If we haven’t met yet, hi! My name is Chase Spross, I’m XRAY’s Station Director. If you’ve ever written into the station, gone to an event, gotten a studio tour, really anything, we’ve probably talked. That’s because, as XRAY turns 10, I’m also looking back on a decade of my life spent with XRAY. I started at XRAY as a volunteer in summer 2014. I helped table some concerts, make fundraising phone calls, really anything that needed doing. By 2016, I was a full fledged staff member, and since 2017 I’ve been running XRAY’s radio operations (in radio speak, this means what’s happening on air!). I ..read more

All episodes of the 2024 Teach-In are now available on the our website (which includes parts of segments that have music under XRAY’s licensing) and on Apple Podcasts and Spotify (which don’t have the music, because that’s a different kind of license). This year’s Amplify Women Teach-In was certainly one for the books. Not only did we air more original programming than we have ever have prior–including extending the Teach-In itself by an hour to accommodate–but we had more participants than ever before too. With a total of 43 people being heard on air throughout the 13-hour programming set ..read more

It’s been 7 years of Amplify Women, our annual all-day teach-in in honor of International Women’s Day. In that time, hundreds of people have participated in the program, over 80 hours of audio has been produced and aired, dozens of producers have made their mark, and thousands of people have had the chance to hear what media not dominated almost exclusively by male voices would sound like. It’s our small part to think about who gets to take the mic, and how that reverberates through our communities. It’s everywhere, from the all-too-frequent commentary on the sound of feminine voices (serious ..read more

Unlike some places (ahem you know who you are) we know that the year’s not over until it’s over, and rather than the best of 12 months, doing end-of-year wraps in December is really the best of 11 months. Better hope the best song ever wasn’t released in December because apparently it doesn’t count! Well, we’ve got quite the roundup now that 2023 is officially done, and December had it’s time to shine. Could we have released this in December? Sure. We actually did, but just didn’t make a big fanfare about it. But, since December, a dozen new episodes have been added! You could’ve missed all th ..read more

December is a magical time of year in the Pacific Northwest, and one of our favorite parts is how local businesses, organizations, and community members pull out all the stops to make this time special. So, we present you with XRAY’s annual Eat, Drink, & Buy Local Guide to point you in the direction of some folks you may want to check out. Those on the list have a real range of relationships with XRAY. Some are brand new friends we’re working with on programming, others have been underwriting with the station from the start nearly 10 years ago now. Above all, what we know about these peopl ..read more

Thanksgiving is upon us. This holiday is a challenging one, because it glosses over the slaughter and subjugation of thousands of Indigenous peoples with a narrative we’re all fed of a cheerful feast with colonizers. We encourage you to consider ways to support Native communities and their work towards healing and cultural preservation this week. The Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon even put together a fairly comprehensive list of local ways to give back and show up for Indigenous communities. Nonetheless, we know that this holiday has had some positives for many as a communal gathering p ..read more

Lots has been happening on air over the last few months. And with 24/7 programming, there’s a lot to miss. So, here’s just some of those episodes we think you should know about: Paul Kim joins XRAY as host of Monday’s Morning Mix from 7-9 AM (we’re still workshopping that name, don’t worry). Station Director Chase sat down with him to introduce listeners to him Monday morning. They start with Kim’s current transition from clinical social work to audio producer through the other Portland’s (Maine) College of Art & Design’s SALT Graduate Certificate in Documentary Studies for Radio and Pod ..read more

We’re only halfway through what’s sure to be a stellar month of radio programming, but there’s just so much to talk about! XRAY DJs, as always, have a dual focus on curation and discovery, and this month we want to highlight some of those folks highlighting 2SLGBTQIA+ artists near and far. So get ready to discover some new favorites, revisit old treasures, and dance your heart out! Everything is in this set of episodes—we’ve got soul, country, goth, rock, pop, punk, jazz, rap, R&B, and even what one DJ affectionately described as “tiny little squares of rainbow flag glitter sonically, and ..read more

“She’s fabulous. And I can tell you how I feel when I hear Tina Turner’s voice. How every single time, that scratch, it stirs something in me. It’s one of the reasons I love music, is the sound of Tina Turner’s voice.” -DJ Tex Clark, Circa Rad (Wednesdays 7-8pm on XRAY) The world lost a legendary musician and performer in Tina Turner last week. XRAY DJs have been known to do their fair share of tribute shows, even when an artist is still living or long past their lifetime. But, it’s rare that so many shows in succession pay tribute to a single artist’s passing. This week, we’ve compiled thes ..read more

For XRAY’s first Featured Partner Playlist, it felt appropriate to go to one of our favorite local bands on the eve of their new EP release. New Constellations’ new EP, ‘Lean In’ will be released on Friday April 28th. The Get Down & XRAY.FM are presenting a release show at 9pm that night at the Get Down (615 SE Alder St). Tickets are on sale now, and we hope we’ll see you there! Listen: YouTube Playlist: Or check it out as a full audio playback. About the Band: New Constellations – the ethereal brainchild of lifelong sidekicks Harlee Case and Josh Smith – encapsulates a sonic dreamscape ..read more