Every week, they protested in public to try to bring about change. A local radio station that wouldn't play "black" music received one such protest. The station manager eventually gave in, and Tom (of course) put himself up for the post. In 1970, Tom Joyner earned his degree from Tuskegee Institute in his native Tuskegee, Alabama.
After receiving a Bachelor's in sociology, he started working in radio right away. He started out at WRMA (an AM station in Montgomery, Alabama). After making his radio debut there, he then made waves at the AM stations WLOK in Memphis, Tennessee, KWK in St. Louis, Missouri, and KKDA in Kansas City, Kansas (an FM station in Dallas, Texas).
Later, he relocated to Chicago, also known as the Windy City. He sparked a storm of excitement on urban radio stations WJPC (FM), WGCI (FM), WVON (AM), and WBMX (FM) as he blasted through the Windy City. Listeners have never previously encountered such vigor, comedy, and vigor. In the mid-1980s, opportunity knocked on the door.
Tom is in an unpleasant situation due to his cheery demeanor and comical actions. It was decision time as his contract was set to end. He received job offers from two different companies for the morning drive time position at KKDA (Dallas, Texas) and the afternoon Disc Jockey position at WGCI (Chicago, Illinois).
Any typical person would have to choose one or the other, yet Tom Joyner decided to work in BOTH positions! He intended to use an airplane to go between Dallas and Chicago daily across distances of several thousand kilometers.
He was in the air so frequently that he earned the moniker "The Fly Jock." His commute and his opulent on-air persona brought him widespread attention and strong ratings. Tom Joyner upgraded his program in 1994.
More "Fly Jockeying" was not going to help him expand his following, so he persuaded ABC Radio Networks that his program would be successful in syndication. ABC decided to give it a shot after being impressed by his tenacity, qualifications, and fan base. Tom Joyner hosted the inaugural episode of The Tom Joyner Morning Show in 1994.
Every day, the program is broadcast on more than 105 radio stations around the nation. The show is heard by more than 8 million people on their preferred local radio station. The fact that Tom Joyner enjoys having a good time is widely known. He asserts, "First we make them laugh, then we make them pay attention.
If you can get people to listen, once they start thinking, they can start changing things. Tom pushes radio to entirely new heights. African Americans have never previously been able to wake up to such a good, uplifting, and enjoyable event. His achievements are not overlooked. Induction into the Radio Hall of Fame was given to Tom Joyner.
He has been given the "Joe Loris Award" for Excellence in Broadcasting by Impact Magazine. He has won the "Best Urban Contemporary Air Personality" award from Billboard. Because he won it so frequently, Impact Magazine's "Best DJ of the Year Award" was dubbed "The Tom Joyner Award." When Tom joined the Tom Joyner Morning Show, he didn't forget his roots.
He established a foundation that designates funds for children and schools in need. More than $60 million has been raised by the Tom Joyner Foundation to support the enrollment of students at historically black schools and universities.
The Foundation's goal is to "hyper serve" the African American community, exactly like the morning show, his website, events, and all of his other projects. The Morning Show, which also includes "Inside Her Story" with Jacque Reid, political commentary from Stephanie Robinson and Jeff Johnson, celebrity news with Jawn Murray, as well as humorous observations from D.L.
Hughley and the Celebrity Snitch Huggy Lowdown, is co-hosted by Sybil Wilkes, J. Anthony Brown, and senior news analyst Roland Martin. More than 1.5 million people have registered on Joyner's website, BlackAmericaWeb.com, which offers news, exclusive stories from celebrated journalists, unprecedented political coverage, interactive features, and on-demand audio.
