Nestled in the heart of Little Havana, just a few blocks from Marlins Park, is one of the most unique radio stations in America.
SLAM Radio is the first and only satellite radio station in the nation run by high school students. Broadcasting on Sirius XM-Channel 145, SLAM is on air 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and features content produced and presented by 80 to 100 local high school students. The programming — much of it prerecorded — focuses on sports talk, current events, entertainment, and journalism, with some music mixed in.
The station, launched in December 2018, is part of the Sports Leadership Arts and Management (SLAM) charter school network, which was co-founded by rapper Pitbull (aka Armando Christian Perez) and has grown to 11 campuses nationwide. It is a public charter school for grades 6-12 and its curriculum is geared for students interested in sports leadership and management.
SLAM’s 3,000 square-foot radio studio is on the school campus at 542 N.W. 12 Ave. It is equipped with 12 voiceover booths. Most of the students involved are Hispanic-American and Black.