Since July, 2013, Toronto’s now-iconic indie rock station Indie88 has been on the airwaves, promoting its brand all over the city via promotional events, and supporting both homegrown and major artists as they come through the GTA. Many fans are unaware of where the station is based out of – look no further than Atlantic Avenue in Liberty Village. We introduced them to the neighbourhood in an Aug 2013 post.
Throughout the past few years, Indie88 in Liberty Village has welcomed into its studios some of the biggest names in Canadian indie rock. So much of the station has been focused on engaging its listeners through online media platforms as well as via call-ins. As Liberty Village has continued to grow throughout the years, attracting more music to its streets, Indie88 is a major piece of music representation for the neighborhood. In addition to JazzFM, the attraction of radio stations to Liberty Village in combination with the live music venues that exist further north along King and Queen have drawn many artists and musicians to the area, seeking to be discovered and to find their audience.
Right in the heart of Liberty Village, the Indie88 offices are located right across the street from the Liberty Market Building. Among the best examples in Toronto of independent radio, they are entirely independently funded and do not belong to a larger media conglomerate, contrary to many of their competitors. The fun, hip vibe in Liberty Village is primarily what brought in the station initially and in the years to come, having appeared at countless Liberty Village and Toronto events, Indie88 has brought its own brand of fun and hip to the community. Compared favorably by many listeners to 102.1 The Edge, Indie88 is a true jewel in the crown of Toronto radio stations and as a Liberty Village business, they have proven to be more than just a vanity feature.
If you’ve never listened in on what’s going on at Indie88, we recommend listening in via their online portal. Available on their website, listen to segments and programming blocks with ease. They not only feature artists from Toronto and Canada but artists from across the globe. Their influence over the indie rock demographic in Toronto has grown significantly in the years since it first came to be. If you ever have the opportunity to visit their home and/or to engage with any of their representatives, it is worth getting involved. They routinely appear at events all over the city, staging games and getting people excited for the day. Indie88 is a radio station of the people for the people. Very much a community engaged, Liberty Village has continued to use the hip, fun vibes of businesses like Indie88 to promote neighborhood events and to attract residents to the community.
The deeper that one delves into the neighborhood’s business infrastructure, one begins to see how strong the organizations and people are that embody this network.
If you are seeking to open a business in Liberty Village or if you are looking to invest in a condo in a part of Toronto with a lot of life to it, Liberty Village is among the neighborhoods to look at. Along with a small collection of other organizations, Indie88 continues to contribute an alt-indie vibe that many residents have welcomed with open arms. As its reputation continues to grow and as the Indie88 brand becomes more deeply embedded into Canadian music, there’s no doubt that it will continue to be a major community contributor in Liberty Village.
Liberty Village continues to boast a strong reputation in music with stations such as Indie88 and JazzFM present, as well as the recent announcement coming from Universal Music Canada who are set to build their own studios in the neighborhood.
Though one does not inherently associate Toronto music culture with Liberty Village, with each year that passes, there seems to be one more music-friendly or music-centric business that has moved into the neighborhood. If Liberty Village keeps up this pace, it might turn out to be one of the most music-friendly neighborhoods in Toronto within a decade and must be a consideration for anyone looking to embed themselves in the city’s music industry.
