Q101.com

A few months ago, Chicago lost its alternative radio station.  There aren't very many rock stations left, and Q101 was a Gen X staple.  If I remember correctly, it launched the summer that I left for college.  I had two clues that it was fading:

1. Each December, they would run the top 100 songs of each year they had been on the air, and listeners could vote on their favorite year.  Those 100 songs would be played again on New Years Eve.  The same year's songs won every single time.  That would be 1994.  The #1 song was "Closer" - Nine Inch Nails.  They stopped that particular holiday event.
2. Joy and I were talking about Q101 and she commented, "All their songs are old."  I immediately denied it, but then I started noticing.  

Well.  Music was just better in the 90's.  Or something.  Damn, we are old.

So.  Some conglomerate decided to kill Q101 and start an FM news radio station.  But in its final week, all the old DJs started calling in and they would talk about music and antics and I remembered how many of them I liked.  

I remembered hearing that Q101 would live on, but I hadn't actually gone online and played the live stream.  Someone mentioned it on my twitter feed, and I clicked over.

It is Q101 music. With no DJs.  And no commercials!  Some people are trying to build its online presence and perhaps get it back on the air.  (You know what's playing right now?  Limp Bizkit covering George Michael!  Ha!) So.  Facebook.  Twitter. Check it out.

I swear, I am listening more now than when they were on the air.  Apparently, I am not the only one:

"96,000+ listeners in September....GREW to 156,000+ in October! Thank you for listening to http://live.Q101.com/!!!!"

I could do without the multiple exclamation points.  

So, now I listen to Q101.com whenever I am at home, online and not otherwise audio-occupied.  I listened to it when I was at the library.  I listened when I was in Washington!

(sigh)

I love the Internet.