Moses "Lucky" Cordell, also known as the"Baron of Bounce," was WVON radio station's program and music director in 1965 and went on to become WVON's general manager in 1970. Saturday: 12:00 AM - 06:00 AM And they were saying how we should stop the riots. What Ive done is always remember who I am and where I plan to go. Douglas Wendell Jocko Henderson | Source: Getty Images / Getty. [11][15][16] WVON ran 1,000 watts during the day and 250 watts at night. [32], The FCC process of assigning a license for the vacant 1450 AM frequency resulted in a shared-time arrangement, as applicants Midway Broadcasting Corporation and Migala Communications reached an agreement to split the broadcast day. The music was an inspiration. Melody Spann-CooperChairman of Midway Broadcasting Corp., which owns WVON. Sunday: 03:00 PM - 07:00 PM, Mon - Fri: 12:00 AM - 06:00 AM Copyright 2023 Interactive One, LLC. [50][51] In Summer 2020, Stroger left WVON, along with his co-host Maze Jackson, after being told by station management that they could no longer discuss Mayor Lori Lightfoot, and to disconnect any callers who were critical of her, immediately joining 1570 WBGX in the same time slot.[52][53]. That feeling was one that I knew an HBCU would give me. At Roosevelt 'L' Station, Obama Closes Inaugural Summit As Inspirer-In-Chief, Common, Lin-Manuel Miranda Close Obama Summit With Epic Freestyle [VIDEO], 62-Foot Norway Spruce To Become City Christmas Tree At Millennium Park, Wild Costume Art Returns To Beverly Arts Center Stage With 'Wandering Bird', 82 Percent Jump In Police Accountability Budget Not Enough, Alds. [4][5][9] Ernie Banks hosted a program on the station in the late 1950s. [13] In 2002, then State Senator Barack Obama filled in for vacationing Cliff Kelley. From host Jody Avirgan (30 for 30, FiveThirtyEight, Radiotopia) and the TED Audio Collective, Good Sport is your guide through an array of stadiums, pitches, pools and slopes that shed a light on the ups and downs of being human. How did you handle it? WVON never quite recaptured the enormous audience of its past, but in 1986 it switched to a talk format that reclaimed Chicago's imagination. It's straight, no chaser. Cordell had a long career in Chicago radio. The Opening Bell, Weekdays 5 a.m. - 6 a.m. & The Steve Cochran Show. Get in touch Location 800 S. Wells St., Suite 170 Chicago, IL 60607 Contact Us Phone : (773) 247-6200 Our Hours MON - FRI 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM SAT - SUN CLOSED Follow Us Helped different black politicians get elected. What are talent hotbeds, and how do we create them? Mary J. Blige. Perhaps there's no better way to understand the value and history of WVON than to hear from the voices that know it best. In 1990 Williams launched the Association of African American Music Foundation to promote African American musicians, and currently hosts a weekly broadcast, Soulful Sunday, on Radio Ones 107.9 WRNB in Philadelphia. Check out the latest episodes featuring Opal Staples and Myracle Holloway. It's the movement. Jacks band was also the personal favorite of Vice President Al Gore and played many of their events both personal and for the administration. I did this because I thought it would make me money. My professor at the time said to me one day, Samantha youre not doing well on the tests, but youre an amazing speaker; have you ever thought about journalism? I changed my major the next week. Season three, Never Seen Again, tells the story of two women, living on opposite sides of the country, who went missing in the summer of 1999. Sway now hosts the morning show on Sirius satellite radios Shade 45. Moses "Lucky" Cordell, also known as the"Baron of Bounce," was WVON radio station's program and music director in 1965 and went on to become WVON's general manager in 1970. Chuck Leonard, air personality in New York City in 1960-1970s on WWRL, WABC, WXLO, WRKS, WBLS and others. It officially launched in 2015 with a series of episodes highlighting Chicago Influencers and Chicago Dining. And it grew up with 'VON. Of course, with new areas of communication, and with all the new gadgets that I don't know very much about, it doesn't have quite the support that it did. My dad had two children, my sister and me.". Search On air radio personality jobs in Rockville, MD with company ratings & salaries. Join us for a heavy dose of research with a dash of comedy thrown in for flavor. (Journalist) Lu Palmer would bring in the message as related to race and the struggle. It was meaningful because it gave to the listener the kind of (broadcast) that was inspirational as well as informational. If you can never get enough true crime Congratulations, youve found your people. It launched officially in 2015 with a series of episodes highlighting Chicago influencers and Chicago dining. Popular syndicated personalities Tom Joyner and Steve Harvey also started in this market. Shes the host of the evening show airing Monday-Thursday from 6 p.m. 9 p.m., where she invites listeners and viewers on social media to simply, TALK to Samantha.. The Laurence Holmes Show, Weekdays 6 p.m. - 10 p.m. Kap & Co. Show, Weekdays 12 p.m. - 2 p.m. Williams