All of us here at College radio are thrilled to participate in this special CRS issue. I know what a lot of you are thinking, “hey, this is all about Country”, you are wrong my friend. Although Country takes the spotlight here, many of the music and program directors in attendance also program other formats of music. In fact, a good many of our reporters have a Country stations, a Top40, AC and even a College station in the same area, and for many, in the same building.

We’d like to also give a big “shout out” to our recent New Music Award “winners”! Now it’s time to look at some news that may be of interest to our College pals but right after that…CRS Party! Are you up on Khaled Dajani? Born in Saudi Arabia, Khaled moved to the US when he was 16 and, against his traditional upbringing, chose to pursue his musical passion with a vengeance. “I was always told, ‘Wise up and get a job and start a family!’ It only made me want to work harder on my craft, so I developed my voice, guitar technique, and unique composition style that I call alternative world fusion.”

With the help of fan donations, Dajani brought his vision to life with the making of Luci– a concept album that brings together art, poetry and bold musical combinations, including Middle Eastern and Spanish guitar, driving horns, rock guitar and percussion, and passionate strings. The album opens with the brief ambient guitar intro “Hello” and comes to a passionate climax with “Luci”, a song about the confrontation with Lucifer, followed by a return to freedom with the final song “Yellow Bird”.