NOVEMBER 2001 - SPECIAL FLORIDA CLASSIC EDITION
DAWGMAN : KING OF PIRATE RADIO

The radio scene in Orlando has begun to sound like Miami recently, with new underground stations popping up everywhere - some coming in more clearly than others. Almost all of the underground stations in Central Florida can somehow trace their roots back to Dawgman and the Clientell Family, so Orlando Source decided to talk with the king of pirate radio and set the story straight. Dawgman’s 91.3 Clientell Radio has a huge following in Central Florida, as evidenced by the success of some of their larger events, like the recent Come Together Day. “Dawgman” Spencer, 29, a native of Orlando, has managed to attain something that few underground radio stations have - longevity. And, “God willing,” 2002 will bring about another landmark for the station, as they prepare to reopen on a different frequency as a licensed radio station.

The Clientell Family, a number of small businesses within the community, formed in 1993. The idea to start a radio station originated from their trips to Miami, when they’d lock in on one of the many pirate stations operating out of South Florida. “I got my first transmitter from Pupp in West Palm Beach,” he begins, “It was only 100 watts - that shit only reached around the corner.” Dawgman’s first station began broadcasting out of his garage, with the World Famous Lick ‘Em Low. Often, new stations buy old equipment from others. “That’s how the game works,” Dawgman explains, “You sell somebody yours to get a bigger one.” After increasing power to reach a larger area, he got together a number of Orlando area DJs on one station. His main goal in starting the station was to get his music played - he had a group called the Nasty Pappies, when bass was very popular.

The station was originally called Bass 105, and they even received coverage from mainstream media like the Orlando Sentinel. “They did an interview on the phone and gave us props, but then they shitted on us in the end,” he laughs. But, as they say, any kind of publicity is good publicity. Unfortunately, for a pirate station, with publicity comes the FCC, the government agency that regulates the airwaves. They often come after underground stations whose broadcasts are “bleeding” into another frequency. Radio airwaves can also disrupt airplanes, televisions, and phones, so setting up an underground station requires careful research and planning before even deciding on a frequency. “It’s not good to have too much power, because you could bleed on a multi-million station. [A lot of these new stations] think you can just turn on the transmitter and ride on the mic. It doesn’t work like that. You might bleed on a station owned by the same motherfucker that plays golf with the FCC,” says Dawgman. The FCC is also the reason that many undergound stations don’t operate 24 hours. “We started cranking up at night because we were escaping the mayhem,” Dawgman says as he explains what the Underground Coalition is, “When the FCC hits Miami, they tell us, because they might be headed here next.”

Dawgman takes a number of precautions to avoid being targeted by the FCC. They keep it clean, no cursing, to avoid attracting attention, and their ideas have spread to Miami. Also, location is important. “The best spot is in the hood, because [then the FCC has to] take precautions. We’re in the heart of the ghetto. That’s one thing the other stations do wrong. They spend money on office space - for what? So the FCC can come knock on the door?” A common misconception is that the FCC must provide a warning before confiscating radio equipment. “They came and took ours on the first try,” he says of an incident that occurred when they were renting office space on Orange Blossom Trail, “They cut our wires and put a padlock on it, but they couldn’t catch us because we were moving the transmitter every night,” he laughs.

The station has been through a lot, even changing its name from Bass 105 to 91.7 and ultimately to 91.3 Clientell Radio. Right now, they are operating on three transmitters, and as for the new stations, “People are playing catch up right now. I wish everybody well,” Dawgman says. He hopes his days of hiding from the FCC are almost over. “We’re on the verge of being a legitimate station,” he says proudly, “Funday Sundays is something we do out of the heart, and Peace N the Hood is affiliated with the station as well.” These community services that Clientell has offered recently serve dual purposes. When applying for a license to be a community station, applicants are required to provide reasons (community service) why they should be allowed to operate a licensed station. “We’re 88% done,” he says, “We even have [Orange County Public Schools] involved. They had Lockhart Middle School take a field trip to the station, and they asked us questions about engineering, on air personalities, and broadcasting. Even though we’re not a licensed station we still have the knowledge. Everybody needs to be paying attention right now, cause we’re about to flip the script.” While a lot of changes will be taking place from a business aspect, the on-air personalities and format of the station will be basically the same. 

When asked about the only urban station in town that currently has a license to operate, 102 Jamz, Dawgman has plenty of opinions. After drastically changing their format and losing much of their audience, 102 recently brought Thrill da Playa on the air, hoping to bring back the urban audience. “They really wanted to step to [us], but they’re pride wouldn’t let them. So they asked Thrill to do what we do, and called it Ghetto Fabulous. Thrill’s my dawg, he’s making it work for them. EDR, [a licensed station in Miami], stepped to the underground - Uncle Al, DJ Khalid - and gave them a show. Somebody down there was smart - if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!” 

Speaking of Uncle Al, underground radio turned out to be a fatal attraction for him. “Some dreads were outpowering [Uncle Al’s] station, so he cut their lines,” says Dawgman, and later, when Al was shot and killed at his home, “Uncle Al was just trying to hold it down. If he’d thought they were coming with heat he would have approached it in a different way. He was a real cool cat - we’re gonna do a tribute to him on Saturday, November 17th, during the Classic Weekend.” It will be hosted by Uncle Luke, a pioneer of Miami underground radio. Dawgman, who calls himself a “neutral n*gga,” ends the interview with shoutouts to other Orlando underground stations as well as his own original Clientell radio DJs, The World Famous Lick ‘Em Low (shown below with Dawgman), Baby Lac, Wiz, Gigolo D, White Dawg, & K-Funk. - Julia Beverly