currently hosts her own daytime TV talk show. The final broadcast of the show was on Friday, April 26, 2013. Moses "Lucky" Cordell, known as the "Baron of Bounce" on WVON radio, has died less than two weeks after he and his daughter were rescued from a fire in their South Shore home. His decision to. In the volatile world of radio, almost nothing lasts half a century. For the listener, it not only was encouraging, but it came closer to giving the truth, the reason for the struggle, the importance of participating in the struggle to bring about change. But a great Chicago radio station WVON-AM 1690 has managed the feat: The institution marks its 50th anniversary Monday and celebrates with a concert featuring Toni Braxton at the Chicago Theatre on Saturday. Their new series, Talent is a six-part video series featuring live entertainment and conversations with Chicago music artists hosted by Samantha Thomas. The 1450 frequency was left silent for a time. Female firefighters in Richton Park lead by example: You dont have to be a man to do this job, Kam Buckner: The next mayor of Chicago has a reform mandate, One shot, hopefully the last shot. Mainstream media takes a mainstream approach on most subject matters, meaning a predominantly Eurocentric mindset, which is OK. In 1994, The Fly Jock became one of the first nationally syndicated Black DJs when was hired to host his own program, the Tom Joyner Morning Show, which spread to 29 stations. What was your greatest failure and what did you learn from that? Have you progressed in your career as you have expected? [4][5][6] In early years, WHFC aired pop music from singers like Bing Crosby, and aired live band performances from Cicero's Olympic Ballroom. What has been your proudest achievement? [13][14] 97.9 WEHS's call sign was changed to WHFC, and simulcast WVON's programming until 1965, when 97.9 adopted a jazz format as WSDM. But Im more efficient during the day. Check your inbox now to confirm your subscription. And describe your childhood growing up. When Harold Washington was elected (mayor). My family is pretty close. "We are part of this nation, so we are the voice of a nation.". Some of my best work has been done under pressure. I produced the show Chicagos Best on WGN-TV. | Source: New York Daily News Archive / Getty. I also like to write. I think it is still (important). Tom Joyner | Source: Getty Images / Getty. We took the market by storm. Everybody listened to it. I know why people were so upset when Marshall Field's became Macy's. Mack was already a successful air personality in Houston when a small AM station in Los Angeles called KDAY hired him to be a disc jockey and music director. There's not many places that an urban talk station can survive. What does the science say about the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic? You just couldn't fight FM. And our ratings, when we were doing Arbitron (were) 20, 23, 24, we slowly dropped down to a 1, 2 share, 0.5. I think about so many different times that the news media has barraged this place. And then look at a very young Barack Obama, who cut his teeth and grew his brand at this station as a community activist and as a state senator, and on to (being) a U.S. senator, and look at him now. Licensed to Berwyn, Illinois, WVON has studios in the South Loop,[3] and its transmitter is located at 87th and Kedzie in Chicago's Ashburn community. Morbid is a true crime, creepy history and all things spooky podcast hosted by an autopsy technician and a hairstylist. They were attracted by some good jazz and blues, and along with that would be the story. It had monster ratings, ruled the soul music scene and became a radio legend -- all with only 1000 watts days and 250 watts at night on 1450. Cordell, 86, died Tuesday night at the University of Chicago medical center, where he had been in the intensive care unit since June 28. ThroughoutAmerican history, Black disc jockeys did more than just spin records. WVON became well known outside the Chicago area as well. She is the first black woman in Chicago to hold this distinction. It can scare people sometimes because it may seem like youre waiting until the last minute. But I think, overall, it has given the black community an opportunity to have our own voice, our own analysis of issues, from our own unique perspective, given the dynamics of the American society. What makes for a good urban talk station? Following is an edited, brief oral history from five Chicagoans long in tune with an irreplaceable Chicago radio station. But the black community has unique and particular issues that impact it on a daily basis, historically, and in terms of our connections with ourselves and the rest of the country. When brothers Leonard and Phil Chess bought WHFC-AM 1450 in 1963, their goal was to promote Chess Records, renaming the outlet WVON for Voice of the Negro. Martha Jean The Queen Steinberg (September 9, 1930 January 29, 2000) was an influential African-American radio broadcaster and later was also the pastor of her own church. I'm not so arrogant as to believe that 'VON is a larger portion of it, but I'll tell you this: We are better because