A wide-angle, medium-shot photograph of a diverse group of over a dozen people standing and posing in a bright, industrial-style radio studio space. The room has light gray floors, white walls, and an open-joist ceiling with large, square, hanging LED panel lights. In the foreground, a group of team members is smiling and waving at the camera; one person on the left is stretching their arms upward, another in the center is waving with both hands, and a person in a blue 'RAYS' t-shirt is flashing a peace sign. In the background, to the right, a large wooden conference table is surrounded by white office chairs, and several other team members are gathered, some chatting and others standing near a workstation.
The Sector.FM team Credit: learning.mp3 / Instagram

Last month, beloved DIY, Gulf Coast radio station Sector.FM put out a call to action seeking help to keep its community afloat and accessible.

On social media, the team showcased new fundraiser merchandise: a clean, cream T-shirt with a dark blue Sector.FM logo on the chest.

The back of the tee holds the penmanship of co-founder and member of They Hate Change, Andrรฉ Gainey, that reads, โ€œWhat part of we donโ€™t have any money donโ€™t you understand?โ€ Itโ€™s the first piece of merch Sector has released outside its internal crew, made up of a team of DJs programming everything from post-punk and indie rock from Syd Plays Bangers to reggae and drum-and-bass sounds on Champagne Radio, hosted by Johnny Champagne.

A product photograph of a cream-colored t-shirt shown from both the front and the back. The front features a small, centered, dark blue square logo containing a stylized letter 'G' and the text 'SECTOR.FM' below it. The back of the shirt features bold, dark blue, handwritten-style text that reads: 'What part of we don't have any money don't you understand? - Love, Sector'.
New fundraiser merchandise from Sector.FM. Credit: learning.mp3 / Instagram

In the same post, Sector.FM announced a move to Learning, a new space in Pinellasโ€”located at 13757 49th St. N Unit A-7 in Clearwaterโ€”that will be home to weekly radio shows, act as a third space for the community, and host events. 

โ€œWe started Sector on December 24th, 2023 with the intention of bringing some much-needed energy back to the Gulf Coast music scene,โ€ Sector.FM added. โ€œWith our Resident DJโ€™s hard work and musical expertise, along with yโ€™alls support on the ground & on the airwaves, weโ€™ve been able to do just that. Hella parties, a bunch of new DJs and perspectives, and over 1200 hours of archived radio shows, all FREE.โ€ 

Anyone who drops a $40 donation on the limited edition t-shirt gets a year-long Sector Supporter subscription, granting access to particular live and archived tracklists to shows and discounts on merch and event tickets. Sector is also accepting one-time donations of any amount for people who have way too many clothes.

Sector will christen the Learning space this Friday, June 5, and host the first party of a two-part fundraiser series, โ€œRaise It Up!โ€, featuring DJ sets by DJNOTURGIRL, Princess Kida, Tiny Steph, and New Age Tension. The event is ages 18+ and will run from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. 

Shirts are available via shop.sector.fm. Buy a ticket to โ€œRaise It Up!โ€ on June 5th at RaiseItUp.dice.ย Donations are being accepted at donate.stripe.com. Tune into Sector.FM every Sunday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.


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