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Major Takeaways
Kool DJ Red Alert announced on Monday that he will retire from radio at the end of November.
His final broadcast will be a special four hour mix on WBLS in New York on Monday, November 30.
The farewell lands days after his 70th birthday and marks 50 years behind the turntables.
A tribute event at Sony Hall will honor him the week before the final show.
Kool DJ Red Alert is closing a chapter that helped build hip hop radio in New York and far beyond it.
The Harlem native shared the news in a video message posted on Monday, November 2.
“Today I stand before you to announce that I’m saying farewell to radio,” he told listeners in the message.
“It has been an honor in my life to share the airwaves with the community for over four decades,” he said.
Kool DJ Red Alert in a portrait against a brick wall. Photo by Dominick Brady via Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0.
Kool DJ Red Alert Sets a Final Night on WBLS
He will retire from 107.5 WBLS and Hot 97 in New York at the end of the month.
The closing broadcast gives fans one last full set from a DJ who defined the mixshow format.
He turns 70 on Friday, November 27, just three days before he signs off for the final time.
The sign off also marks his 50th anniversary as a DJ, a full half century behind the turntables.
Born Fred Crute, he built his name in Harlem and carried that neighborhood pride onto every station he touched.
From Kiss FM to Hot 97, a Life in the Booth
His radio career began in 1983 at 98.7 Kiss FM WRKS, the station that first put his mixes on air.
In the 1970s he helped popularize mixtapes as one of the first DJs to record mix compilation albums on cassette tapes.
At Kiss FM he became the first mixshow DJ to bring dancehall sounds to mainstream radio.
When WRKS changed direction in 1994, he moved to Hot 97 and mixed midday and afternoon shows until 2001.
He later spent five years at Power 105.1, then returned to WRKS in 2006 and stayed until 2012.
He has also been heard on the Backspin channel on SiriusXM during this late chapter of his career.
A Tribe Called Quest performs on stage in 2009, one of the acts Red Alert helped break on radio. Photo by Chalice L. via Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0.
The Records and Artists He Helped Break
Red Alert played a key role in breaking A Tribe Called Quest to a wider radio audience.
He also championed Jungle Brothers and Queen Latifah early, trusting records before the rest of radio caught up.
Black Sheep belongs on that list too, another act whose sound he pushed when it mattered most.
He had a part in the Roxanne Wars and the Bridge Wars, the feud years of 1984 and 1985.
During the Bridge Wars he played South Bronx, the Boogie Down Productions answer record aimed at MC Shan.
For young Black listeners, his shows functioned like a trusted filter in a city flooded with new music.
A spin from Red Alert told the streets a record mattered, long before playlists and algorithms decided taste.
DJ Jazzy Jeff at the turntables. He is among the guests named for the Sony Hall tribute. Photo by Dopefish via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.
A Sony Hall Tribute Arrives Before the Final Mix
The week before the final broadcast, New York will honor him at a tribute event at Sony Hall.
Guests named for the night include Teddy Riley, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Kid Capri and DJ Brucie B.
DJ Spinna, Rashad Ringo Smith, DJ Joe Cool and DJ Str8Heat are also on the tribute lineup.
More surprise guests are expected to join them in the room before the celebration closes.
Praise also poured in online after the announcement, led by artists who grew up studying his craft.
Big Daddy Kane thanked him for always playing his music and for making people feel good.
Jermaine Dupri said he learned much of what he knows about DJing from listening to Red Alert.
Posdnuos of De La Soul praised him as a positive force who shaped lives and understanding of the culture.
Why This Farewell Matters Beyond One Station
Radio DJs once served as the curators and gatekeepers between Black artists and Black audiences across whole cities.
Red Alert held that trust for over four decades, through format flips, station sales and changing technology.
He made clear this is a farewell to radio only, not a farewell to music or the people.
“Although I am stepping away from radio, my passion for music and entertainment remains strong,” he said.
He plans to keep bringing his sound to special events and community celebrations after the final broadcast ends.
“Radio may be one chapter, but the music and the entertainment will continue. Respect,” he closed.
For fans who grew up on his mixes, November 30 will sound like the end of an era.
Read more Entertainment coverage here, revisit the BigXthaPlug album story, and catch up on our Wu Tang Clan coverage from this big month.
