Kool DJ Red Alert has announced his radio retirement after over four decades on the airwaves.
On Monday (Nov. 2), the legendary DJ and hip-hop pioneer made the announcement in an Instagram post, revealing he’ll be playing a four-hour set as his “farewell broadcast” on Nov. 30 on his current radio home, 107.5 WBLS in New York City.
“Today I stand before you to announce that I’m saying farewell to radio,” Red Alert said in a video. “It has been an honor in my life to share the airwaves with the community for over four decades.”
He continued: “Thank you for being a part of my journey. The love, the memories, the music and the connection we all have shared and will always hold a special place in my heart. Although I am stepping away from radio, my passion for music and entertainment remains strong. I will continue to bring the sounds, the energy and the vibe to the people through DJing special events and community celebrations. Radio may be one chapter, but the music and the entertainment will continue. Respect.”
Red Alert, who turns 70 on Nov. 27, has been on the turntables for 50 years. In the 1970s, the Harlem native helped popularize mixtapes when he became one of the first DJs to record mix compilation albums on cassette tapes. Alert himself credits DJs Brucie Bee and Starchild with the mixtape trends that followed. Alert’s radio career began shortly after in the mid-1980s on New York’s 98.7 KISS-FM, where he then became the first mixshow DJ to bring dancehall to mainstream radio. He later moved over to New York’s Hot97 in the 1990s when the format flipped to hip-hop, and then moved on to WBLS, where he has been since.
He was instrumental in spreading hip-hop’s early sounds to the world. Red Alert had a part in hip-hop’s earliest feud as a DJ in The Roxanne Wars and The Bridge Wars in 1984 and 1985. He also was a pivotal piece in breaking music from rappers like A Tribe Called Quest, Jungle Brothers and Queen Latifah, among others.
Take a look at Kool DJ Red Alert’s farewell-to-radio announcement below.
