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The 330 can be heard online at the330.net and on The Summit's mobile app.

(the330.net)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- What if there was a radio station dedicated to playing artists from Northeast Ohio from Tracy Chapman, the Black Keys to the homegrown talent of today?

That is the concept of The 330, the new streaming audio channel from Akron-based, publicly-funded The Summit 91.3 WAPS-FM that went online Friday.

"So many great bands are making top-notch music here in Northeast Ohio," 91.3 program director Brad Savage said in a statement. "We've always heard from Summit listeners when we play local and independent acts gave us the impetus to develop and launch The 330."

The process from idea to reality started about four months ago when the station realized it had accumulated "hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of songs" by regional artists in the 30 years it has been on the air, yet only had the airtime to play a handful of them on a daily basis.

"We wanted to pay homage to those bands that are from our area," station GM Tommy Bruno said. "So, you'll hear Devo, the Pretenders, the Arcs, but mixed in with that and, certainly the bigger part of the rotation, is homegrown talent right here that makes a living working all the venues in the area."

The 330, which can be heard online at the330.net and on The Summit's mobile app, will play all genres including songs that might not fit on the FM station.

"You'll hear rap, you'll hear reggae, you'll hear the O'Jays, I don't know about Rosemary Clooney," Bruno said. "Red Sun Rising is a good example. They have a No. 1 song on the alternative chart and it's a little harder driving than maybe what we'd play on The Summit and it fits very nicely on The 330."

And, yes, the station features artists from area codes 216, 440 and 234 as well.

Local musicians who'd like to submit material for consideration for airplay on The 330 can go online at thesummit.fm.

"The Black Keys [once] dropped off a demo here," Bruno said.

The 330 joins The Summit's family of stations that also includes Rock and Recovery and KIDJAM! Radio. "We have a responsibility as a public radio station to look at the needs of the community and fulfill them," Bruno said. "This hyperlocal kind of homegrown channel really fulfills the core of our mission."