Published on 12 November 2021
University of Sunderland student and budding presenter Chrissy Cameron is riding the airwaves to success after bagging a national award.
Chrissy, who hosts a hip hop show on the University’s community station Spark, won Best Newcomer at this year’s Student Radio Awards (SRAs).
The 20-year-old BA Media Production student said: “I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that I won but it feels absolutely amazing.
“If you told me when I joined Spark that a year later, I'd be Best Newcomer at the SRAs and infront of so many people in the industry, I would've called you crazy but here we are!”
Chrissy, from Hebburn, has been partially sighted in both eyes since birth. Now, he hopes to inspire other people living with disabilities to pursue their dreams.
“Having a disability doesn’t mean you don’t have talent," he said.
“If you want to go into radio but think your disability will hinder your chances, trust me, you have just as much of a chance as someone who is able-bodied.
“The industry is very inclusive and is always improving so you’ll immediately feel like you belong."
The Student Radio Awards, supported by BBC Radio 1 and Global, is the biggest night in the student radio calendar, celebrating the best and brightest talent emerging from universities across the UK.
The live in-person event was held at 'indigo at The O2' in London this week (Wednesday, November 10th).
Speaking about Chrissy’s success, Scott McGerty, Presenter and Executive Producer with Spark, said: “Chrissy has embraced his time at Spark since day one, tried things out and very quickly realised the areas of radio he loved.
“Chrissy aligned his interests with a gap he noticed in the radio market and Homegrown Hip Hop was born. It’s a weekly show that solely focuses on the music from the North East’s brilliant Hip Hop scene and the artists love him.
“Chrissy also presents daytime entertainment shows, provides the station with Wrestling updates and supports us with events and outside broadcasts and none of these extra responsibilities compromise the calibre of Homegrown Hip Hop.
“He’s a true talent that we’re so pleased to have on Spark.”
Spark – run largely by volunteers, many of which study at the University – broadcasts across Sunderland on 107FM and around the world online. It is on air 24 hours a day, seven days a week after launching back in 2009.
In September this year, BBC Radio 1 presenter and Sunderland graduate Jordan North cut the ribbon to the new Spark Studio 5 at the David Puttnam Media Centre on Sir Tom Cowie Campus, St Peter’s.