Carol Solomon, a highly successful businesswoman and longtime WWOZ ally, passed away over the weekend at age 72. As CEO of Peoples Health since 1997, Carol built the company into a regional health care powerhouse with more than 55,000 beneficiaries. Carol was a vocal champ... Read more

Saxophone great Herb Hardesty passed away Saturday, December 3 at the age of 91. Hardesty performed with Fats Domino for more than five decades, a career spanning all of Fats' major hits starting with 'The Fat Man' in 1949. His famous solos can be heard on the classics 'I'm... Read more

We've lost another notable member of the WWOZ family this week. Clinton Scott passed away Saturday, November 12, 2016. He was a longtime WWOZ DJ, hosting the Sunday afternoon jazz show, Sittin' In With Clint, for many years. Clint was part of the first group of DJs that sta... Read more

Edwin Harrison, Sr. passed away on October 13, 2016. He lived a remarkable life as a central figure in the Mardi Gras Indian and Social Aid & Pleasure Club communities and as a pioneering black taxicab driver. Harrison began masking in 1957 with the Creole Wild West and bec... Read more

"Father of rockabilly" and Harvey native Joe Clay passed away peacefully and surrounded by family on Monday, September 26, 2016. Clay was born Claiborne Joseph Cheramie in 1939 but it was under his stage name that he rose to prominence with hits like 'Ducktail,' 'Sixteen Ch... Read more

Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural Jr. passed away early on Saturday, September 24 at the age of 68. Dural rose to prominence as the leader of Buckwheat Zydeco, becoming synonymous with the band's name as he brought Louisiana zydeco music to an international audience. He performed t... Read more

Samuel Ridgley passed away on Saturday, August 27, 2016 at the age of 78. Ridgley was born August 6, 1943; the youngest of 17 children (his brother Tommy, a well-known musician, was the oldest, born 18 years earlier) and raised in the Shrewsbury section of Jefferson Parish ... Read more

Mercedes "Miss Mercy" Stevenson passed away on August 10, 2016 at the age of 90. She was one of the first Big Queens of the Wild Tchoupitoulas Mardi Gras Indians, founded by legendary vocalist George "Jolly" Landry. The early Wild Tchoupitoulas Queens wore headdresses, carr... Read more

Mercedes "Miss Mercy" Stevenson is one of the first Big Queens of the Wild Tchoupitoulas Mardi Gras Indians, founded by legendary vocalist George "Jolly" Landry. The early Wild Tchoupitoulas Queens wore headdresses, carried fans, and liberally added velvet, marabous, and be... Read more

Famous New Orleans jazz clarinetist Pete Fountain passed away on Saturday, August 6, 2016 at the age of 86. He is survived by his wife of nearly 65 years, Beverly, their three children, and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He had a long and industrious career... Read more