The new Radio 1 black music digital offshoot, 1xtra, officially launches tomorrow. The station counts some of the big DJ names in drum'n'bass, garage, hip-hop and soul amongst its line up – many of whom made their names on pirate stations. Although only available on digital radio, Sky or the internet, those involved see the launch as an important one for music radio in the UK. "It's not something I would have expected to see in my lifetime," Radio 1’s Trevor Nelson has said, "This is something that has been needed for over a decade," 1xtra’s breakfast presenter Letitia Scobie-Dalrymple adds, "it's really important. It's the only way the UK black music community is going to grow."
KC and the legendary sound system Rampage will launch the station at 6 pm tomorrow and broadcast a special five hour opening show featuring guest appearances from other 1Xtra DJs. There will then be a series of launch parties, broadcasting live sets back-to-back between 11 pm - 6 am from cubs in Nottingham, Bristol, Sheffield, Glasgow and London.
Some have questioned the need of a ‘black music station’ given the crossover of r’n’b and hp hop into the mainstream, while some who support the station aren’t convinced it’s a very good ‘tag’ for the station to trade under. Nelson admits using the label a "black music station" is a brave one. "If we relied on advertising, I think that word might go missing. I would have preferred the term "urban music". It's not black music for black people, it's black music for everybody. Don’t forget white people can make ‘black music’. That's the message that mustn't be misinterpreted."
There’s more information about the station at www.bbc.co.uk/1xtra.