WMNF's roots in hip-hop go all the way back to the late '80s when Kenny K was the voice of the genre not just in Tampa, but in much of Central Florida. The co-founder of Digital Underground passed away in 1994, but part of his spirit lives on thanks to 88.5 FM shows like Hip-Hop Flavors (Wednesdays from midnight to 4 a.m.), The Damn Jams (Saturdays, midnight to 3 a.m.) and Thee Righteous Temple of Hip Hop (Sundays from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.).
Kenny K's legacy shines brightest, however, on the Saturday Night Shutdown, which airs from midnight to 3 a.m. on Sunday mornings. Every week, anyone from a team of hosts including DJ Silent Rage, Concept, DJ Lowdown, DJ Charlie Chase, Rahim Samad, Slick Worthington and DJ Ritz heads into the studio to bring listeners the latest rap and hip-hop with a big emphasis on underground sounds.
The Shutdown sits on the same spot of the WMNF schedule that Kenny K did, and in a way, the program's existence is essential to the fabric of the community. At one point, the show was called the Underground Railroad and featured a young man named Mad Linx who went on to host Rap City on BET.
This Saturday, the Shutdown needs listeners' help to stay on the air. The show has to raise $500 as part of the station's fall fund drive. A successful run will show station managers that hip-hop, and the show specifically, should still be on the air,
DJ Ritz — who got turned on to the show when he was still in high school — used to call in religiously and do on-air shout outs. Now 38 years old, Ritz is one of the guys putting callers on the air. DJ Silent Rage has been on the air at 88.5 for 14 years, and he discovered the show after moving to Tampa from New York as a middle schooler.
"I was used to listening to hip-hop on the radio growing up in the Bronx," Silent Rage told CL. "I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't go back to sleep. I turned on my walkman and I stumbled on 88.5 FM. After that night, I became a faithful listener on Saturday nights and recorded a-lot of those shows."
He became friends with Mad Linx and used to DJ a lot together. When Mad Linx's DJ and TV career started to take off with BET, he past the Underground Rail Road show over to DJ Ritz, Tony Montana and Silent Rage.
"I did not expect it, but it was an honor to be able to continue playing hip-hop over the air on Saturday nights. On top of that, I get to contribute with keeping Kenny K's legacy alive when I'm in studio three," Silent Rage, 39, added. While fund drives aren't necessarily nerve-wracking, finding a way to raise the funds is always a task.
"The goal is minimal but with all the free media outlets it takes work to reach it each time," Ritz told CL. "I like to think there's some sort of appreciation that goes with a legacy show like ours but at the same time I'm not 100-percent comfortable in our status at WMNF. The participation isn't what it used to be with all the new free places to get music."
"However, we often get phone calls during the show, from people wanting to let us know that they just happen to find the station and love what they are hearing," Silent Rage said. "Whenever, we receive those calls, it reassures me that we are still an important factor in the Tampa Bay area. To be honest, the biggest hurdle is our time slot on a Saturday night between midnight and 3 a.m. Those are the primetime hours for hip-hop fans to be in the clubs or at events."
Listen to archived editions of Saturday Night Shutdown — and donate online — via wmnf.org.
This article appears in Oct 4-11, 2018.