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Just a little shout out to an amazing radio station: KKBT, 92.3 The Beat – Los Angeles.
As a passionate student of radio in the early 90’s The Beat was one of my favorite stations to follow. In hindsight, I realize I was listening to one of the most dynamic and special radio stations on the planet.
The music, the branding, the imaging and the promotions were all top-notch. But maybe it was The Beat’s incredible talent lineup that really had me in awe, then and now.
The Beat’s all-star lineup included John London and The House Party (mornings), Diana Steele (middays), Theo (Afternoons), and Lisa Canning (Evenings).
There was also PJ Butta, Evan Luck, Julio G, even Cypress Hill and Eazy-E had radio shows on The Beat. I never worked there myself, so please do remind me of the names I am missing, I know there are probably a ton more.
Let’s start with an interview from John London…
Keywords: Keith Naftaly, Harold Austin, Mike Stradford, John Monds, Art Morrison, Kevin Ross, Theo Mizuhara, Tavis Smiley, Micheal Mixxin Moore, Tre Black, and Captain G, No Colorlines, No Color Lines, Radio, FM, rap, hip-hop, R&B
Steve Harvey had a morning show sometime after Theo left (not necessarily related events). I enjoyed Steve’s candid way of speaking, especially as he openly preferred 70s soul/R&B music of his generation to the early 2000 hip-hop playlists he was required to play by the station. One day he went off on the song Area Codes by Ludacris calling it trash. Steve went against the grain but never against his principles or his faith!
My cousin Monie Mon also worked for The Beat back in the day .
I was on the air at The Beat from 1993 to 2007. I’ve seen many changes throughout the years. It was one of the best jobs ever! – The Poetess
Yes! Huge fan!
I remember you, you were beautiful! Introduced me to Lauryn Hill (thank you!!! <3)
Love the sounds and the look of the ladies.
I’m just stumbling onto this page now (2023) but I thought I’d add another cool show to the Beat list of alumni… one which (in similar letter writing style as you) I had the privilege to join in ’96…. Sway & Tech’s Wake Up Show, on Saturday nights. First at the Yucca studios, then the Wilshire location across from LACMA. Although it wasn’t slow jams (quite the opposite in fact) our little squad hosted a who’s who of hip hop music. Biggie, Tupac, JayZ, WuTang, etc.. and it was this very show where Dre heard Eminem freestyling and called our hotline to find out who he was and introduce himself… the rest is history. I was fortune enough to also be a budding film photographer, so i shot a good portion of our sessions. Sway became a VJ at MTV and eventually became Executive Producer there. He went from interviewing a young BlackEyePeas to interviewing President Obama. Anyhow, the Beat was truly a special part of Los Angeles culture and my life… so thank you for this great write up. -Anthony
Thank you, Any! Appreciate you! Great stuff. So many gems you dropped.
Shirley used to work with John London and the House Party. She now works with Steve Harvey on KJLH owned by Stevie Wonfe
Hey R Dub! How are you doing? Can I request a slow jams? “Have You Ever – Brandy Norwood” this song is beautiful and touching, I’m sure it’s going to reach everyone’s heart and warm them up! Thank you so much and I love listening to the show!