For Immediate Release
July 26, 2016
HipRadio.ca Debuts All-Tragically Hip Format
As Canada’s beloved Tragically Hip arrive in Alberta for four concerts over the span of a week, a new radio station has launched featuring an all-Tragically Hip format.
The on-line radio station at www.hipradio.ca features non-stop Tragically Hip music from the band’s 32 year career. From their early days playing at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, to their status as Canadian cultural icons, the Tragically Hip have created some of the most memorable music in Canadian rock history. The announcement of singer Gord Downie’s cancer diagnosis caught fans by surprise, and all across the country they are packing arenas to celebrate the band’s music and influence.
HipRadio.ca profiles the band from their early days right up to their newest album Man Machine Poem. However, Hip fans will need to listen to the radio station while the band is touring Alberta, because it will only be broadcasting for a week. Once The Hip leave Alberta, the station will sign off. The concept is a new experiment in “pop-up” radio stations, pioneered by the BBC in the UK and now happening in Canada for the first time.
“It was a labour of love,” said Jeff Murray, Program Director of HipRadio.ca and also Program Director of Red Deer rock station Zed 98.9. “Every one of us at Zed 98.9 is a Hip fan, and we wanted to put together something to show and share our passion for the band. The result is an on-line radio station playing nothing but Tragically Hip music, curated and hosted by the on-air team from Zed 98.9.”
HipRadio.ca will be on the air from July 28 to August with 24 hour non-stop Tragically Hip music, hosted by Zed 98.9 personalities Lock & Tony, Jeff Murray, and Trav. The temporary pop-up radio station is not affiliated or endorsed by the Tragically Hip, and is an experimental project of Zed 98.9 and parent company Newcap Radio.
For more details contact:
Jeff Murray, Program Director Z 98.9 and HipRadio.ca at (403) 348-0955 or jm*****@ne****.ca
Steve Jones, VP Brands & Content, Newcap Radio at (416) 323-6834 or sj****@ne****.ca
Nice gesture. They’ve certainly got a large enough catalogue to support the format for a few days while touring the province.
Still, I get a little creeped out by the media fixation on Gord’s “terminal” diagnosis. He could live a lot longer than many expect. Apparently his genetic makeup gives him a better chance of benefiting from chemotherapy. As well, there are many promising clinical trials underway of drug- and viral-therapies. A few weeks ago, 60 Minutes featured a medical breakthrough where a tweaked polio virus is employed against brain tumours. The polio therapy (which is modulated to prevent recipients from developing that disease) has, so far, had a far more robust survival rate than other methods employed on terminally-diagnosed patients.
Does that mean Gord and the Hip will tour or record again? Maybe not. But it does at least give Downie clan, friends and fans hope that he’ll walk amongst them far longer than we now expect.