Local 107.3 FM’s Radical Fabulatorium will begin airing interviews with former MuchMusic VJs this weekend in advance of the upcoming screening of the new MuchMusic documentary, 299 Queen Street West at the Imperial Theatre on October 18.
Matt Carter
If you grew up in Canada in the 80s and 90s, there is a pretty good chance you spent hours each week watching MuchMusic. For decades, the scrappy Canadian television upstart united viewers with a who’s who of international music makers, gave Canadian musicians equal footing with their American counterparts, and helped bands grow their audiences. In doing so, the station also became a template for 90’s pop culture both here in Canada and south of the border.
MuchMusic’s illustrious history has been documented in a recent film by director Sean Menard. 299 Queen Street West, debuted in Austin, Texas during the 2023 SXSW Conference and Festivals. The film made its Canadian debut earlier this month at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto and will be touring the country during October and November. The tour includes a stop in New Brunswick for a screening and post show Q&A at the Imperial Theatre on Wednesday October 18.
John Adam Ian, host of the The Radical Fabulatorium on Local 107.3 FM in Saint John, has interviewed a number of people involved in the station including Rick Campanelli (aka Rick the Temp); Micheal Williams, who hosted several shows including Soul in the City, RapCity, Electric Circus, Pepsi Power Hour and The NewMusic; and studio personality and Outlaws & Heroes host Bill Welychka. The interviews will be aired on the program beginning this Sunday, October 1.
“Just learning about how much freedom they had was really interesting,” said Ian, who was surprised to learn just how influential MuchMusic was on industry giant MTV.
“MTV existed and then MuchMusic started,” he said. “But then the vibe at MuchMusic started to influence what bands wanted out of MTV. Artists like Prince, someone who rarely made time for interviews, would accept an interview request with MuchMusic. Same with Madonna. These artists would also request to be interviewed by specific VJs at the station because of the way they conducted their interviews.”
To hear the full interviews, tune in to The Radical Fabulatorium, Sundays 7-9 p.m. on Local 107.3 FM. Find a full archive of past interviews via your preferred podcast provider and on YouTube.
299 Queen Street West, screens October 18 at the Imperial Theatre at 7 p.m. Buy Tickets
