From KUTX:
John L. Hanson Jr. was born in Detroit, Michigan. Growing up in the ’60s the radio was the first thing he heard in the morning and the last thing he heard at night — the house was filled with music from all genres from soul music, gospel, western and rock and roll.
His dad was a musician that played the trumpet and John grew fond of the same instrument — so much so that during his first year of playing football in high school, he would go play with the band during halftime in his football uniform! In addition to that, John kept busy in high school: He was also a reporter and track athlete, and he had a part-time position playing records on an afternoon radio show during the summer.
After receiving his high school diploma, John would go on to receive a track scholarship to Huston-Tillotson University, which brought him to Austin —but that didn’t keep him away from music. While working toward his degree in accounting and economics at HT, John hosted a popular daytime program playing ’70s hits for KHRB, the first radio station in Lockhart.
In 1974 John started at KUT, and his first assignment was to produce the nightly music show Soul on FM, which earned him recognition as “Best DJ in Texas” by Texas Monthly magazine in 1976.
In 1980, Soul on FM was canceled, and John was asked to host a show called In Black America where he could reach a national audience and address the issues facing African Americans while also celebrating their accomplishments. John has now been hosting In Black America for 45 years.
To this day he still DJs with the moniker Jon E. Dee. He also hosts the popular radio show Old School Dance Party, which you can hear on Friday nights on KUTX. Over the years Hanson’s contributions to the arts have not gone unnoticed: He is the recipient of the Living Legends Award from the publication the Villager and the Presidential Excellence Award from the University of Texas at Austin.
Having interviewed luminaries such as Maya Angelou, John Lewis, Aretha Franklin, Andrew Young, and Coretta Scott King, John is truly a legend and pioneer in radio and media, laying out the blueprint and continuing to inspire generations to come.
