Students may wonder about the DJ’s choice of music for the Union Drive Community Center, but the music is chosen by it’s workers, not a DJ.

“The music played at the UDCC is based upon employees and customer requests,” said Mary Ellen Metzger, manager at the Union Drive Marketplace.

However, Erik J. Sjoblom, assistant manager for ISU Dining, is an experienced DJ since he had 12 years with a DJ company with some friends where they worked events such as receptions and parties.

Sjoblom enjoys all kinds of music, and he tries to switch it up as often as he can when he is manager.

The music is from a Mediacom digital music radio, which is located in the managerial office in the UDCC, is broadcasted to the first floor and second floor.

Any employee at the UDCC can change the music by either physically changing it or asking a manager or supervisor to change it.

“We get a lot of complaints from the employees that they’ve heard this song too many times or there sick of this station, so we’ll change it,” Sjoblom said.

If the managers get a complaint over a specific type of music they try to change it to something totally opposite.

Most of the dining centers on campus have set days where they play one type of music, but the UDCC changes it up quite a bit. Sjoblom said the UDCC staff tries its best to play a variety of tunes so one genre of music isn’t playing all day, and the staff tries to be festive with its choices.

“During the holidays, we try to play music that goes along with the holiday,” Sjoblom said. Currently, the “Sounds of the Season” music is playing.

Also taken into consideration in music choices is how busy or slow the UDCC is — when it’s busy they usually play the Top 40, or something similar, for customers to enjoy.

“I also try to choose more upbeat music during our busy times to keep us moving at a fast pace,” Sjoblom said.

The UDCC employees stay active with each other during slow times by trying to guess who sings what song.

“It’s kind of like ‘Name That Tune,’” Sjoblom said. But music is not the UDCC manager’s main concern.

“Food quality comes first,” Sjoblom said. Music is just a background for the dining center.

The only times when they choose specific music is during events the dining center is hosting, such as “Casino Night,” when lounge music was played to go along with the theme — usually a lot of Elvis and Tom Jones, Sjoblom said.

The UDCC tries to play Cyclone radio broadcasts when they can get them.

“We play the pre-game show and post-game show for students who came to eat and want to hear about the game,” Sjoblom said.

Have a request?

If one would like to hear a specific song or station, they can tell any of the UDCC workers which will pass the word along and get it changed as soon as they can. “We are always happy to take requests and change it,” Metzger said.