Funferal

A career in radio

A fascinating interview in the People’s Weekly World looks at the career of Bernie Hayes, a U of Illinois alum and African-American DJ, who has been in the business for over 50 years:

The industry was very segregated, as it is now. Being Black in America is the same as being Black on the radio: it is such a closed, limited industry. So it was pretty tough just to get a job. The Black radio stations were under-financed, their staff underpaid. But if you loved it, you stayed.
While a white disc jockey was making $200, maybe $250 dollars a week, we were making $40 if that much. And we had to purchase airtime from the white owners. You had to find someone who would sell you time. So, in effect, they weren’t paying us anything. They were just giving us commission on what we sold.