About a month after Bruce started training, Darrell went to see how things were going and that was when Bruce offered him a job to help retain students coming to train.
Darrell says it is wonderful that the radio station has been around for 30 years.
He said one of the highlights for him was the excitement from everyone at the station.
“There was a student wing, which had about 12 students, and then there were eight to nine staff. I remember everyone buzzing around doing things, learning things. There was no shortage of people to do voicing.
“It was flexible. It was great and I enjoyed it too. I remember exciting dynamics because we all had one thing in common — radio.”
With the advent of digital technology, Tūranga FM evolved once again.
Darrell says that the automation of things through technology completely changed the way radio operated.
Today, the radio station is managed by well-known TV presenter and host Mātai Smith who took over as the interim station manager in 2018, after Fred Maynard.Following this interim position Mātai decided to become the station manager permanently.
Mātai co-hosts the parakuihi show with Rāhia Timutimu. It covers current affairs and events going on around the region.
Mātai says he can remember back in 1993 when he was at Lytton High School, he would tune in to Te Kākano, as it was called back in the day, to request songs.
“It had a very grassroots feel to it — you could call in and request songs. This was something other stations didn't do,” Mātai said.
He can remember Darrell Ahuriri being one of the DJs at the time and having an on-air interview with him about something. Mātai says one of the biggest differences between television broadcasting and iwi radio, is its instantaneity and the ability to go into the studio to go live the moment something happens that the community needs to know.
“You can't do that on TV. You often have to wait for the scheduled news slots, or bulletins.”
With managing an iwi radio station, Mātai saw there were opportunities for it to grow.
“My role was to look at the station as a whole. See what was working and what people wanted to listen to. So we did surveys asking what people wanted.”
They decided to make some changes, one of which is the use of social media to keep people up to date.
Tūranga FM Media is the Facebook page for the iwi radio station and has 11,000 likes and often live streams their interviews with guests so that people can see what is going on in the studio.
Tūranga FM also has listeners right across the country and even across the ditch in Australia as people can listen in via the Whare Kōrero and iHeartRadio apps.
“They tell us they listen to get that sense of home again, even if they can't be here.”
Matai says they manage to get by on a smaller budget than other media outlets.
“There's not a lot to play with, but we are clever in the way we connect with our listeners — even if we don't have the flash set up like The Edge or Mai FM with cameras everywhere.”
Looking to the future, Mātai says they will have some exciting announcements soon about the three frequencies Tūranga FM is currently broadcast on.
Tūranga FM broadcasts on 91.7FM, 95.7FM and 98.1FM.
“We will be reconfiguring those frequencies to be aligned with a particular niche audience.”
Another plan is to increase the capacity of the Tūranga FM Media name.
Mātai says there is an opportunity for it to be the “one stop shop” for iwi communications.
Tūranga FM has their breakfast show, then The Switch Up with Dougy D, as well as Keeping up with the Rangatahi with Te Haaki Matenga and Ahirama Amai in the afternoon, and then the Night Train with Walter Walsh aka The Wiz.
Phil Tārawa hosts The Noho at the weekends and Pāpā Lindsay Henare hosts the hugely popular The Whānau Show with kaumātua tuning in and ringing in from around the motu requesting their favourite old school classic hits.
Tūranga FM has had exclusive access to a few events, including the investiture of Tā Derek Lardelli at Whāngara Marae.
But during the last few years, Tūranga FM provided relevant information about the Covid-19 pandemic on a daily basis.
“That was probably when our flag really flew at its highest,” Mātai said.
“We had to deal with a plethora of messages and we had to filter the information down to ensure it was Tūranga related and not national messaging. Going into the station at the time, as essential workers, was a scary time.
“It was new ground for us to go live with updates each day, but we did it. We also tried to bring the levity by doing things to entertain people. We started this thing called Fancy Formal Whakarongo Friyay where we would dress up in whatever sort of outfit, matching, different scenarios, and then eat some kai, terotero or rotten corn or whatever. We knew we had to provide that light relief for the whānau.
“You kind of have to pinch yourself now in 2023 when thinking about Covid. It's still present in the community but it's not as daunting as it was in 2021.”
Mātai says even though it “sounds cliche, it is a huge privilege to carry on the legacy of all the people here in the early days who set it up and paved the way for us all to continue into the new age”.
“I love what I do, and I love all my staff. They are so passionate about radio, trustworthy and self-sufficient.
“While I might wear the station manager badge, my job is made a whole lot easier by them and I just love it. It's been truly invigorating.”
In July, there will be a celebration for this huge milestone.
There will be a trip down Memory Lane for former iwi station workers as well as a public concert to thank its loyal listeners.
