Log onto Robin Kinnie’s 24/7 internet radio network, Motor City Woman, and you may hear songs by empowering artists, tips from a licensed clinical therapist or inspiring stories from entrepreneurs and bloggers. The common bond? Every voice is female.
“We really want anything that seeks to inspire, motivate or inform women,” says Kinnie, a Southfield mom of three. A relative radio newbie, Kinnie, who worked with nonprofits, fell into broadcast when she did a last-minute interview for an event – and loved it. By 2015, she had her own show on urban news-talk station WCHB-AM.
“I quickly realized that it was just bigger than myself,” says Kinnie. So last year, with the help of her husband Mike, an audio engineer, she launched the MCW station out of Southfield. The goal is for women to “share their experience and expertise and kind of create this collaborative,” Kinnie explains.
Her two daughters and son – ages 6, 4 and 5 months – played a big role, too. “I really wanted to create a space where women would feel comfortable bringing their kids, so our reception area is modeled after my living room.”
You might even hear high school students sitting behind the mic and practicing their on-air interview skills.
Kinnie also advocates for women in audio engineering. “I’m hoping it expands and we continue to inspire other women,” she says, “and not look at motherhood as an obstacle.”
Be involved
Meet Motor City Woman at Motivated Mom Tour, an event that helps all moms – from entrepreneurs to stay-at-home – “activate” their dreams. It runs 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. May 20 at Doubletree Suites in Detroit. $50-$75.
