FM Omni Channel hits milestone and continues to grow

Tracey V. Bell is the owner and operator of FM Omni Channel. Photo provided by FM Omni Channel.
Tracey V. Bell is the owner and operator of FM Omni Channel. Photo provided by FM Omni Channel.

FM Omni Channel hits milestone and continues to grow

By Tia Carol Jones

In August 2019, Tracey V. Bell purchased 95.1 FM from Windy City Broadcasting. She was doing marketing for the station when the opportunity came to purchase the station. Thirty days later, she launched the radio station as an app. The app allowed people from all over the country and the world to listen to the station.

When Bell bought the channel Tom Joyner was the host of its morning show. In December of 2019, Joyner retired. Michael Baisden was the host of the afternoon show. Then, he went on to do his own syndicated show on another network. The station continued to grow with radio personalities like Troi Tyler, Bonnie DeShong and Ramonski Luv joining its ranks. Recently Sasha Dalton signed on to do Sunday morning radio.

“We’ve had the best of the best since I bought the radio station,” Bell said.
FM Omni Channel plays music for people 35 years old and older, with an extensive playlist. While it plays popular songs, it also plays RnB, smooth jazz, inspiration and gospel and the blues.

The app continued to grow, and Bell decided to move from the terrestrial station and solely operate through its app and digitally. Bell said the experience for the listeners is better. Today, it averages 4 million active actual streams per month throughout a six month period. FM Omni Channel is enjoyed every month in 113 countries across six continents and 49 states.

Bell is proud of what the community has done to make the station what it is. The app has grown because the listeners have shared the app with other people.

“To have something this significant that was organically built by African American people is absolutely phenomenal and so powerful that I don’t think at times we understand the magnitude of what we’ve been able to do,” she said.

Bell has been able to maintain the station through National advertisers. She would like to see more recognition of the station and the work it is doing and has been doing for the last four years.

FM Omni Channel launched a digital theater on the app so people could watch concerts with notable artists. According to Bell, the Ramonski Luv Morning Show streams 1.25 million a month.

With everything she knows now and has gone through in the journey with the station, Bell said she would still do it all over again. It has been a blessing for her, the staff at the station and the community.

Bell is glad to be able to offer a variety of genres on the station because she understands that Black people are not a monolith and people enjoy different kinds of music.

“When you download the app and listen to the FM Omni Channel, you’re going to get the same thing regardless of where you are, you can be in France, you can be in Bora Bora, or you can be on the South side of Chicago. It’s one station for a whole globe and that’s something we’re proud of,” Bell said.

Knowing that there are people from all over listening to the station, Bell feels the station has a tremendous responsibility to be responsive to the people and they are doing good radio. She added, good communication is what the station does.

Bell credits the people who have helped to grow the station by taking it on its shoulders. The staff brings their musical expertise each time they are on the station. Bell is committed to continuing to serve and celebrate the African American community.

For more information about FM Omni Channel, visit www.fmomnichannel.com.

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