we are here. [4] WHFC's frequency was changed to 1450 in 1941, as a result of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement. Matt McGill has resigned as morning personality at WVON AM 1690, ending a 13-year run as one of the most prominent voices on the Midway Broadcasting urban news/talk station. I'm sure they were fair, but it was always a white talk show, not completely black like this. We are able to survive because it is here. Again, I never thought that I could actually do radio, but I was given a chance. All Rights Reserved. I was born and raised in Chicago. What is your favorite book? Youre such a fashionista! . You'll get some good old-fashioned common-sense intelligence, and you better know what you're talking about, because they'll put a corrective measure in there as soon as possible. Jack was friends with the late Abe Pollin and Irene Pollin, and worked closely with them in their philanthropic work. WVON (1690 AM "The Voice of the Nation", originally "Voice of the Negro") is a radio station serving the Chicago market, which airs an African-American-oriented talk format. Season two, Mob Land, is about a high-rolling lawyer who joins forces with the feds to try to bring down one of the most powerful criminal syndicates in the country. Mon - Fri: 06:00 AM - 10:00 AM. Though resistant to rap, he played some of the first hip-hop records and hired hip-hops first legendary radio jock, Mr. Magic. [42], In 1986, WVON adopted its current black-oriented talk radio format. Your email address will not be published. [11][15] Though the station was initially geared strictly to a black audience, by 1968 its playlist had expanded to include songs by white artists that were compatible with the station's sound, in an effort to reach a wider audience. That was important, because at that time the (other) stations had very, very few African-Americans that were participating. For fifty years WVON Radio has built a reputation for being the social conscious of Black Chicago. Who did you inherit your style from? Using the name "Ebony Moonbeams," Williams started her career in broadcasting in 1973 when. Thats what he lives for., Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. My mother instilled education in all of us, and made it a priority for us growing up. I just really love clothes. Yvonne Daniels was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1995. American Idol Chatter for 16 years. There's nothing wrong with that. The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.Read the press release here. I think Ive progressed well in my career. Firefighters made a hole in the roof before rescuing the two from the bedroom. After college, Williams started her career in radio as an intern for Kiss 108 in Boston, and made the move to New York Citys Kiss-FM, where she eventually landed her own air shift; and then on to New Yorks Hot 97. I was never really shy. Watch Now Self-Sufficiency--From the CROE Archives. Deep Cover drops on Mondays. Sometimes I don't like your hosts. But the elections have been criticized over logistical failings and violence that suppressed the vote. Frank Ski has been an integral part of our local Atlanta . WVON Radio has announced today the return of media personality Matt McGill to WVON's line up beginning June 1, 2022. Scientists have strong evidence of animal spillover at a market.. Make sure that the stream settings are properly selected in "Module General Options -> Content -> Stream Settings". I knew that I had more experience in television, so I operated in that vision. For eight years Joyner would do a weekly morning show at K-104 in Dallas, and fly to Chicago every weekday afternoon for a show at WGCI. Berry Gordy, the president of Motown Records, sent every song he produced immediately to WVON before any other station. The Chicago native and cultural enthusiast started her media career as a director, and television news producer for several local news markets across the U.S., including Missouri (CBS), Las Vegas (ABC, FOX and CBS), and Chicago (CBS and WGN). I think the black media in general, and WVON specifically, played a profound role in history and, in one case I can cite, the election of Chicago's first black mayor (Harold Washington). The Wake Up Show eventually became internationally syndicated, reaching more than 20 different markets in five countries. Telephones for the first time were portable, and we rode around in the neighborhoods and talked to people (on the air). With just 1,000 watts of power, the station surprised everyone by becoming a broadcast sensation, indeed giving voice to a culture and community otherwise marginalized on the airwaves. Sway Calloway, along with his partner King Tech, became the first to host a hip-hop radio show on a pop station when his Wake Up Show debuted on San Franciscos KMEL-FM in 1990. [38], WXOL aired a blues oriented format, and its appearance on the dial sparked an immediate increase in the sales of blues records in the Chicago area. [37] Both stations were on the air by October 1979 and shared a transmitting tower. Pervis Spann, who helped boost the careers of many radio personalities, disc jockeys