Community radio presenter Beth Congdon Hogg hasn’t always been a Cardiff girl. Originating from Cornwall, she moved here for university, fell in love and hasn’t left. “I’ve built a life and a home here. Although I love it there, Cardiff just has so much more to offer.”
Since leaving university a couple of years ago, the 22-year-old decided to pursue a career in media and that began by presenting on community radio station Bro Radio which covers Barry and the Vale of Glamorgan. “It’s great, I get two hours to play whatever I want,” she enthuses. “I normally showcase a mix of indie music and pop, I have quite an eclectic music taste and I hope that shows. The rest of the time I just chat about life and stuff.”
Beth grew up surrounded by radio down in the darkest depths of Cornwall; there’s not much to do there she says. Her parents always had the radio on in the background, especially Radio Cornwall and Radio 4. “I have always wanted to work in radio, it’s always been around. I love Desert Island Discs and Simon Mayo.” Did she want to be a Radio 4 presenter? Beth stifles a giggle, “Naaa, I love Radio 4 but I would prefer to work somewhere like Radio 1 or Radio 6 Music.”
So why Bro Radio? The community station is run by 42 volunteers and one paid station manager. It’s all presented, produced and edited by volunteers at the YMCA in Barry. “I liked how Bro Radio is community based, it’s great to feel part of something so ingrained in this area. We do quite a lot of community projects too: last summer we arranged a summer party in Romilly Park with stalls and live music. About 3,000 people attended. I love how far reaching the station is.”
But Beth doesn’t just have a taste for the radio, she’s branching out into Youtube videos. Even with just a couple of videos online she’s already a Youtube partner, meaning she gets paid for hits on each video. “Youtube’s been another I’ve always wanted to be involved in. I’ve been a member since I was about 15 but I was pretty shy as a teenager and it’s only been recently that I’ve plucked up enough courage to produce my own vlogs (video blogs) to go alongside my blog.”
Eventually Beth wants to make Youtubing her job, alongside radio presenting but it’s not that easy. Monetising video is hard she says. To get paid viewers need to click on the advert which is shown before her video begins, and people rarely do that. “You need to get thousands of hits to get a decent amount of cash to live off you know. I’m just not there yet. Getting there, but not quite.”