Agent Skills for the Radio Cult API:

AI coding agents are becoming part of how stations run. We have written before about how AI tools can help your community radio station, and building your station website is the next piece of that. Point an agent at the Radio Cult API and it can wire up a player, a schedule page, or an upload script in minutes.

An agent skill is a set of instructions you hand an AI coding agent that teaches it how to do a specific job. Radio Cult Agent Skills teach your agent how live radio works on our API, so what it builds works the way your station needs it to, the first time.

What a general AI agent gets wrong on the Radio Cult API

Without guidance, an AI agent builds against the Radio Cult API the way it would build against any API. For live radio, that leaves gaps that show up later as extra load, stale audio, or exposed keys.

Left to work it out alone, an agent tends to:

• Fetch now-playing data on a timer, which adds load to your API and still lags behind the live broadcast.
• Leave a stale audio buffer when a listener pauses and plays again, so they hear audio from minutes ago and listener sessions never close cleanly.
• Request each artist separately, so a full week of shows turns into one API call per artist as your programming grows.
• Put a secret key in client-side code, where anyone viewing your site can read it.
• Guess at upload rules, with no reliable sense of the accepted file types, size limit, or how to attach metadata.

What changes when your agent uses a Radio Cult skill

A skill gives the agent the missing context before it writes a line of code. The same agent now builds against the API the way we would, and the gaps close.

With a skill in place, your build:

• Receives now-playing updates in real time, with less load and no lag behind the broadcast.
• Joins the live stream on play and disconnects on pause, so listeners always hear the live broadcast and your analytics stay accurate.
• Returns shows, artists, and artwork in a single request, however large the schedule gets.
• Keeps only the publishable key in the browser, with secret keys staying server-side.
• Validates every upload and attaches it to the right playlists and tags.

Three skills: custom player, station website, media upload

Each skill covers one part of your station, and you can use them on their own or together.

Custom radio player

Gives listeners a player that reflects what is actually on air. It uses realtime now-playing metadata and manages the audio element so the stream is joined on play and released on pause, which keeps your listener analytics accurate. It only ever uses your publishable key, so it is safe to run in a browser.

Station website and schedule

Keeps your website connected to the platform, which acts as your CMS. Your agent can build weekly schedule grids and programme guides, an artist directory with profile pages, and a recently-played feed, all from the API. It fetches artist and tag details in a single request only when a page shows them, and converts broadcast times from UTC to your local timezone correctly.

Media upload

Moves audio into your library without a manual upload flow. It can help you build your own automation, but the simplest use is direct: point your agent at a folder and ask it to upload. It validates each file, uploads them one at a time to stay inside your rate limits, and reports back what went in and what was skipped.

Works with Claude, Codex, Gemini and ChatGPT

The skills come in two forms so they fit whatever your team already uses:

• Using Claude? Download the skill as a zip and add it to Claude Code, or upload it as a skill on claude.ai.
• Using Codex, Gemini, ChatGPT or something else? Copy the prompt into your agent's instructions, for example your project's AGENTS.md or GEMINI.md file, a Custom GPT, or a Gemini Gem.

Either way, the skill travels with your agent and guides it as it builds.

Before and after, at a glance

What your agent does	Without a skill	With the skill
Now-playing updates	Polls on a timer, lags and adds load	Listens in real time, with less load
Pause and play	Resumes stale audio	Rejoins the live broadcast, analytics stay clean
Schedule with artists	One request per artist	Shows, artists, and artwork in one request
API keys	Secret key can reach the browser	Publishable key only in client code
Uploading audio	Guesses at the rules	Validates and uploads correctly

How to install a Radio Cult Agent Skill

Getting started takes a few minutes:

1. Open the Radio Cult API docs and go to the Agent Skills section.
2. Download the skill you need as a zip for Claude, or copy the prompt for another agent.
3. Get your station ID and API key from your API settings. Use your publishable key for anything that runs in a browser.
4. Ask your agent to build the feature, and let the skill guide it.

Frequently asked questions

What is an agent skill?

It is a set of instructions you give an AI coding agent that teaches it how to do a specific job. Radio Cult Agent Skills teach your agent how to build against our API correctly, so it uses realtime updates, handles audio properly, and keeps your keys safe.

Do I need to be a developer?

For the player and website skills, you or someone on your team builds on your own site, and the agent does most of the work. The upload skill is the simplest: you can point your agent at a folder and ask it to upload.

Which API key should I use?

Anything that runs in a browser, like a player or a schedule page, must use your publishable key. The upload skill uses your secret key, which stays on your own machine or server and never reaches a browser. The skills follow this rule for you.

Which plans do the skills work on?

Every Radio Cult plan includes read access to the API, so the custom player and the station website and schedule skills work on any plan. The media upload skill writes to your library, which is available on our Premium and Business plans. See our pricing for what each plan includes.

Are the skills free?

Yes. Download them from the API docs at no extra cost. The player and website skills work on any plan, and the media upload skill is available on Premium and Business.

Can I use them with my own AI tool?

Yes. Download the zip for Claude, or copy the prompt into another agent, including Codex, Gemini and ChatGPT.

Ready to let your agent build the right way? Open the API docs, download a skill, and put it to work.