“I had no knowledge of WERD. I took the space based on the legacy of Madam C. J. Walker cause the name was on the window,” says Madam C. J. Walker Museum and WERD Curator Ricci de Forest.
The nation’s first black owned radio station was once home to Atlanta’s historic Auburn Ave. and served as a major function for many blacks during the civil rights era, and now one Atlanta resident is focused on preserving its history.
“Two years into the lease a black woman stuck her head in the door while I was doing hair and just flat out, Mr. Ricci did you know the first black radio in North America was upstairs over your studio? I had no idea, so for 15 years I’ve been preserving the history of WERD and promoting the legacy of the artists of that era,” says de Forest.
The first of its kind during its time, it was the first Atlanta station to give voice to African American artists.
“WERD provided a platform for artists that would not be played on commercial radio because that music was called race music. WERD gave a platform to artists that normally wouldn’t have gotten any exposure,” says de Forest.
A radio station with less than 1,000 watts served as an outlet for the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King.
“When the state gave its license to WERD it only gave it a 1,000-watt radius which is not far at all and it was only allowed to operate from sun up to sun down. As it relates to the Civil Rights movement because WERD was already in place it gave a platform for Martin Luther King to deliver his message and coordinate logistics for the Civil Rights Movement,” says de Forest.
“For those getting a nice cut or simply getting their hair styled, groovin’ to the music was a norm when the station was just above their heads.
“WERD was directly upstairs over the Madam C. J. Walker Beauty Shoppe where the women of the Civil Rights movement would have gotten their hair done. Dr. Martin Luther King’s office was on the other side of the vinyl wall from WERD studio,” says de Forest.
De Forest says the preservation of WERD is here to stay and he wants to extend an invitation to residents and tourists to come and see and feel the experience of this Atlanta treasure.
Please change this heading; WERD was not the First Black Radio Station; it was the First Black Owned Radio Station in the United States. My Uncle Ken Knight was the Program Director when the station first opened up and Jack Gibson was the Announcer.