The Vixen’s Vibe
Studying a Bachelor of Creative Arts at USQ has its perks,
including access to a fully-equipped radio studio. Phoenix
Radio broadcasts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and offers
students the chance to create real, live radio.
Tia Thompson and her classmates Mitchell, Alex and Nikita are
taking that chance to have fun improving their skills hosting
The Vixen’s Vibe. USQ’s Rachel Tapscott spoke to Tia about
exactly what goes into creating live radio.
Q: What is The Vixen’s Vibe?
A: A student radio show here
at Phoenix Radio USQ, which
broadcasts local and pop culture
news. We aim to inspire creativity
through interviews with cosplayers
and creative types to inspire ideas
and creativity in people who just
want to have a go.
Q: What inspired you to want to
create The Vixen’s Vibe?
A: I’ve always been interested in
radio, and I started out volunteering
on Morbid Curiosity and Midnight
Briefcase [existing shows on Phoenix
Radio] last year. I have a solid group
of friends who are also interested
in radio and are also nerds like me,
and we have a love for pop culture.
There’s really nothing like this show
on the airwaves at the moment and
I think it brings a wide audience
because of this.
Q: Can you explain the process
you went through to get the
show on the air waves?
A: I started off volunteering and
learning how to panel, and when I
was confident enough I developed
the idea for the show and pitched
it to Glen and Ashley [lecturers of a
creative arts course and Phoenix Radio
station managers]. Ashley loved it and
supported it completely, and we had
the show a month later. In regards to
the setup process, after the idea was
approved, we sent a basic outline to
Sam [Phoenix Radio music director]
and he organised it and slotted it into
the Phoenix Radio program.
Q: What do you love about
having your own radio show?
A: I love the freedom of being
able to decide what we are going
to talk about. I get to live my hobby
every day with this show, as I’m
constantly researching the latest pop
culture news. I love the idea of the
show once it gets past the baby
step phase.
We want to support equality with
the show; anyone can cosplay,
anyone can create, it’s not just for
geeks, it’s not a cult following. It’s
about being proud to say ‘I like this’
and sharing it with people who have
the same interests.
Q: What are your main talking
points for the show?
A: We talk about the biggest things
happening during the week, for
example Comicon, Supernova, the
release of a new season of a popular
show or a movie. We also discuss
prep for conventions. If there isn’t
a major event that week we pick a
topic, for example the new season
of Game of Thrones. We run with
what’s happening, what’s popular or
new. When the new Avengers came
out, to avoid spoilers we looked at the
background of the previous Avenger’s
movie and the character development,
what could it mean for this movie.
Q: How did it feel going into
your first show?
A: My first experience with announcing
was on Morbid Curiosity with Jekki
Booth. I’d been a watcher in-studio for
a while, and one day someone couldn’t
come in so she threw me into it. It was
scary at first, and it took a couple of
shows to get into the flow of it. As
a support member of the show, it’s
not as daunting; if you’re a host it
has a bit more responsibility.