This photo is just a memory of the location of Kennedy-King College. The place on 69th and Wentworth Avenue in Chicago where this building once stood is a pile of crushed cement and broken glass. The old Kennedy-King College was once a vibrant place that housed "Chicago Powerhouse" WKKC 89.3 FM.
Before the City Colleges of Chicago announced in December of 2004 the hiring of Marv Dyson former general manager of WGCI as its executive director. WKKC FM had a 30 year history of serving the community in the public interest. As one of the first on air announcers and a volunteer for over 20 years I'd like to share some history and say thanks to several people who deserve credit for doing an incredible job of making WKKC one of the best college radio station's in the nation.
I remember like yesterday in 1974 walking in to the radio station office of H.D. "Woodie" Briant and announcing that I wanted to be on the air. I was given an audition on the spot, told to rip some news copy and read a couple of stories. After the audition I was assigned to do news. When WKKC first started the news team was probably the best area of operation. On the news team were two experienced guys Earl Gilbert and Al Bethea. Those guys I looked up to. Earl did the mornings and Al did the evening news. Later on Melisse Robinson became a fixture and WKKC news provided something special in the community. In the early years of WKKC's history students were trained in all aspects of radio announcing and everyone had to do news.
WKKC was born out of a struggle started by the former Wilson Jr College students to get a radio station for the broadcasting and theater department of Kennedy King College. Dr. H Adrian Rainer and others were the catalysts for obtaining the license for WKKC FM. My first teachers were Winslow Jefferies and Virgil Hemphill. The station engineer was Mike Woodland. Francis Willoughby was the program director, Vernon Mullin was production director Earl Gilbert news director and Connie Hedgepath was assistant to HD Briant. I and fellow classmate Rory McKinzie were the first members of the on air staff.
In the early days not many students knew about the radio station in Kennedy-King College. I can't recall how I found out but I left another school to go to Kennedy-King college right away when I heard about the radio station. Radio and being a Disk Jockey was a part of my life that I was addicted to. WKKC FM was a blessing in disguise and I couldn't wait to get there and be on the air.
My first on air shift was Monday through Friday 6 to 8 PM. WKKC's first studios were located adjacent to the television studio classroom. In the TV classes you could see the station in full operation. I could not pay attention in TV class because I wanted to be in the studio. The original studio featured a McGurdy console, huge turntables with the 12 pound motors, studer revox tape recorders and cart machines. For years I performed faithfully at WKKC FM having a ball playing the "Best Variety of Hits and Dusties."
The first change to WKKC came with the arrival of student Kevin Brown whom I trained at WKKC FM. Kevin was a quiet student and always paying attention to what was going on around him. I respected him and he respected me. When Kevin arrived he was being groomed to be the engineer/manager of the station. Exactly how Kevin Brown became the point person for the station is a mystery to me. Soon after Kevin arrived in the late 1970's he went to work finding a counterpart to help him run WKKC FM and that counter part Kevin found at a local skating rink was James Kelly. These two young men changed the face of WKKC FM.Kevin Brown became station manager and made James Kelly program director that was the best move ever for WKKC. Kevin and James were a great combination that produced a legacy of talent from WKKC FM. Kevin Brown dealt with all the politics of Kennedy-King College and the City Colleges of Chicago while building a strong relationship with the faculty to insure that students were getting both a classroom and practical experience. James Kelly went to work like a master builder constructing WKKC FM into a respectable and powerful community institution.
From 1977 - 1997, Kevin Brown and James Kelly led WKKC through power increases from 10 to 100 watts and 100 to 250 watts. James Kelly made sure that WKKC was sounding the best it possibly could at all times.
James Kelly is a genius of an audio engineer who lived radio. It was James who modified the programming schedule to include more community involvement information with public affairs programming. James utilized his experience as a ham radio operator and DJ to make WKKC FM one of the BEST sounding College Radio Stations every. In addition, the list of students influenced by Kevin Brown and James Kelly is very long. He is responsible for the likes of Guy Black, Isadore Pink, Mike Brown, Khris Raye, Rena Garrett, Jonathan Hood, and many others. I can also include myself to the list.Kevin Brown and James Kelly ran WKKC FM responsibly. The station was very well respected in the community. Under their leadership WKKC FM always had a policy against music with derogatory lyrics. Only two rap songs could be played an hour that was the rule. The format style of rap and hip-hop today was created at WKKC. WKKC FM broke the very first "Rap" records in the nation. While the big stations were arguing over the virtues of the new music. James Kelly found a place for it and instituted it on WKKC FM. It was common knowledge in the Chicago Program Director's circle if "WKKC breaks it, we'll play it!" During its time WKKC broke many artists and records. I remember the day when New Edition made their debut in Chicago and was not received well. Bobby Brown had quit the group that night, and the next day I saw them in Fletcher's Record shop and we were killing "Jealous Girl" on the radio. I called program director James at 5037 and told him I was bringing them to the station. Gaylon Hayes was on the air and started telling the listeners that New Edition was on the way and over 500 young people was outside waiting for them. Needless to say that sparked the spirits of those young men.
There are so many more stories that can be shared about Kevin and James and what they did at WKKC FM. I want to honor them for their dedication to WKKC FM and the work that they did. Today, I appreciate you.
Thank you Kevin Brown and James Kelly for putting up with me 20 years in my rants and raves and still taking me back. Thanks for doing the job that you did for the Englewood Community through the community calendars , remotes, and the students that were mentored. Thanks for giving the students and community an opportunity to learn and appreciate radio and most of all thanks for instilling in the students the importance of an education. Thank you Professor Virgil Hemphill, Mark Lewkowich, Winslow Jeffries and the late Lennie Stencil, Margaret Stubbs for being both pioneering professionals, great college teachers and colleagues.
The new WKKC has a long way to go before reaching the legacy of the old WKKC. And to start on the journey it begins with teaching and training students, not only with a good staff but with academicians that care about the college and the program that they are part of.