and successful recording artists as he transformed WVON into the "Voice of the Negro" and . Embodying the fast-talking style for which he was named, Gibson also went on to create one of the first Black radio trades, Jack The Rapper and the infamous Black music convention of the same name. If you've ever wondered what your favorite radio personalities look like, scroll down or check out the slideshow. Its Chicagos urban legacy station and for more than 50 years, WVON has been positioned as a media powerhouse, so Ive always known of the station. Though music dominated thanks to blues records from Pervis Spann and R&B tracks from Herb Kent and others Wesley South's legendary "Hot Line" talk show crackled with political discussion. Leonard caught the radio bug in college as program director of the University of Illinois station WPGU. So it was listened to by almost everyone in Chicago who was African and American, and I'm sure whites and others listened, too, because of the music. Seven years later, their stories collided when a small town detective got a tip and became convinced that if he could solve one mystery, he'd solve the other. I'm sure this will go down as one of the great black talk stations of all time, just as it was one of the great music stations. Melvin Lindsey, the originator of the "Quiet Storm" late-night music programming format and Washington D.C air personality the 1970-1980s. Its currently still being broadcast. Why did you attend college away from Chicago? Conrad WorrillProfessor at Northeastern Illinois University and former host on WVON. Williams was Billboards Best On-Air Radio Personality in 1993 and became the second African American woman inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2009. She confronts the conflicting stories people have told themselves about the crime because of an unexpected development: the arrest of a former Laramie police officer accused in the murder. He was a disc jockey on WVON and was influential in the development of blues music in Chicago, Illinois. WVON 1690AM/ iHeartRadio is a staple in the Chicago media community. [48] The WRLL call letters were assigned to Midway's half of the time-share on 1450 at Cicero, Illinois. WATCH NOW FREE VON TV features original live programs and video on demand films, TV series, entertainment specials, and more. Us having a voice, although it's a different voice, but feeling it doesn't need to be clarified down to the nth degree. The 63-year-old woman tried to go back inside the house, but the officers brought her out and away from the scene. But when we hit, we hit like a ton of bricks. Ive always loved watching TV, and would impersonate Oprah and other talk show hosts with my baby dolls as an audience. Were you influenced by anyone? Where were you born? Social media is the wave. "The only thing I can do is pray," Brown said a day after the fire. "Don Cornelius also started his career at WVON," added Spann-Cooper, referencing the late creator and. Crocker assembled a huge, multiracial audience, and had a great influence on the mainstreaming of disco. The positive response to Lindseys impromptu show led WHUR station manager (and now Urban One founder), Cathy Hughes, to give him his own time slot. And it was very inspiring in this short period of time, an hour format, that Mr. South was able to interview two of our giants in the black movement in this country. FM had this great sound: stereo. Star & Buc Wild (left) | Source: Getty Images / Getty. But even more so in the African-American community, because so many of the earlier listeners are now older people. If I had a superpower it would probably be telepathy. They were taken to the U. of C. medical center in serious-to-critical condition, fire officials said Sunday. I heard a caller today say: "You know, sometimes I don't like you, but it's like I'm married to you, and I can't get rid of you. There's no better way to understand our world than through sports. [25] In 1975, Globetrotter bought WNUS-AM-FM from the McLendon interests for $4,450,000; they moved WVON from 1450 to the 5,000-watt former WNUS signal on 1390 on February 5 of that year at 3:30p.m.,[26] which increased WVON's coverage area significantly. During his eight years at WVON, Kent established a huge following in the citys growing African-American community. Who is your favorite artist and why? Copyright 2023 Interactive One, LLC. Listen, where else can a Barack Obama, an Oprah Winfrey and a Michael Jordan, three of America's biggest phenomena of our generation (where else) could they have been had they not touched this soil? In a major market, it was the first 24-hour R&B station, and it had tons and tons and tons of listeners. I began filling in as needed as the traffic/weather and news anchor, and things took off from there. Also on The Matt Bubala Show on WGN Radio, Saturdays 2 a.m. - 5 a.m. Fred and Angiin the Morning, Weekdays 5 a.m. - 10 a.m. Christopher "Brotha'Fred" Frederick,Angi Taylor. She was given medication for the next several months, but on June 20,. What will the next 50 years of black America look like? Jack cohosted Broadcast House, Live for WUSA, TV, channel 