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First off, introduce yourselves in your own words — and tell us what FOUNDATION.FM is to you today.

We’re FOUNDATION.FM, the progressive music platform that started as a radio station and has grown into a much wider cultural space. At the core of it though, it’s always been about creating opportunities, visibility and genuine community for women, queer and non-binary people, who’ve historically been pushed to the edges of music scenes.

For people coming to FOUNDATION.FM for the first time, how do you define it now? Is it still best described as a radio station, or has it grown into something broader than that?

Broadcasting is still the core of what we do, but it’s definitely become broader than that now. We do events, education, mentoring, label releases, partnerships, pop-ups, creative projects that support and grow our community.

It’s probably best described now as a cultural platform rooted in community radio / broadcasting music.

What originally needed to exist in 2018 that FOUNDATION.FM was built to provide — and what do you think still needs protecting or pushing forward in 2026?

Back in 2018, there were loads of incredibly talented women, queer and non-binary DJs that just weren’t getting the same access, opportunities or visibility. A lot of spaces still felt gatekept and intimidating, especially for people trying to enter the industry for the first time.

What needed to exist then and honestly still does now was infrastructure and opportunities. Not just one-off bookings or token moments, but actual long-term support systems and pathways into music and culture.

Sadly in 2026 there’s still a huge need for visibility and equality in the music industry and independent community spaces still need protecting massively.

How do you keep that sense of community real in practice, rather than letting it become just another industry buzzword?

Honestly, by staying close to the people involved. A lot of our residents, collaborators and team have grown alongside FFM over years, so there’s real trust and history there.

You’ve always seemed interested not just in music, but in the wider issues surrounding the people making it. How does that progressive side of FOUNDATION.FM show up in a meaningful way, rather than just as branding?

FFM started by trying to create more space and opportunities for women, queer and non-binary people in music, so that mindset naturally runs through everything we do, from our activations and partnerships to our residents, events and the people we collaborate with.

Over time we’ve found a community that gravitates towards Foundation for that exact reason. People want spaces that feel genuine, supportive and community-led, not just diverse on paper.

What would you say have been the biggest milestones for FOUNDATION.FM in recent years — whether visible publicly or not?

There’s honestly been too many to count, but summer 2025 definitely felt like one for the books. One huge milestone was finally graduating from the Kraken stage at All Points East onto The X Stage. Having talent like Matty Chiabi, Saint Ludo, Lagoon and so many others who’ve grown with us over the years come on that journey and absolutely shell it felt really full circle.

Our Euros watch parties at The Old Nun’s Head were also such a highlight. It just felt like pure community energy, the music, football, people connecting and having fun together in a really natural way. And when England won everyone just went mental! It was so fun!

Running an independent platform in music and culture over the last few years can’t have been easy. From a practical point of view, what have been the biggest challenges in keeping FOUNDATION.FM sustainable?

Aha, it definitely isn’t easy. It’s a constant balancing act between making things accessible and community-led whilst also acknowledging that everything costs money.

Foundation is built by and for our community, but without partnerships and support it simply wouldn’t be sustainable. A lot of the challenge is knowing which opportunities align with us and when to say no, even when financially that can feel scary.

You’re constantly balancing creativity, community and survival at the same time, which I think a lot of independent platforms can probably relate to.

This new series of pop-ups with DIABOLICAL feels like a really interesting next step. How did the idea first come about, and what made Hackney Furniture feel like the right space for it?

FFM has been on a journey towards opening our doors more and creating a true third space where people can come to connect, learn, experiment and hang out around music and culture. But finding the right environment for that next evolution beyond just a radio studio isn’t easy and there’s a lot of learning curves involved.

The idea of the pop-up came from wanting to create something physical again that felt open, creative and genuinely community-led. BUILDHOLLYWOOD and DIABOLICAL have always supported Foundation and championed our work and talent, so it felt like a really natural collaboration.

Hackney Furniture just made sense because it already has that feeling of experimentation and discovery. We’d seen artists like Rose Gray and Wet Leg use the space in really exciting ways, and it felt like the team genuinely trusted people to come in, take risks and build something unique. It doesn’t feel overly polished or corporate, it just feels fun.

Do you see this takeover as the kind of model you’d like to build on again in future — or even something you’d like to see continue in a longer-term way?

Definitely. We’re really interested in creating more physical spaces and temporary worlds around the station because radio has always been about more than just audio for us.

Whether that’s longer-term or future pop-ups, I love the freedom of turning a space into something else and being able to go wherever our audience and talent want us to go. So we can continue to build and grow community and create opportunities for women, queer and non-binary talent.

For other labels, collectives or cultural projects who might look at Hackney Furniture and imagine doing something there themselves, what would you say are the benefits of working in a space like this?

It’s such a good testing ground to figure out what works and what doesn’t before committing to something more permanent. Having a bricks-and-mortar space full-time is a huge commitment, I’ve definitely learnt that the hard way.

Spaces like this allow projects to feel more collaborative and less transactional. You can actually build atmosphere, community and a world around what you’re doing rather than just dropping into a venue for one night and disappearing again.

What feels exciting right now — not just for FOUNDATION.FM, but for the wider communities and scenes around it?

There’s a real DIY energy returning at the moment which feels really exciting. People are building their own spaces, platforms and communities again rather than waiting for permission or validation from bigger institutions.

To finish, what would success look like for these Hackney Furniture takeovers by the time the final week wraps?

It was so successful! Across the three takeovers we had around 75 DJs and collaborators involved and over 1000 people come through the space to hang out, party and connect.

What felt most exciting was seeing the space used in so many different ways, from yoga and film screenings to listening parties, broadcasts and club nights. It proved that people are really craving spaces that feel creative, social and community-led again.

For us, success was creating an environment where people felt comfortable coming in, discovering new artists and feeling part of something and I think we really achieved that.