Jazz 91.9 WCLK, Atlanta's Jazz Station

Jazz 91.9 WCLK, Atlanta's Jazz Station WCLK is a NPR affiliate. Founded in 1974, Jazz 91.9 WCLK broadcasts a mix of classic and contemporary Jazz, Gospel, Blues, Oldies and Reggae music.

Jazz 91.9 WCLK, a 501(c)3 nonprofit radio station licensed to Clark Atlanta University, is committed to preserving the legacy of Jazz through dynamic Jazz musical selections, cultural programming and community-focused initiatives. Jazz 91.9 WCLK, a 501(c) 3 non profit radio station licensed to Clark Atlanta University, is committed to preserving the legacy of Jazz through dynamic Jazz musical selections, cultural programming and community-focused initiatives. WCLK is a nonprofit, member supported, National Public Radio (NPR) affiliate and Public Radio International (PRI) station that serves the interest of the citizens in metropolitan Atlanta. For more station information, programming details, and to listen on the Web, please visit: www.wclk.com.

CONGRATS to our very own Kiplyn Primus host of The Local Take for being honored by the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival ✨😆...
09/06/2026

CONGRATS to our very own Kiplyn Primus host of The Local Take for being honored by the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival ✨😆💪🏾👏🏾❤️ This is such a well deserving honor!

Born Joseph Deighton Gibson Jr. in Chicago in 1920, Jack “The Rapper” Gibson helped shape Black radio as a disc jockey, ...
09/04/2026

Born Joseph Deighton Gibson Jr. in Chicago in 1920, Jack “The Rapper” Gibson helped shape Black radio as a disc jockey, organizer, music executive and advocate. A Lincoln University graduate, Gibson began as an actor in Chicago radio dramas, including the Black soap operas “The Redmonds” and “Here Comes Tomorrow.”

In 1945, Gibson moved into music radio at WCFL after volunteering that he knew “a little something” about Jimmy Lunceford, Andy Kirk and Duke Ellington. He later worked at WJJD under legendary broadcaster Al Benson. Known as “Jockey Jack,” Gibson developed a strong following among Black listeners.

In 1949, he left Chicago to help establish WERD in Atlanta, the nation’s first Black-owned and operated radio station and became the first voice heard on the station. WERD served Atlanta’s Black community and later played an important role during the Civil Rights Movement. Gibson recalled, “There would have never been a movement if it hadn’t been for Black radio,” which told listeners where meetings and marches were being held.

Highly regarded as the “Father of Black Appeal Radio,” Gibson helped advance programming created specifically for Black audiences. In 1955, he founded the National Association of Radio Announcers for Black DJs, later renamed the National Association of Television and Radio Announcers (NATRA).

Gibson moved into the recording industry in 1963 as public relations manager for Motown Records, working with artists including The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, The Jackson Five and Stevie Wonder. He later joined Stax Records, remaining there until 1972.

In 1976, Gibson launched “Mello Yello,” a widely circulated radio trade publication. He also created the annual Jack The Rapper Convention, which brought together artists, executives, radio personalities and other Black music industry tastemakers and gatekeepers through 1994.

Gibson was inducted into the Black Radio Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Nevada Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame in 1998. His papers, books, records and photographs were donated to Indiana University in 1996. He died January 30, 2000. Jack Gibson helped Black radio find its audience, its collective voice and its power.




Lawrence “Larry” Dean FaulknerWith his smooth delivery, lanky frame and trademark “Sugar, sugar, sugar!” for the ladies,...
09/03/2026

Lawrence “Larry” Dean Faulkner
With his smooth delivery, lanky frame and trademark “Sugar, sugar, sugar!” for the ladies, Lawrence Dean Faulkner became a popular Black radio personality known as “Long Tall Lean Lanky” Larry Dean. But over four decades, Dean’s influence extended beyond the microphone as he helped build stations, organize Black broadcasters and open doors for those who followed.

