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the new format would mimic the format on 91.5 Energy FM that would target listeners at the lower brackets of the socioeconomic scale. The new programming would draw in more advertisers compared to the upscale market NU 107 targeted.[10][11]
Its Cebu station, however it is still exist and it is currently online using the NU 107 branding.
[edit] Dig Radio
Several former NU 107 jocks have set up Dig Radio, an online radio station adopting NU 107's rock format.[12][13]
[edit] NU Rock Awards
NU 107 hosted the annual NU Rock Awards from November 1994 until 2010. From being a simple gathering to honor the year's best rock artists, the event had grown into one of the most prestigious awards show in the Philippines. The final Rock Awards was an invite-only event, as opposed to tickets being sold during the previous iterations.[6]
[edit] The Last Rock Jocks
|
[edit] Former DJs
|
|
|
|
[edit] Shows
NU 107's program schedule before it signed off permanently on November 7, 2010 included a lineup of notable specialized shows:
|
|
Notable shows that ended their run prior to the sign off included:
- Halikanu Radio
- The Midnight Countdown
- Not Radio
- Zack and Joey in the Morning
[edit] PBC radio stations
All these provincial stations carried the Manila broadcast of NU 107.
| Branding | Callsign | Frequency | Power (kW) | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NU 107 | DWNU | 107.5 MHz | 25 kW | Manila |
| NU 107 Iloilo | DYNY | 107.9 MHz | 5 kW | Iloilo |
| NU 107 Cebu | DYNU | 107.5 MHz | 10 kW | Cebu |
| NU 107 Davao | DXNU | 107.5 MHz | 5 kW | Davao |
| NU 107 General Santos | DXNV | 107.9 MHz | 5 kW | General Santos |
[edit] Compilation albums of NU 107.5
- Rockathon (PolyEast Records, 2009)
- Ugat: The Best Of Pinoy Folk Rock (Vicor Music Corp., 2008)
- Live & Raw: Underground 2 (Warner Music Philippines, 2007)
- Red Horse Muziklaban 2006 (Viva Records, 2006)
- Supersize Rock (Warner Music Philippines, 2004)
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b c "NU 107: HOME OF MODERN ROCK, ENDING AN ERA". ANC Headstart with Karen Davila. ABS CBN News Channel, Quezon City, Philippines. 2010-11-05. Retrieved on 2010-11-15.
- ^ Caballero, Joel (2010-11-07). "NU 107: The home of 'nu rock' no more". ABS-CBNnews.com. http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/entertainment/11/05/10/nu-107-home-nu-rock-no-more.
- ^ Diño, Grace (1994-10-15). "NU 107 rocks the airlane with new sounds". The Manila Standard. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=JaMxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2QoEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6504,2554611&dq=nu-107&hl=en.
- ^ Concepcion, Pocholo (2007-11-30). "Twenty years of rock ‘n’ roll". Philippine Daily Inquirer. http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/entertainment/entertainment/view/20071130-103892/Twenty_years_of_rock_%91n%92_roll.
- ^ Liwanag, Punch (2010-10-27). "NU 107.5 to sign off the air by November 7?". Manila Bulletin. http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/284515/nu-1075-sign-air-november-7.
- ^ a b Salterio, Leah (2010-11-05). "A night of nostalgia at NU Rock awards". The Philippine Star. http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=627261&publicationSubCategoryId=70.
- ^ Liwanag, Punch (2010-11-08). "NU 107 ends run with thanks and tears". Manila Bulletin. http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/286426/nu-107-ends-run-with-thanks-and-tears.
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KmeX_p4Jlc
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pIV9FPMYM0
- ^ Lucas, Daxim (2010-11-07). "Biz Buzz: Moving to downmarket". Philippine Daily Inquirer. http://business.inquirer.net/money/topstories/view/20101107-302006/Biz-Buzz-Frenemies-ballgame.
- ^ http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/315696/masa-radio-head-rock-stations-you-can-t-serve-one-menu-all-day
- ^ http://pinoytuner.com/article/33
- ^ a b c d e f g h i http://pinoytuner.com/community/18
[edit] External links
|
|||||||||||||||||
