PEORIA MAGAZINE February 2023

Marc Supreme and his crew at Peoria’s Strictly Hip Hop Radio

S P O T L I G H T

‘BRINGING LIFE BACK TO THE CITY FOR PEOPLE WHO LOOK LIKE US’ Peoria’s Strictly Hip Hop Radio is providing a platform for young artists, building a following and opening minds

A t 512 E. Kansas Street on Peoria’s East Bluff, you will find the radio headquarters of WAZU 90.7 Strictly Hip Hop. With roots that begin across the Illinois River and up the hill at Illinois Central College (ICC), 90.7 currentlycalls home a generously sized, second-floor office with high ceilings, reminiscent of an old classroom, because it is. The non-commercial radio station is housed within the East Bluff Community Center in what once was St. Bernard’s Catholic Grade School. The Community Center is a non profit organization in one of the city’s lowest income neighborhoods, with a mission “to foster connections that enrich lives and enhance the East Bluff.” It represents a safe and collaborative space for the community, including the radio station that operates within. The station’s ties to ICCwere severed in 2015 due to budget cuts prompted by

BY ROXY BAKER PHOTO BY RON JOHNSON

64 FEBRUARY 2023 PEORIA MAGAZINE