Black radio has been an amazing source of information and entertainment for the community since its beginning. As the black community has experienced social struggles throughout the years, art imitates life in this regard.
In the early years of radio, dramas and shows were enacted. Often a black character was actually played by a white person. Poor English, kooky sayings and catch phrases completed the stereotyped image of blacks in America. Eventually, the shows would have actual people of color in these roles which seemed a positive step in the right direction even amidst the negative stereotypical dialogue and antics.
It wasn’t until 1949 that a major milestone in history was made for black radio. It was in this year that a Memphis radio station became the first station in the US to have an all black on-air announcing staff. It might have been this infusion into the radio broadcasting medium that brought to light just how powerful black radio and blacks ON the radio could be. Black radio personalities developed a style of announcing all their own that made not only listening to the music they played but listening to THEM something to anticipate. The sound of radio would forever change.
With this new soulful sound to announcing, non-black announcers got in on the act. Radio personalities such as the late Wolfman Jack, with his deep, raspy voice & hip talking. Trends such as this would eventually lead to the “black sound” and black music crossing over into mainstream radio and music sales charts with non-blacks.
Black announcers did more than just play music and provide entertaining on-air commentary, however. During the civil Rights Movement, black radio was often the medium to which people would be the first to hear breaking news of events..such as the assassination of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King. These black announcers were telling the facts and relaying stories to those that were experiencing and feeling the effect of such news stories. Listeners in turn, too, were finding a comradely with those announcers. This still holds true even today.
by Stephanie L. Ogle
August, 2002
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