Former radio deejays Mark Richmond and Aloysius Tan unveiled a digital music service specifically for mature adults.
Called VintageRadioSG, the service is available online and via mobile apps, and presents Seniors with music from the 1950s to 1970s, as well as videos and old photographs, along with other curated content.
The combination of content and accessibility is to provide the reason and means to make it less intimidating for Seniors to transition into the digital space.
Richmond conceived the idea of Vintage Radio during the Circuit Breaker, when he observed how older folks were coping during the lockdown, in particular the ones who were suffering isolation more acutely than the rest. Richmond then approached his old radio buddy Tan, who researched and developed the idea further. While he worked on designing a user-friendly format that would spark the interest of Seniors, Richmond looked into the programming and content creation.
Vintage Radio aims to inform, entertain and engage Seniors through easy-to-access curated content, fronted by four familiar presenters who will encourage this group of older listeners to embark on their digital journey.
The digital radio outfit has already hired veteran deejays Brian Richmond (73), Guo Xian Hua (70), PN Bala (69) and grand dame of music Rahimah Rahim (64) to each present 2-hourly time-belts twice a day.
Vintage Radio will be available on the App Store, Google Play Store & Huawei AppGallery, and streamed every day, 24 hours a day.
Vintage Radio is registered as a not-for-profit social enterprise. Initial funding of the project has been mainly supported by generous donations from philanthropists Pang Sze Khai, Anthonia Hui and Dr Mary Ann Tsao as well as grants from the oscar@sg fund, managed by Temasek Trust and the ACI-Trampoline Fund, managed by Majurity Trust.
Both Richmond and Tan were Radio Deejays on Perfect 10 (now renamed 987FM). Richmond left Mediacorp in 2008 after 20 years on-air as a Radio deejay and Programme Director of 987FM. He is now currently at Sport SG. Tan left Mediacorp in 2008, after 15 years during which he transitioned from Radio deejay to several management roles, to start RADIOActive, a digital audio-streaming solutions company.
“Radio has always been about community, about sharing and caring. We cannot deny that as we’ve moved forward digitally, we have also left people behind. It is time to do the right thing. It is our duty to hold the hands that built this nation and have the patience and good grace to help and guide them on their digital journey. Let us be a real and inclusive community.” – Aloysius Tan
“VintageRadioSG was conceived to give back to our Seniors, to enrich their lives and bring back happy memories for them. Music has always had the power to do that, and we believe we can use it to make their digital journey less intimidating, and even joyful. This is a small gift to the people that helped build the country I live in.” – Mark Richmond
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