Located in the basement of Bush Memorial Library is Hamline University’s very own professional recording studio.  The studio itself is a recent addition to Hamline’s list of student organizations, as it was created just a year ago by two current students, Charlie Shafer and Racey Rodne.

Shafer and Rodne, both third year students, are deeply involved in the campus music scene.  Along with creating the recording studio, they are also manager and co-manager, respectively, of Hamline Radio and are the founders of last year’s first annual Winter Wonder Jam concert.  

With their involvement in music organizations on campus, it’s not surprising that the inspiration for starting a campus recording studio was their individual interest in music.  They started out writing raps together, which led them to discover the need for a place on campus where students could record their creations.  Their motivation was not only about finding a way for themselves to record, but to also provide the opportunity for other students.  As Racey explained, “if we want to do this, I’m sure there are a million other kids who do too.” 

However, actually making this idea a reality was a time consuming process.  

“It took us our whole freshman year,” Racey said.  Not only did they have to go through the process of creating a new organization, they also had to work on getting funding, obtaining equipment, and convincing people that this truly was a serious endeavor.

Luckily for them, Hamline already had the space necessary for a recording studio. The hspace was originally set aside and designed to be a recording studio, but hadn’t been used in years. Considering the studio was originally nothing more than some unused rooms, it has come a long way in the year that it has existed.

In fact, their first year went much better than they had originally expected.  The initial struggle to get people to come in and record, they admitted still remains.  There was quite a bit of artist interest last year, but the guys are hoping for even more artists and involvement. 

 It seems their main concern is helping individuals grow as artists and providing the best experience they can.  

“It would be really great to have a Hamline artist grow with us,” Shafer stated as one of their goals for the studio.  

“We’d like it for people to work with us,” Rodne said, illustrating their commitment to spend time working directly with the artists on numerous projects.  

“Yeah, we don’t like one-record stands,” Shafer added jokingly.

In an effort to make the studio a bigger force on campus, there are many new potential projects for the year.  

“Our main goal is to have a Hamline sampler released this yeahhr,” Rodne explained.  

As for what students can expect if they are interested in possibly recording, the guys were clear that they have the resources to fit almost every need.  There are four engineers currently working the studio, including Shafer and Rodne, with skills rawnging from almost every genre and instrument.  The guys will help figure out how to best accommodate your interests and find the right engineer for you and your project.  

If you are interested in using the recording studio, contact hums@hamline.edu to set up a time.  Also, be sure to check out the recording studio Facebook page, HU Studio.