| In the fall of 1986, WMNF restructured
it's programming and the station managers realized they were in dire
need of a Rap show. When Kenny Waters,
who normally wore suits, walked into their staff meeting sportin' suede
Pumas, fat laces, a baseball hat and a gold chain, he promised to be the
answer to their problem. He had just recently been turned down by the long-standing
urban boss, WTMP and was looking for a radio wave that would broadcast
his love for Hip-Hop. The program director, Randy Wynn, said "He seemed
to be into the music. He had a good audition tape." And just like
that, a local star was born. Kenny immediately went on the air.
By the summer of 1987, anyone who was listening to Hip-Hop knew of Kenny
K. People all over the 813 area, which used to cover all of southwest Florida,
would gear up, prepare their cassette tapes and tune into 88.5 WMNF every
Saturday night at Midnight. Anyone that I've spoken with regarding those
Saturday nights recalls excitement wondering what remedy Kenny had planned
for the Top 40 blues. While the format of his show did change by the summer
of 1987, WMNF listeners never heard what Q105 was playing unless is was
incorporated in a "wax attack."
In the beginning, Kenny K spun anything that was
Rap, including M.C. A.D.E, Gucci Crew II, and even KJ and Cooley
"C." Over time,
he shied away from "Miami
Bass" artists and strictly directed the Technic 1200s towards New
York-based Hip-Hop. The reason for this was not because he had no love
for the Miami artists, but because of our location. Kenny K felt that
Tampa was so highly exposed to what was going on in Miami that playing
2 Live Crew would have been overkill. What he sought to do was play music
that couldn't be heard in the Bay area. Kenny K frequently played artists
in the same class as Eric B. & Rakim, Dana Dane, Public Enemy and
Kool Moe Dee. Had he not spun these now classics, surely a large amount
of Hip-Hop fans in the Bay area would never have even heard them. When "My
Melody" by Eric B. & Rakim and "Pump that Bass" by
Original Concept dropped, there was no Yo! MTV Raps to broadcast those
jams into people's homes. In the 813, there was WMNF and one Kenny K.
The highlights of his shows besides Hip-Hop "wax attacks" included
featuring local artists like The Dedicated Brothers (who former DJ Domination
manager Nick Major was a part of) and guest DJs like Scooby D and The
M & M DJs.
Anyone who remembers Kenny's show surely remembers
the "K-Ettes." The "K-Ettes" were
a flock of B-Girls, who dedicated their free time to Kenny and the WMNF
listeners. They would take caller requests, shout outs and even accompany
Kenny to local clubs and malls to boost his ratings. The most popular "K-Ette" was
Lavida "K" Anderson, sister to NFL star Jamal "Juggy" Anderson.
Lavida "K" was often the voice callers would hear when dialing
226-3003 to give their shout outs.
By 1988, Kenny K was married to Lavida, employed
by Camelot Records in Tampa Bay Center and working hard with Tampa
native, Shock G from
the Digital Underground crew. Their underground classic "Underwater
Rimes" (T.N.T. Records) was in heavy rotation at the time. Not long
after, Kenny took a break from the airwaves, and headed out to Oakland
with Shock G to work on Digital Underground's "Sex Packets" album.
Digital Underground's September '89 release "Doowutchyalike" featured
Kool Kenny on the B-side cut, "Hip-Hop Doll."
He returned to WMNF's airwaves in 1990 and continued to spin the real
Hip-Hop until 1991. During this span, he worked with Digital Underground
and Chuck D. from Public Enemy.
Kenny K Waters, the Brooklyn-born WMNF DJ and Hillsborough
High School graduate, blessed the 813 airwaves from 1986 to 1993. His
career was stopped short by the need of a liver transplant in late 1993.
Kenny K Waters died on February 5th 1994. Due to the fact
that he did not have health insurance, his name was not admitted to the
waiting list for organ donors. Because of his insurance dilemma, he was
turned down by Tampa General Hospital and flown to The University of
Texas' John Sealy Hospital. Kenny K's surgery would have cost $250,000.
- KRAM ®
Recently discovered facts:
Baseball stars Gary Sheffield and Dwight Gooden,
both Tampa natives, pitched in to help Kenny K, for his
liver transplant. Gooden and Sheffield were set sponsor a benefit baseball
game at the University
of Tampa, Sunday, Feb. 6, at 2 p.m - The day after Kenny passed away.
Also, THH.com's Mr. Sandman recently sat down and chatted with one time
Tampa native Shock G and was able to get some more interesting details
about Kenny K's last days with us. According to Shock G, Hip-Hop fans
and artists united and raised $150,000 for Kenny's transplant. Doc Gooden
donated another $150,000 the day before Kenny's death.
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