First All-Black-Led Sports Rap Station In The Country Debuts In Detroit

An all-Black-led sports rap radio station has just launched in the city of Detroit.

According to CBS News, Rob Parker, a former sports anchor from Detroit, launched Sports Rap Radio on AM 1270 on June 4. It is the first and only Black-owned radio station featuring all Black hosts in the country.

“[This is] history-making,” said Rob Parker. “[It’s] groundbreaking, [and] we just believe that the time has come.”

First all-Black-led radio station hits airwaves in Detroit – CBS Detroit https://t.co/PsKf6Aguqg

— SportsRapRadio (@SportsRapRadio1) June 5, 2024

“Just four years ago, there were no Black full-time sports hosts on the radio in Detroit,” Parker said. “In a city that’s nearly 80% black, I looked at that as a problem.”

Joining Parker in ownership of Sports Rap Radio are his longtime friend Dave Kenney, former NBA player BJ Armstrong, and former Detroit Country Day football star and University of Michigan wide receiver Maurice “Moe” Ways.

Detroit Metro Times reported that, although the station was supposed to kick off on May 16, the station debuted on June 4 through a two-year lease with Audacy, WXYT’s owner. The radio station replaces Audacy’s syndicated BETQL Network.

Parker definitely has the pedigree to be behind this vision as a former co-host of The Odd Couple Show on Fox Sports Radio, he has also worked for cable outlets ESPN, FS1, and other platforms. He was also the first Black sports columnist at the Detroit Free Press and has penned columns for The Detroit News, Channels 4 and 7. In 1994, Parker was the first on-air personality hired for then-sports WDFN-AM.

As an entrepreneur, he also owns the Sporty Cutz barber shop on West Seven Mile Road.

“We’re hoping everybody will get behind us,” Parker said. “The response so far has been just tremendous. You wouldn’t believe how many people have asked, ‘What do we need to do?’ I tell them, ‘We’re going to need everything,’ but it’s shaping up and we’ll be ready to go.”