Off the Mic
Emily Donovan
Year: Senior
Major: English – Creative Writing
Minor: Sociology
Notable KJHK Contributions: Arts and Culture Producer
Hobbies: Writing, Reading, Listening to podcasts, working out
Morgan Cormack: So tell me about what you do here at KJHK.
Emily Donovan: I am new to KJ! I am an Arts and Culture Producer.
MC: What do you do at KU? What do you study, what else do you do here?
ED: Yeah, I do a lot of cooky stuff. I am an English major with a Sociology minor. My emphasis is Creative Writing. Most of what I have done here is journalism. I started out with the Kansan and I did a few summer internships. Last semester, I corresponded with USA Today College. And now, I am at KJHK. Nowadays I am president of the Writing Club. I actually co-founded it. There is only eight of us so we are pretty official (laughs). But yeah, it is a fun gig.
MC: Is there anything else you do?
ED: Like at KU?
MC: That, or in your free time.
ED: I do a lot of hanging out and I read a lot of books. Then again, that is my major so I guess that is not a “thrilling” component of my life. I work out a lot. I really love to lift weights, which is fun. One of my favorite parts of the day is if I am in the weights room at the Rec, and I am one of the only girls there. I have been lifting long enough that I am no longer weirded out by that. My trick to that, if you are ever in a position, is this: I always imagine everyone else at the Rec – all these beefy, frat dude bros, are all listening to “Lose Yourself” by Eminem. That is my biggest secret.
MC: Oh?
ED: You will never be too intimidated if you just imagine everyone else is listening to, like, “(begins rapping) vomit on his sweater already! Mom’s spaghetti! he’s nervous but — (laughs).” Yeah, but to Eminem’s credit that has got a lot of, like, impressive lyricism. But it is just a ludicrous workout song.
MC: Speaking of music, I guess, do you have any favorite music? Maybe if you had to pick one band or one artist, is there one that is a favorite of yours?
ED: Yeah! I sincerely hope that everybody has something she loves as much as I love Chvrches. Otherwise, I listen to a lot of different genres. If I had to design one (a playlist) for the public, it would be mostly slightly-embarrassing electronic-pop.
MC: Can you tell me why you decided to get involved with KJ?
ED: I feel really confident in how I am able to approach a new story but I find that when I am working for a newspaper, like, I want to approach more creative stories. And KJHK is a really cool opportunity for that. I am really into podcasting and the likes of Radio Lab have helped me, like, re-recognize how forms of news and storytelling, other than the written word, can be more intimate in a way that just writing cannot.
MC: Is there anything else that sticks out to you at KJHK?
ED: I am not really fully equipped to share the deepest darkest secrets at KJHK. But, my goal this semester is for people to be walking by the station and turn around and say, “What is happening with KJ today?”