Mighty Hitman's Frontline Radio is 17

IT WAS HARD NAVIGATING AS AN ONLINE STATION

WORDS | RADEYA OSMAN

Frontline Radio may not be known to all, but the station has been pushing out soca since the early days, and turned 17 this February. We spoke to Mighty Hitman (Cleon Lord), the man behind the radio, about the station then and now.

What was your inspiration to start this journey and how has it been so far, navigating it?

I always liked to entertain people, whether it’s DJing or putting on events; I love to make people happy. I like new challenges, and I wanted to have an online radio station - and I was inspired by radio personalities such as Smokey Joe. I wanted to create a platform where I could have my own radio personalities come and play music, and to give the up and coming DJs back then a chance to showcase their talents to the world. Also, for the unknown artists as well, giving them a place to showcase their work.

To begin with, it was hard navigating as an online radio. 17 years ago it wasn’t that popular for its time, and I had no idea where it was going. So it was hard to find your footing, as they say - but eventually it caught on, and technology evolved and made it so much easier. If someone had told me I would have an online radio station and that it’s going to last 17 years plus, I would have just laughed and said, you must be joking.

The pandemic hit a lot of businesses very hard, but some significantly grew during that period. How was it for you, as an online radio station?

For us, it really helped people to stay connected with their loved ones, friends etc, and we gave them that safe space of not feeling alone but still having some sort of connection. I really think that’s where zoom parties were born but, for us an online radio station, we provided the opportunity for people to talk to others and to share what they were going through. Not only that, but it took their minds off it, reassured them that everything was going to be alright.

You have stayed relevant in this space for 17 years. There must be a few things you're doing right. Can you let us in on some of them? Yeah: two simple things.

1) Stay focussed

2) Be innovative.

Where do you see Frontline radio in the next 17 years?

Oh, wow, if I live to see that long! I would like to see Frontline Radio as a central hub for the upcoming DJs who are looking to become good radio personalities, and a good place to gain experience. The station has had a few well-known names come out of it, like Tony Tempo, DJ Stephen Intl & DJ Kaotic Intl, just to name a few, so I hope we can continue bringing out some more big names for the next 17 years. Also, a place for the new artists that are coming through; we focus on them and give them a platform to showcase their work.

Although your station plays soca music from around the world, you are UK based. What do you think of the UK soca market, and how has it changed - or not - since Frontline has been around?

17 years ago there wasn’t much of a UK soca market, and so the few UK artists we did have really didn’t get much attention. A lot has changed now, and I think it is because we have a UK Soca Monarch, UK Calypso Tent, which has really helped to bring out the talent we have here in the UK. We have really great producers now, which is a positive, and they are doing a fantastic job in producing great tracks that you can compare with the international artistsand I really think that is something the UK should be proud of. Artists like Scrappy, Triniboi Joocie, Batch, Terra Dan, Sundivas and MS Desire are really leading the way for others to follow, and once they continue to come together and do shows I think more and more international stars would want to perform with them, right here in the UK.

How did you celebrate 17 years?

We celebrated our 17 years in true Frontline style: back-to-back DJs on the day, from 10am to 4am. We had live guests such as Militant, College Boy Jesse, Sean Caruth, Shurwayne Winchester and big producer Perry Jack, Article One - just to name a few. They all came out, and we had a nice time. We are still celebrating, and hoping to do something for Notting Hill Carnival and other events that are in the pipeline, not only here in the UK but worldwide also.

Frontline Radio has a vast range of DJs all playing you a fresh mix of Caribbean Music especially soca and calypso, to listen visit www.flrradio.com.

You can keep up with Frontline on their socials: Instagram and Twitter @dfrontlineradio or Facebook thefrontlineradio.