Born February 22, 1924, in Society Hill, South Carolina, Faulkner graduated from Howard High School in Wilmington, Delaware. During World War II, he was among the early African Americans admitted to the U.S. Marine Corps. Corporal Faulkner spent 13 months in the Central Pacific, playing in the orchestra of the 6th Marine Depot Company.

After graduating from Fisk University in 1951, Dean began his radio career at Atlanta’s WERD, the nation’s first Black-owned radio station. At WCIN in Cincinnati, he served as program director and helped organize the “Original 13,” a forerunner of the National Association of Radio and Television Announcers (NATRA). He later became the second president of the organization.

In 1956, Dean became program director at pioneering Black-owned WCHB in Detroit, where he helped recruit broadcasters including “Joltin’ Joe” Howard and Martha Jean “The Queen” Steinberg. After working in San Francisco, Dean settled in Baltimore, becoming a popular DJ and eventually general manager of WEBB. According to his wife, Greer, he also held forums with civil rights leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr. and Jesse Jackson.

In 1972, Dean joined the Washington bureau of the newly launched Mutual Black Network, bringing Black perspectives to national news and public affairs. Five years later, he became news director at Morgan State University’s WEAA, where he helped develop its news operation and mentored aspiring journalists.

Dean remained at WEAA until his death on December 11, 1985, five days after his final broadcast. From recruiting talent at WCHB to developing young journalists at WEAA, Larry Dean spent his career not only finding his own voice, but making sure others had a chance to find theirs.






Born in 1906, in Memphis, TN, Richard E. Stamz spent more than half a century finding new ways to reach Black audiences....
09/02/2026

Born in 1906, in Memphis, TN, Richard E. Stamz spent more than half a century finding new ways to reach Black audiences. From a sound truck carrying music and Negro League Baseball through Chicago streets to radio, television and the record business, Stamz seized opportunities in emerging media when few doors were open to Black people.

Stamz attended LeMoyne College in Memphis before moving to Chicago during the Great Migration. After working in entertainment with blues legend Ma Rainey, he began promoting businesses from a converted 1934 Chrysler equipped with speakers. The “sound truck” also figured in Negro League baseball broadcasts with pioneering Black broadcaster Jack L. Cooper.

By 1949, Stamz was working at Chicago station WGES, initially as a sound engineer. In 1955, he launched Open the Door, Richard, joining such pioneering Black Chicago radio personalities as Al Benson. His flamboyant, “downhome” broadcasting style mixed Southern expressions, humor and street language, while his program helped promote blues, gospel and the emerging sounds of Black music.

In 1956, Stamz carried his “open door” to television. The live Saturday-night Richard’s Open Door on WBKB-TV combined music and dance with interviews highlighting African Americans in politics, sports, entertainment and fashion. One guest was a prominent attorney, judge and diplomat Edith Sampson. Although the program lasted only 13 episodes, Stamz was among the early African Americans to host his own television show.

Stamz later expanded into various areas of the music industry. He also spent decades engaged in Chicago’s Englewood community, participating in political and neighborhood organizations and leading initiatives focused on crime prevention and young people. He and his wife, Ann, were married for decades, and had four daughters.

Stamz died in 2007, at age 101. His recollections were preserved in the posthumously published oral history Give ’Em Soul, Richard! Race, Radio, and Rhythm and Blues in Chicago. Across an extraordinary career, Stamz repeatedly recognized the possibilities of new media—and helped open doors for the Black broadcasters and personalities who followed.






A Chicago native, Norman W. Spaulding attended Englewood High School and Howard University. He began his broadcasting ca...
09/01/2026

A Chicago native, Norman W. Spaulding attended Englewood High School and Howard University. He began his broadcasting career in 1950, playing jazz on several Chicago stations, including WFJL, WNIB, WGN and WIND. At the same time, he worked as a record buyer and music-store manager. “I was a hustler—I had to work more than one job to support my family,” he later recalled.

