Marcus Carter: radio owner walking on air
Radio Andra, a new English-language radio station based in Gothenburg, will begin broadcasting live on October 1st. The Local caught up with station owner Marcus Carter to find out more.
“Starting a radio station was never something I dreamed of as a child,” explains Marcus Carter, a British man with a university background in radio production.
On October 1st his new radio station – Radio Andra – will be officially launched; a channel he believes will fill a gap in the Swedish FM market.
“People are always coming out to Gothenburg for music festivals, and I realized that there was no radio station that reflected these people’s tastes. I was always waiting for someone to come along and make one,” he tells The Local.
“But it never happened. So I did it.”
The station, according to Carter, will feature a mix of new, known and underground artists, with classics, indie, and alternative music being the key focus.
“Of course, we won’t forget your Springsteen, Cohen, Cash and The Smiths, but we also play a lot the new Swedish music that’s not on the charts, as well as live club mixes on Friday and Saturday nights ” he explains.
Furthermore, the station will be transmitted in English some 90 percent of the time.
With the official launch just days away, the channel is looking for sponsors and advertisers as they already look towards expansion.
“We want to be useful for the expat community and for those that don’t speak Swedish. We’ll have news and traffic reports in English – initially just relating to Gothenburg but we’re already looking further.”
Carter arrived in Sweden ten years ago after he met a Swedish woman in England and abandoned his studies. He confesses to “going down the wrong path like an idiot”, becoming a media and English teacher in Gothenburg.
However, it wasn’t long before he noticed that life can be tough for foreigners who don’t speak Swedish – an issue he hopes to alleviate for others in the same situation.
“Hopefully people will recognize that we're doing something good with our station. I know what it’s like to move to Sweden and not understand a word. You need to know Swedish to get by fully,” he admits.
“I remember the first time I tried to fill up my car at an unmanned petrol station. I didn't understand a word of Swedish and there was no one around to help me. I had no idea what I was doing and that’s a feeling that a lot of people experience here. You miss out on a lot of things. Access to information really helps.”
When it comes to making it in Sweden, Carter is confident that the best advice is the simplest.
“Just go for it! There’s a lot of support for ideas in Sweden. I find that people here are rarely negative to a new idea and they love supporting people who dare to do something different,” he tells The Local.
“When I first came here I was really doubtful about how I would make a career for myself, but I quickly found that if you go out there and try, you will succeed.”
Radio Andra is currently streaming online at www.radioandra.se and will begin live transmission from 103.1FM at 7am on October 1st.
For more information, including dates and venues for the upcoming gigs during the launch week, check out their official site and Facebook page below.
MAKING IT IN SWEDEN is a recurring series whereby The Local highlights the stories of foreigners who have come to Sweden later in life and succeeded in carving out a niche for themselves in their adopted homeland.
Oliver Gee
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“Starting a radio station was never something I dreamed of as a child,” explains Marcus Carter, a British man with a university background in radio production.
On October 1st his new radio station – Radio Andra – will be officially launched; a channel he believes will fill a gap in the Swedish FM market.
“People are always coming out to Gothenburg for music festivals, and I realized that there was no radio station that reflected these people’s tastes. I was always waiting for someone to come along and make one,” he tells The Local.
“But it never happened. So I did it.”
The station, according to Carter, will feature a mix of new, known and underground artists, with classics, indie, and alternative music being the key focus.
“Of course, we won’t forget your Springsteen, Cohen, Cash and The Smiths, but we also play a lot the new Swedish music that’s not on the charts, as well as live club mixes on Friday and Saturday nights ” he explains.
Furthermore, the station will be transmitted in English some 90 percent of the time.
With the official launch just days away, the channel is looking for sponsors and advertisers as they already look towards expansion.
“We want to be useful for the expat community and for those that don’t speak Swedish. We’ll have news and traffic reports in English – initially just relating to Gothenburg but we’re already looking further.”
Carter arrived in Sweden ten years ago after he met a Swedish woman in England and abandoned his studies. He confesses to “going down the wrong path like an idiot”, becoming a media and English teacher in Gothenburg.
However, it wasn’t long before he noticed that life can be tough for foreigners who don’t speak Swedish – an issue he hopes to alleviate for others in the same situation.
“Hopefully people will recognize that we're doing something good with our station. I know what it’s like to move to Sweden and not understand a word. You need to know Swedish to get by fully,” he admits.
“I remember the first time I tried to fill up my car at an unmanned petrol station. I didn't understand a word of Swedish and there was no one around to help me. I had no idea what I was doing and that’s a feeling that a lot of people experience here. You miss out on a lot of things. Access to information really helps.”
When it comes to making it in Sweden, Carter is confident that the best advice is the simplest.
“Just go for it! There’s a lot of support for ideas in Sweden. I find that people here are rarely negative to a new idea and they love supporting people who dare to do something different,” he tells The Local.
“When I first came here I was really doubtful about how I would make a career for myself, but I quickly found that if you go out there and try, you will succeed.”
Radio Andra is currently streaming online at www.radioandra.se and will begin live transmission from 103.1FM at 7am on October 1st.
For more information, including dates and venues for the upcoming gigs during the launch week, check out their official site and Facebook page below.
MAKING IT IN SWEDEN is a recurring series whereby The Local highlights the stories of foreigners who have come to Sweden later in life and succeeded in carving out a niche for themselves in their adopted homeland.
Oliver Gee
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