Name: Nathan Moore
College: West Virginia University (as a student host); University of Virginia (as a grown-up station manager)
Radio Station: U92 at WVU; WTJU at UVA
Years Active: 1998-2002 at U92; 2011-present at WTJU
Position(s): At U92, I was a rock DJ for four years, jazz DJ for three years, talk show host for three years, and news director for two years. At WTJU, I’m the General Manager.
Favorite bands. That’s such a common question and one that’s really tough to answer. There’s a whole world of great music out there, and choosing a couple favorites is really difficult. That said, during my undergrad years, I definitely dug Radiohead (their big pivot Kid A came out while I was a DJ). I also played a lot of Neutral Milk Hotel (In the Aeroplane…), which my student DJs in 2021 *still* are playing. I remember loving two live albums that hold up really well: Spiritualized’s Live at Royal Albert Hall and Portishead’s Roseland NYC Live. That was also the era of Willie Nelson’s Teatro and Johnny Cash’s recordings on the American label. My undergrad years are also when I fell in love with Charles Mingus and Thelonius Monk, but it was Charlie Haden and the Liberation Music Orchestra that blew my mind at age 18.
What one piece of advice would you give to someone starting out in college radio? Making freeform radio isn’t about being weird on purpose or whatever. It’s about using all the tools at our disposal to make something creative and good. Learn to use all the tools well, but more importantly, follow your curiosity and your creativity to serve your community. That’s just advice for life, even if you one day stop making radio.
Did you have a “bathroom break” song? If so, what was it? From the Spiritualized Live at Royal Albert Hall album, “Shine a Light” was seven minutes and “Oh Happy Day” was six minutes. They were also awesome songs. So those got played a lot when nature called. It’s funny though — before DJing, I never really thought much about how long it actually takes to use the bathroom. I’d usually have plenty of time left over.
What was your most memorable interview? As an undergrad, the crew of my talk show decided we should do an episode exploring the concept of sin. On a random weeknight, we went to a local bar and taped half the episode with whoever happened to be there. The other half of the episode was with a religious studies professor who had a little more knowledge than the tipsy patrons.
As for celebrity interviews when I was in college… I got to interview Jerry Greenfield, the Jerry of Ben & Jerry’s. He’s just as friendly as you’d imagine. And he gave me ice cream.