9, and he was the featured host on FOX TVs. Almost twenty years after his death, WHUR jock Marvin Lindseys Quiet Storm playlist remains an inspiration for imitators at radio stations across the country. Thomas also hosted amateur talent shows on Memphis famed Beale Street, premiering young talents like B.B. Being multifaceted in the media industry, or any field for that matter, is important, especially during this time. In 1978 she became the first African American woman rock DJ at WRQX-FM in Washington, D.C. It was during her career as a TV News producer that Samantha received an EMMY Award. WVON is proud to be Chicago's only African-American news talk radio station. [48] This happened when Midway Broadcasting took over management of the station using an LMA (like a lease agreement) on the frequency licensed to Berwyn, Illinois and owned by Clear Channel Communications (now known as iHeartMedia). The Jonathon Brandmeier Show, weekdays, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. We went out in the street, made appearances at a lot of community centers. It doesn't have the kind of clamorous support that existed in those early days of '60s and '70s. What celebrity would you love to interview? The Cliff Kelley Show, Weekdays 3:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. Terri Hemmert,Weekdays 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Lin Brehmer,Weekdays 5:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Awesome! And for a young person just coming out of the Army and returning to school and the civil rights movement was at a fever pitch I used to listen to "Hot Line," which was hosted by Wesley South. However, the gift of speaking was always within me, and it was noticed by Melody Spann-Cooper, the owner of WVON 1690AM, in 2019. That's the source you go to. To this day, we still believe in gathering for family dinners. I'm very clear that while 'VON is a radio station, quote unquote, (that's) not what keeps us in business. Owned and operated by Pollack Broadcasting . Cliff Kelley, WVON radio personality, has an insightful interview with the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan. I hope you enjoy experiencing NDIGO. If it's going on in black politics, if it's going on in Chicago and it's impacting the African-American community, or you want to know what's going on, this is the station that you go to. All Rights Reserved. Kim Barker, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter for The New York Times, revisits an unsolved murder that took place while she was in high school in Laramie, Wyoming, nearly 40 years ago. Legendary disc jockeys Lucky Cordell, Cecil Hale, Herb Kent, The Cool Gent, Richard Pegue and Pervis Spann took part in a lively dialogue as they discussed their days at WVON radio. Robin Quivers | Source: Getty Images / Getty. From when I came out of the army, in 1964, I was introduced to WVON. I have a never-ending creative mind, but Ive found that Im most creative in the evening. And one of the reasons was to give a different view of black life to the general public, the radio-listening public. Referring to herself as the Queen of All Media, Wendy Williams trademark mixture of oversized personality and merciless celebrity gossip created a new radio archetype and captured millions of fans. Of course, when the riots came (after the assassination of the Rev. And it went right to Marmions Collin Wainscott. Ron DeSantis cements control of Disney World's special district DeSantis dealt another blow to Walt Disney World's ability to operate with autonomy by signing a bill on Monday to end the park's special tax status. [34][35][36] Jan Under the agreement, WCEV would operate from 1PM to 10PM Monday through Friday, with WXOL taking the rest of the hours. This includes being the host for on-board cruises for the Washington Capitals and Washington Bullets/Wizards basketball teams. A few years later, Magic took his Rap Attack to commercial station WBLS and fostered the careers of producer Marley Marl, and artists like Biz Markie and Big Daddy Kane. No one can stop you, but you. Jack Diamond Show. WVON is owned by Midway Broadcasting Corporation and broadcast on the 1690 kHz frequency via a LMA local marketing agreement with frequency owner iHeartMedia, Inc. WVON has studios on . Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.3; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/103.0.0.0 Safari/537.36, 2nd Helping sponsored by Residential Improvement Services, The Daily Game sponsored by Maryland Lottery, Operation Severe Weather Tire World Auto Service Centers, Connecting Communities Submit Your Event. There are very few stations that can say they have chronicled the progress of black people in this country from the '60s to now. With just 1,000 watts of power, the. [42][43] Midway Broadcasting immediately filed a request with the FCC to change WXOL's call sign to WVON, and on March 28, 1984 the WVON call letters returned to their former home at 1450. But I believe Im right where God wants me to be. Afternoon Drive, Weekdays 2 p.m. - 6 p.m. Two years later, Frankie Crocker hired Williams at WBLS-FM in her hometown, New York City.
