Scott Register Celebrates 20 Years With "Reg's Coffee House"

BIRMINGHAM, AL — When Scott Register was studying sports journalism at Auburn University, radio wasn't even on his radar. Even after he graduated, he took a job in public relations and marketing for the downtown music festival City Stages, working with radio stations but never considering that path. Now, Register is preparing to celebrate the 20th anniversary of "Reg's Coffee House," a local program that has remained a staple of Birmingham's alternative music scene.

The turning point in Register's career was a relationship with Dave Rossi, program director of then-local WRAX, who he met through arranging promotions with the station for City Stages. Rossi was familiar with Register's singer-songwriter taste, and the two discussed the prospect of a one-hour alternative show that Rossi intended to launch on the station. Register got the green light from Rossi in December 1996, and the show aired for the first time the following January.

"Then it just kept growing," Register said. "It moved stations a couple of times. It started at one hour, then moved to two and three and eventually four. And now it's still going strong."

The Vestavia Hills native has had the privilege of growing his career in the city he grew up in, a privilege he said has only been augmented by watching the city grow in tandem with his radio show.

"I love Birmingham," Register said. "It's nice to be a part of that, being a part of the city's growth and change over 20 years, doing what I do."

Though his show has outlasted many of the stations that have hosted him, Register said he is confident that both "Reg's Coffee House" and its home at Birmingham Mountain Radio will continue to grow and solidify Birmingham's revitalization as a "tastemaker city."

"Back in the early days, WRAX was a big part of the music scene that made record labels and bands pay attention to Birmingham," he said. "When we started BMR as an online radio station in 2010, and it grew to an FM station within three years, we really felt we could make it that kind of a community station again."

"Reg's Coffee House" will have a live anniversary part on Nov. 1 at the Alabama Theater, where Nathaniel Rateliff and the Nightsweats will play alongside other unannounced acts in celebration of Register's tenure. Proceeds will be donated to the Greater Birmingham Humane Society. Tickets are available on TicketFly.

Photo Courtesy of Twitter