Did you know the LCEC is home to a recording studio and low-power FM radio station you can find at 95.5 FM and at www.WWMVLP.org? For today’s Community Spotlight we listen in on parts of a conversation between Clough Thompson (aka Mane) and Radio Station Manager Abby Puckhaber.
Abby: Greetings, listeners. We have a special treat for you this evening, and for Lussier Neighborhood News. We have Mane, also known as … well, his real name is Clough Thompson. He is a sixth grader, singer/songwriter extraordinaire, model, actor, and so much more. Mane, welcome.
Mane: Hi, thank you. Thank you, Abby.
A: So Mane, I am curious. What does the Lussier Center mean to you?
M: I think Lussier is a place where you can just be yourself and do what you love best and just be you. It’s a peaceful place. … I spend most of my time in the Lussier studio. It’s a place where can sing and just be myself, and you help with that so I can just sing and do what I love to do best and not feel any shame or anything. So my dream is to be a singer and I think this is helping me to get my name out there and that’s what I’m gonna continue to do.
A: Can you talk more about when you first started at WWMV-LP 95.5 FM to now? What was that evolution? What was that journey?
M: Well, the first time that I came, I loved the way that … I don’t know. It was just a magical feeling, and I was like I’m gonna love doing this and I’m gonna continue to do it. At first I didn’t really like hearing myself on the recording. I was like, “I’m not a big fan of this.” I never really liked myself being on recording until I came into the radio station, and it helped me be proud of my voice and letting my voice be heard. I think that it’s a great way for me to be able to sing, because we don’t have a recording studio at our house. When I used to record my music I did it over a microphone set, y’know, headphones that you listen to music with. And that’s just how I recorded my music. But I feel the Lussier Center is a great quality place, and I just love the way that they do things around here. … I love the community, I definitely do.
I used to help teach. I was like a student teacher, in a way. I worked with some of the younger kids, and I know some of them here. The community’s amazing. That’s what I really like about it. … From a really young age I liked working with younger people. … First grade, that’s when I started working with 4K-ers and kindergarteners, and it was kind of like a reward. If I did good in the classroom, then I can be a great role model outside of the classroom…. I try to use my talents as much as I can. I think that most of my gifts, most of them are gifts, and then other things, like my singing, I don’t think that this is a gift, I think that I worked hard for this.
“When I sing I try to make the world a better place and try to bring inspiration to have young people chase their dreams and do the best that you can in life and try to shoot for the sky.”
~ Clough Thompson (aka Mane)