Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

DJ Roob’s Not So Serious Radio calls it quits?

Twelve bands are currently sitting on a waiting list to play a program that no longer exists

Rob Blackwell’s friends call him DJ Roob.
Rob Blackwell’s friends call him DJ Roob.

Rob Blackwell discovered KEXP about twenty years ago. He was visiting a friend in Seattle and was blown away by the radio station they were listening to in his car. When he returned home, he was able to stream the station online, and grew to be more than just a fan — he became an active participant.

“I’ve done a lot with them,” Blackwell explained. “They used to broadcast live at South by Southwest. I used to help them with the live remote broadcast there. That was a hoot.... They are so pure to their mission of championing independent artists and independent music. I have learned so much about music from that station.”

One job that Blackwell never performed for KEXP was to spin records as a disc jockey. He wasn’t experienced in the field even though it was a secret dream of his. A few years back, he set-out to make this dream a reality by enrolling in a radio production course at Palomar College. Soon thereafter Blackwell had his own Wednesday night show (Not So Serious Radio) on KKSM, the university’s radio station. He became DJ Roob, a name inspired by members of a group he once managed referring to him as Reuben Kincaid, the fictional manager of The Partridge Family television band. The name eroded over time and shortened to just “Roob.” Roob’s show borrowed heavily from the KEXP playbook including live, full-band performances in their studio space.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“We’re at the San Marcos campus. The radio station and the DJ booth are in one of the buildings. Directly next door, there’s the room where we do the live performances. It was the room that was really for the television program at the school. A couple years ago they revamped the entire studio. They set it up and it looks like a talk show. I call it Good Morning America,” Blackwell said.

The opportunity to play live sets on the air caught on quick with local bands and artists. Taken By Canadians and Imagery Machine played early on, and eventually 52 bands performed on the show. In fact, 12 more bands are currently sitting on a waiting list to play a program that no longer exists.

Two factors led Blackwell to throw in the towel. The first was the “unbelievable crazy” workload that he was experiencing at his day gig, where he serves as the chief operating officer for a cannabis start-up. The second was the news that KKSM’s station manager would be unable to attend the live-tapings for the remainder of the current semester.

“I don’t have a back-up plan for that. I just can’t do it,” Blackwell said.

So, Not So Serious Radio was put to rest, but Blackwell hopes that someone else in the San Diego scene follows his lead and gives local artists a similar outlet to showcase their talents.

“We are the eighth-largest city in the US, and we have lots of stations who have more resources than I do on a scrappy little college radio budget, and I can’t believe that there’s no radio station here that would be willing to commit to the programming that we had on NSSR and support the local music scene. They’re dumb. That may not fit in their corporate mantra and guidebook and ratings and all that, but I tell ya, when you get local bands that come on, they’re telling their friends to tune in. Their moms are tuning in. Their cousins are tuning in. They’re watching it. People are sharing the videos. I think these radio stations are really ignorant to not try that here. It’s actually a big disappointment to me that this is the best we can do in this city from a radio standpoint,” Blackwell said.

Update: On May 24, DJ Roob posted on Facebook that Not So Serious Radio would be returning to the KKSM airwaves on June 12. The only change seems to be that the show will lose an hour and now run from 7-9 pm instead of starting at 6 pm.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego Reader 2024 Music & Arts Issue

Favorite fakers: Baby Bushka, Fleetwood Max, Electric Waste Band, Oceans, Geezer – plus upcoming tribute schedule
Rob Blackwell’s friends call him DJ Roob.
Rob Blackwell’s friends call him DJ Roob.

Rob Blackwell discovered KEXP about twenty years ago. He was visiting a friend in Seattle and was blown away by the radio station they were listening to in his car. When he returned home, he was able to stream the station online, and grew to be more than just a fan — he became an active participant.

“I’ve done a lot with them,” Blackwell explained. “They used to broadcast live at South by Southwest. I used to help them with the live remote broadcast there. That was a hoot.... They are so pure to their mission of championing independent artists and independent music. I have learned so much about music from that station.”

One job that Blackwell never performed for KEXP was to spin records as a disc jockey. He wasn’t experienced in the field even though it was a secret dream of his. A few years back, he set-out to make this dream a reality by enrolling in a radio production course at Palomar College. Soon thereafter Blackwell had his own Wednesday night show (Not So Serious Radio) on KKSM, the university’s radio station. He became DJ Roob, a name inspired by members of a group he once managed referring to him as Reuben Kincaid, the fictional manager of The Partridge Family television band. The name eroded over time and shortened to just “Roob.” Roob’s show borrowed heavily from the KEXP playbook including live, full-band performances in their studio space.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“We’re at the San Marcos campus. The radio station and the DJ booth are in one of the buildings. Directly next door, there’s the room where we do the live performances. It was the room that was really for the television program at the school. A couple years ago they revamped the entire studio. They set it up and it looks like a talk show. I call it Good Morning America,” Blackwell said.

The opportunity to play live sets on the air caught on quick with local bands and artists. Taken By Canadians and Imagery Machine played early on, and eventually 52 bands performed on the show. In fact, 12 more bands are currently sitting on a waiting list to play a program that no longer exists.

Two factors led Blackwell to throw in the towel. The first was the “unbelievable crazy” workload that he was experiencing at his day gig, where he serves as the chief operating officer for a cannabis start-up. The second was the news that KKSM’s station manager would be unable to attend the live-tapings for the remainder of the current semester.

“I don’t have a back-up plan for that. I just can’t do it,” Blackwell said.

So, Not So Serious Radio was put to rest, but Blackwell hopes that someone else in the San Diego scene follows his lead and gives local artists a similar outlet to showcase their talents.

“We are the eighth-largest city in the US, and we have lots of stations who have more resources than I do on a scrappy little college radio budget, and I can’t believe that there’s no radio station here that would be willing to commit to the programming that we had on NSSR and support the local music scene. They’re dumb. That may not fit in their corporate mantra and guidebook and ratings and all that, but I tell ya, when you get local bands that come on, they’re telling their friends to tune in. Their moms are tuning in. Their cousins are tuning in. They’re watching it. People are sharing the videos. I think these radio stations are really ignorant to not try that here. It’s actually a big disappointment to me that this is the best we can do in this city from a radio standpoint,” Blackwell said.

Update: On May 24, DJ Roob posted on Facebook that Not So Serious Radio would be returning to the KKSM airwaves on June 12. The only change seems to be that the show will lose an hour and now run from 7-9 pm instead of starting at 6 pm.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Navy solves San Diego homeless crisis by retiring four locally moored ships

Decommision Accomplished
Next Article

Croome Brothers Trio, Jack Tempchin, Ricky, Swami & the Bed Of Nails, Kahlil Nash

Acoustic and electric in Del Mar, La Jolla, Little Italy, and City Heights
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.