WMOT/Nashville To Celebrate Five Years With Special Birthday Concert 

Just In Time For AmericanFest!

MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY Americana/NPR affiliate WMOT (ROOTS RADIO)/NASHVILLE-MURFREESBORO is set to celebrate five years TODAY (9/2) with a special concert featuring RODNEY CROWELL, CARLENE CARTER and SHANNON MCNALLY at CITY WINERY.

The station flipped its longstanding jazz/classical format to a new ROOTS RADIO concept, giving a new lease on life to the 89.5 FM signal that had been part of MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY life for 50 years. It has since become a champion and tastemaker in the NASHVILLE-centered field of AMERICANA music.

WMOT Exec. Dir. VAL HOEPPNER said, “I knew that American Roots music wasn’t getting the attention or airtime it deserved in the one place it ought to -- NASHVILLE -- where a good share of AMERICANA is written. Deciding on American Roots music was easy, building the library fell to JESSIE SCOTT, our PD.”

SCOTT -- a founding member of the AMERICANA MUSIC ASSOCIATION and programmer of X Country at XM Radio for a decade – said, “The philosophy is interesting, as it is based on the melting pot of AMERICAN music. The big bang came from the overlaying of different traditions -- Black, Native American and European, melding together. That gives us a lot of ground to cover, from Folk to Gospel, Blues to Southern Rock, Rockabilly to Western Swing and the modern twists of Neo-soul and Roots Rock.”

Among the many things the station has accomplished in its first five years is the creation of 895 FEST in MURFREESBORO, a spring event that has plans to return when COVID-19 is behind us. The station also has many specialty programs.

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