WFIV’s Bryan shares stories of changing radio landscape
Darrell Bryan has seen decades of change in the radio business — from spinning vinyl records to the rise of FM radio and digital automation.
Bryan, director of sales and programming for WFIV-FM (West 105), which serves Farragut, West Knox County and Loudon County, shared stories from his long broadcasting career during a Rotary Club of Farragut meeting Wednesday, Jan. 21, at Fox Den Country Club.
“In the mornings, I’m in a little room — about 6 by 8 — and I’m the only person there, so I like to see a lot of people,” he told club members. “I’m going to tell you about the radio business and how it’s changed over the years.”
Bryan began his radio career in the early 1970s at WEZK-FM (97.5) in Knoxville, located on Sharp’s Ridge.
“My first job was loading tapes,” he said. “A keypunch operator would give me cards to put in trays, and that’s all I did.”
He also recorded weather forecasts for a Sears weather line that listeners could call for up-to-date conditions.
“There were no cell phones in the ’70s,” Bryan said. “People really depended on the radio. That was how they got their news.”
One memorable morning, he had to report for a New Year’s Day shift during icy conditions.
“At Sharp’s Ridge, it was about an 85- to 90-degree hill going up to the station,” he recalled. “They had a Jeep, but it was broken down. I had to walk up that hill around 5:30 a.m., and I basically fell up it — it was that slick and that steep.”
He also brought along vintage vinyl records for the club to see, including 45s, 33 1/3s and even some rare 10-inch records.
“My real start in radio was in 1973, when I moved to Greeneville,” Bryan said. “I got married one week, moved the next, and took a new job shortly after. But it worked out well.”
In Greeneville, he wore many hats: hosting a six-hour radio show, selling advertising and doing remote sports play-by-play.
While some see sports broadcasting as glamorous, Bryan recalled a less-than-glitzy start.
“The very first game I broadcast was at a new school. I was on the back of a half-ton truck, parked in one end zone,” he said. “At another school, I was on the back of a pickup on a hill. At a third, I was under a funeral tent.”
Bryan noted FM radio didn’t become mainstream until around 1980.
“One of my earlier jobs was at an FM station, but back then there were no FM radios in cars,” he said. “Your biggest listening audience is in cars. One station in Knoxville gave away FM converters to help grow the audience — and it started a new wave.”
In 1981, Bryan purchased WSMG-AM in Greeneville and later became owner and managing partner of WBEJ-AM in Elizabethton. He also served as a broadcast and media consultant and operated a performing arts center.
He is currently doing the morning show on WFIV-FM 105.3.
