WUFT Amplified showcases local music, inspires UF students to pursue media production
New year, new you? How about new year, new music. If you are looking to discover new artists and bands throughout 2025 and on, WUFT Amplified is where you should be tuning in.
WUFT is a public media station at the University of Florida that broadcasts television and radio programs in North Central Florida. The Amplified broadcast started as a UF student’s wish for a music-focused media class, and it has since become a dynamic platform for showcasing local and touring artists through videos of live performances.
“It's the coolest project we have on campus because it works with both local and traveling musicians to produce, essentially, a music venue that can be viewed forever,” said August Mallos, a media production student who works on WUFT Amplified. “It's a very enthusiastic place, and everybody who's in the room working on the project – the musicians and the students – they're all very enthusiastic. So it's the coolest place to be when we're working on it.”
The Amplified project is under the umbrella of the Media Services immersion program at UF, meaning that any students who are a part of the immersion program are able to participate in the recording of Amplified episodes. There are about 16 to 20 students in the immersion program, and six to 10 students for each performance.
WUFT Amplified will soon be heading into its fourth season with nearly 40 episodes aired across WUFT-TV, WUFT-FM, and digital platforms. The program airs every Saturday night at 10:30 p.m. and features local music talent, creating a space where audiences can discover new sounds and artists they might not have found otherwise. The broadcast is hosted by WUFT-FM’s Glenn Richards.
WUFT Media Services Director Matthew Abramson explained that a UF student from Knight Talks, a student-produced talk show through WUFT, said they wished there was a music version of that class. Abramson’s Media Services staff thought this was an opportunity to provide a platform for artists and musicians in Gainesville. That student, Carmen Zachry, embarked on an independent study project the next semester to help decide on the program’s branding, workflow, and communication with artists, and began filming the first season of episodes.
This semester will mark the finale of the third season. WUFT Amplified student workers will begin the filming of the fourth season throughout the spring. Viewers will be able to watch the airing of season three reruns until season four begins airing in June. Some guests featured in season three include Sour, Whiskey & Co., Ill Star, Tamayo, Johanna Warren, The Wire Birds, and PRIZILLA.
With many jobs to undertake and camera angles to capture during live performances, every student involved in the program has a chance to try something new.
“It's super integral to who I am now. It’s an incredible program that, as an 18-year-old freshman, I was producing, editing – even directing on certain occasions – shows that were going on PBS,” said UF Media Production student Paola Perez. “I felt like I was making something that mattered, and I was growing not only professionally because of it, but I was also growing personally.”
WUFT Amplified is just one of many productions from the UF College of Journalism and Communications’ award-winning Media Services team. Other programs include WUFT's Greater Good, WUFT's Artistry In Motion, and WUFT's Sounds of the Season.
Students looking to get involved in WUFT Amplified have numerous opportunities.
“The Amplifieds have a limited number of people who they need on a shoot, but broadly, Media Services are always looking for staff and they're looking for student volunteers,” Mallos said. “So my biggest piece of advice is to get interested, put yourself out there, and you're going to be rewarded for it.”