Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Johnson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Mike. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I began working at a local radio station when I was in high school. I played music from midnight to 6 a.m., when my friends were up and listening. After high school, I worked for V103 in Baltimore, Maryland. I later moved to Atlanta to work at Hot 97.5, which is now Hot 107.9. I worked there for a few years before I decided to quit my job and begin my own company where I created voice-overs for various projects.
Then, a couple of years ago, a friend of mine asked “how are you going to change the world?” and I had no idea what he meant by that. I started thinking about it a little bit more deeply; how could I possibly change the world? One day it hit me, the best way to even making an attempt to do this was to create a place where neighbors could all talk, discuss our issues, voice our opinion, laugh, possibly cry, and just grow as a community. That’s when DecaturFM, a radio station specifically for the Decatur community, was born.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There is always a struggle when you are creating something. I had to figure out how would I get people on board? How would I get people to listen and get them engaged? I went from having five people listening on first day, to over 5,000 current listeners. I am always thinking about how to be better, how to continue to keep my listeners engaged and never lose focus on why I started the station. There is also difficulty in balancing all the radio work; prepping guests, getting to know them and them getting to know us is tough. But I love it, wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s labor of love.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with DecaturFM – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
DecaturFM is a radio station that is any and everything Decatur. It is a station where City of Decatur residents can listen to events happening in and around the community. My intention when creating Decatur FM was to expose the community to the unique people that make Decatur what it is. There are so many people–so many different, brilliant minds that live in our neighborhood that it creates a place of conversation. The station is online and anyone can listen to it, but the topic of discussion is mostly always Decatur related.
“Meet Your Neighbor” is the primary focus of DecaturFM. The segment is an opportunity for listeners to get meet their neighbors. The show begins at 9 p.m. and lasts about an hour. We have so many amazing human beings in our community. There are folks from various walks of life, and for me to be able to introduce them to the neighborhood it gives me a lot of joy. We talk music, politics, motivation, meditation, and even challenges that we’re experiencing. It is kind of catching on so a lot of people are reaching out to us to be on the show. It makes me think, maybe there’s somebody out there listening to this person’s story and it can change their life.
We also broadcast various podcasts and segments throughout the week. When those are not playing, the station plays music across genres. Listeners can tune in to the station by visiting decaturfm.com, downloading the Decatur FM app or activating the skill on an Alexa.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
We have some really big things in the works, I’m talking huge, but it’s top secret. Stay tuned to decaturfm.com and follow us on social to see what’s next.
Contact Info:
- Website: decaturfm.com
- Phone: 404-362-7414
- Email: info@decaturfm.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/decaturfm/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/decaturfm
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DecaturFMradio/
Suggest a story: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
