Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Dunn.
Hi Matt, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
I’ve been a huge music fan since I was about 10 when I bought my first cassette tape (In Utero by Nirvana), but I never played in an actual band. I started DJing at the Guilford College station WQFS in Greensboro in 2013. I had a show called Pump Up The Volume, and it wasn’t the greatest thing ever, but I enjoyed making playlists.
I moved back to my hometown Raleigh in 2014, and I was bummed that I couldn’t DJ anymore on the radio. I was downtown one night and heard this guy Jacob I didn’t know, talk about starting a new local internet radio station called Little Raleigh Radio. I just barged into the conversation and offered my volunteer services as a DJ. Jacob and I became friends, and I started a show on Little Raleigh Radio called Damaged Goods.
In some thriving music scenes like Melbourne, Australia, Seattle, and San Francisco, I got into the local garage rock, post-punk, and indie scenes. So many great shows and local bands played around Raleigh and The Triangle area in the 2014 – 2016 era.
I didn’t have any real plans at first, but I realized one day at a show that I could interview bands for my show. Interviewing bands has always been a dream of mine since. I was a kid, but at the time, you’d have to be an MTV/commercial radio host or write for some big-time magazine like Rolling Stone.
I just pulled out my iPhone and asked this great post-punk band from Washington, DC, called Priests, if they would do an interview after their show in Raleigh at Nice Price Books & Records in 2014, and they said, “sure!”. It was so much fun, and I couldn’t believe how friendly and accessible some of these bands were.
I ended up hosting my show, Damaged Goods, with a few good friends; they have all been amazing hosts. I’ve also had a few good friends guest star on the show. It started with me and my old friend Aaron; after 50 episodes, my friend Seth took over, and eventually, my current co-host Chris Larr.
We played music and interviewed bands, but it became a show that wasn’t just music. We wanted to include fun talking segments, including some silly segments like eBay Price is Right, where Chris tries to guess how much music memorabilia items were sold for on eBay. If we included some fun talking parts, it might make it more compelling to listen to. It feels harder to get people to listen to a music/radio show since so many people primarily stream their music/playlists.
It’s been an amazing experience, as I’ve interviewed some great musicians and bands. I’ve been lucky enough to DJ a few local spots since the Damaged Goods thing started, like Ruby Deluxe, Anisette, and the Peel art gallery in Carrboro.
You wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been smooth?
Covid hit me hard back in 2020, and I had a few setbacks during the next couple of years as my mother passed away from cancer, which changed my life. I broke up right after that, and my brother passed almost a year after my mother died of a drug overdose. Despite setbacks, I’m lucky to have such great friends who have helped me through rough times. Some of it has been difficult to deal with, but I’ve been trying to learn from my experiences and gain advice from others. I’ve had some time to reflect, and I feel so happy and fortunate to be out there DJing, vintage/record collecting, and checking out local shows whenever I can.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’ve been working at a help desk for an IT company called Logically. We used to be called Carolinas IT, but we merged with a company out of Portland, Maine, called Logically. I’m a Managed Services Engineer II, which means I’m the 2nd person you talk to if your computer breaks. I’ve enjoyed learning so much about IT. It’s been way more fruitful than I ever would have realized. I worked at Whole Foods on Wade Avenue in Raleigh for many years before that, doing customer service. Since it was so close to downtown, I met many interesting people, co-workers, and customers.
We all have different ways of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success to me is doing what you love and finding even just a tiny handful of people that enjoy and follow you.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.damagedgoodsradio.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/damagedgoodsinc
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/damagedgoodsradio/
- Twitter: damagedgoodsrdo
Image Credits
Courtney Cheek
