STRETCH GOAL TIME

Okay y'all blew the original goal out of the water, so let's make this interesting. I'm making a stretch goal of $1000 - we're already over half way there! - and upping the stakes. If we make the stretch goal, I will 1) still do karaoke 2) to ANY song y'all pick (like it could be the theme song to Sanford and Son a capella) as long as it's clean for airplay and 3) I will try to see if I can corral some friends to do it live-band-styles. WOW NEAT

ALSO if anyone becomes a sustaining member at the $20/month level, I will bring all my professional DJ equipment to your house/venue of choice and DJ a party for you EXTRA NEAT

OMG HOW IS IT FALL ALREADY

I know, right? That means it's drive season, and I'm once again looking to help out the station that's been a lynchpin in my social life for the past 5-odd years. Here's the deal:

1. I collect donations from you wonderful people, CHIRP stays on the air
2. We raise $500 and pat ourselves on the back
3. I do karaoke LIVE on the air during my next post-drive show, to the song of your choice (there will be a vote, stay tuned)
4. ???
5. Profit! Well, I guess Nonprofit. And I guess we already did that. But, YAY KARAOKE

Pretty straightforward!

So, I imagine you have some questions about the drive:

How does my $$$ help CHIRP?

• $10 covers one day of transmission from our studio to our transmitter site, half a day of streaming costs, or one album that isn’t sent to us by an artist or label
• $25 covers the cost of a replacement stylus for a turntable
• $50 covers one day of rent for the CHIRP studios
• $60 ($5/mo.) covers one month or CHIRP’s phone or DSL bill
• $120 ($10/mo.) covers a turntable tune-up
• $240 ($20/mo.) covers a hand-held field recorder for our features team, or one month of maintenance for our mobile app
• $365 ($1/day) covers just over a week of rent for the CHIRP studios
• $500 covers one month of rooftop rent for our broadcast antenna
• $1000 covers a year of insurance for our studios or our broadcast antenna

Okay, cool, but what do I get out of it?

I'm guessing you mean besides a sense of goodwill at furthering the cause of independent music radio in The City of Big Shoulders?

Yeah. Let's talk tangibles. I've got bills to pay, lady.

Fair enough. Well, any donation made to a 501(c)3 non-profit (like us) is tax-deductible --

-- But I already did my taxes. What do I get right now?

Okay, okay. So we've got some pretty cool donor gifts this time around. If you sign up to give $5/month, or a flat $60, you'll get this dope backpack:

Nice, right?

If you can manage to double that ($10/month or $120), you'll get a t-shirt designed by Damien James plus our very awesome CHIRP Member Card (good for 2-1 entrees at a ton of restaurants, as well as admissions to local museums and other great stuff!)

Oooh, ahhh.

Things get fancy at the $20/month level (that's $240 flat if you're not a math kid):

YAAAAS PAJAMAS I HATE BEING OUTSIDE! That's in addition to the aforementioned CHIRP Member Card.

If you can set aside $1/day ($365), you'll get all three gifts (journals+shirt+blanket) in addition to the Member Card. If you're feeling particularly generous (and feel like meeting my fundraising goal in one fell swoop, damn), $500 will get you all of the above plus a tour of the station! And Shawn's undying gratitude, I'm sure. As well as mine.

Wow, that's a lot. How do I make sure I get my sweet gift?

Either donate via this page and email development@chirpradio.org, or donate via chirpradio.org/donatenow and select "Jenny West's Radio Quest" where it says "CREDIT THIS DONATION TO THIS SOCIAL FUNDRAISER". Otherwise it won't count toward my goal. And I like meeting goals.

So like... are you putting anything on offer here? Like, personally?

Not sure how to take that, but... if you donate $50, I will bring my fancy DJ equipment (yeah people pay me to do that now weird) to your event and DJ for free for an hour. Add an hour for every $50. So like, if you did a $10/month thing + $30, that's the t-shirt AND a free 3-hour party. Pretty sweet deal, right? 

What if I don't live near Chicago though?

Well, I can at least curate a Spotify playlist for you or something. We'll figure it out.

Dang, cool. So this is pretty important to you, huh?

YES. This is the organization I honestly spend something like 75% of my free time on. Sometimes even my not-free-time. I've made amazing friends and awesome music scene connections through this group, and I'm allowed to DJ and share music I love with people once a week for two hours (my show's called Music For Chameleons, it's 8-10pm Tuesdays, check it out!). None of that would happen if this organization didn't exist.

Sounds like it's pretty important for the local Chicago music scene too.

Now you're getting it. We focus on local artists and labels pretty heavily - for some bands, we're the only chance they'll have to be on the air. We also promote local concerts and fellow non-profits, so we'd like to think there's a net benefit to the community.

Well, I'm sold. How do I contribute?

Through this page, or through chirpradio.org/donatenow. 

Great, that's taken care of. Good luck with your drive!

Thanks so much! And don't forget to tune in for your on-air shoutout. You're the best!

No, you are!

Oh, stop. We'll be here all day.

Support CHIRP for Ten Years of Great Independent Radio Programming! Make a "Sound Investment" in the station's future today!

CHIRP is a a listener-supported, volunteer-driven station. You make everything we do possible, whether it's supporting local artists, introducing you to tons of new music, throwing great events, or providing an outlet for your favorite DJ. As we celebate our tenth anniversary as a station, please help ensure we begin our second decade on strong financial footing!

In this era, it's more important than ever to support independent media. No commercials. No voice-tracking. No algorithms. Just great music brought to you by true music fans.

If you would like to become a sustaining member by making a recurring donation (monthly or quarterly), or if you want to select a thank you gift, please visit CHIRP's main donation page to make your contribution (and don’t forget to enter the name of the CHIRP Volunteer or DJ in the “How did you hear about CHIRP” section so they can receive credit for your gift).