In 1956, Spaulding joined WGES, where his afternoon show blended emerging rhythm and blues with jazz, while his evening broadcasts concentrated largely on jazz. Unlike the flamboyant delivery of some popular Black disc jockeys, Spaulding described his announcing style as “soft,” while using Black idiomatic language to connect with listeners. He left WGES in 1962 and developed a rhythm-and-blues and jazz format for WAAF.

Spaulding was also looking beyond the microphone. In 1960, he founded Feature Broadcasting Company, which syndicated programs on sports, domestic subjects and Black history, including "Advice to the Housewife," moderated by Ethel Waters. Although Feature struggled financially, it was among the early syndication efforts that helped lay groundwork for later Black radio networks. Spaulding also produced and directed a nationally syndicated program featuring sermons by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Years later, Spaulding earned master's and doctoral degrees in communications from the University of Illinois. His 1981 dissertation, "History of Black-Oriented Radio in Chicago," 1929–1963, documented the personalities, music, and cultural forces that shaped the medium he knew firsthand. His research continues to be cited by scholars of Black radio and culture.

Energetic, optimistic and just 5-foot-4, Spaulding returned to graduate school sporting a ponytail and sharing radio stories with younger students. He died July 16, 1987, in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Spaulding did more than help make Black radio history. He helped preserve it.









Come Celebrate of very own Rodney E. Evans and enjoy a great evening of Gospel music. Tickets and information are availa...
09/01/2026

Come Celebrate of very own Rodney E. Evans and enjoy a great evening of Gospel music. Tickets and information are available now at WCLK.com.

WCLK is so excited to be a co-presenter of this amazing show! Get your tickets now!
09/01/2026

WCLK is so excited to be a co-presenter of this amazing show!

Get your tickets now!

Get your tickets now!
09/01/2026

Get your tickets now!

This weekend! 😆
09/01/2026

This weekend! 😆

Floyd Joseph Calvin was only 37 when he died, but in less than two decades he built a remarkable career finding new ways...
08/31/2026

Floyd Joseph Calvin was only 37 when he died, but in less than two decades he built a remarkable career finding new ways to carry Black voices to larger audiences. A journalist, pioneering radio host, and news service founder, Calvin understood the power of mass communication—and was determined that African Americans be part of it.

Born July 13, 1902, in Washington, Arkansas, Calvin learned the newspaper trade while attending Shover Street Teacher Training School. After graduating in 1920, he moved to New York, where he worked for the "New York Age" before joining the influential Pittsburgh Courier in 1924.

Radio offered Calvin another way to reach people. On October 8, 1927, he delivered a WGBS talk on “Some Notable Colored Men,” highlighting Black achievement in business, education, the arts and other fields. Its success led to the "Pittsburgh Courier Hour." Evidence strongly indicates that it was the first ongoing Black radio series.

Calvin immediately recognized radio’s possibilities. “Over the radio we can reach vast audiences,” he proclaimed, including people previously untouched by literature about Black achievement.

His program mixed serious commentary with music by Black performers. After WGBS dropped the show, Calvin moved it to WCGU in January 1928. Renamed the Floyd J. Calvin Hour, it showcased established and emerging talent, including Vivian Abbott, Ernestine Covington and W.C. Handy. The program became weekly before ending in October 1928.

Calvin returned his attention to journalism, producing his syndicated “Calvin’s Digest.” In 1935, he founded Calvin’s Newspaper Service in Harlem. Within two years it supplied news, photographs and other material to at least 126 newspapers, reaching as far as Bermuda.

Calvin died September 1, 1939, after a short illness. His news service continued after his death.

Calvin’s career was brief, but his mission remained consistent. Newspapers gave him a voice; radio reached people print could not; and his news service helped Black newspapers inform their communities. Calvin spent his short, full life expanding the reach of Black voices—and demonstrating the power of controlling how Black stories were told.




Address

111 James P. Brawley Drive , SW
Atlanta, GA

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+14048808284

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Jazz 91.9 WCLK, Atlanta's Jazz Station posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Jazz 91.9 WCLK, Atlanta's Jazz Station:

Shortcuts

Share

Category