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Pervis Spann (August 16, 1932 – March 14, 2022) was an American broadcaster, music promoter, and radio personality. He was a disc jockey on and was influential in the development of in Chicago, Illinois.


Early life
Spann was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, on August 16, 1932.
(2025). 9780415926997, Psychology Press. .
During his teenage years, he cared for his family by picking cotton and managing the Dixie Theater – the only local black movie theater – after his mother could no longer do that because she suffered a stroke. Spann, his sister and mother moved to Battle Creek, Michigan, in 1949. Shortly after moving to Michigan, Spann left to work in Gary, Indiana, and spent a time in the forces in the . He subsequently returned to Chicago, Illinois, where he worked in a steel mill, drove a taxi, and repaired television sets. Blues Hall of Fame: Pervis Spann . Accessed February 21, 2012.


Career
Under the G.I. Bill, Spann attended the Midwestern Broadcasting School, before starting work on WOPA radio in 1959. He organized his first concert, featuring B.B. King and , in 1960. Three years later, when and launched , Spann was given a regular late-night blues slot,
(1997). 9780306807435, Da Capo Press. .
and won attention with an 87-hour "sleepless sit-in" on the station to raise money for Martin Luther King Jr. In 1962, at a show at the Regal Theater in Chicago, Spann became the first person to refer to as "the Queen of Soul".

During the 1960s, Spann managed the careers of leading blues and performers, including B.B. King, and claimed to have a role in discovering the Jackson 5 and . He co-owned several clubs, including the Burning Spear. After WVON was sold in 1975, he helped establish a new blues and -oriented station, WXOL, on the same frequency in 1979. Four years later, it became WVON again. Spann continued to promote blues festivals, and also ran station WXSS in Memphis, Tennessee, during the 1980s.

Spann ran for mayor of Chicago as a Republican in 1991, but lost in the primary to George Gottlieb."Low turnout predictions cloud city mayoral race", . February 26, 1991. pp. 1, 8."Candidates want turnout, but the reasons why vary", . February 26, 1991. Section 2, p. 7." Citywide Results", . February 28, 1991. Retrieved January 15, 2022. Eight years later, he ran for the Chicago City Council in the 18th Ward, with visiting the South Side to campaign for him. Spann was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2012.


Personal life
Spann was married to Lovie for 67 years until his death. Together, they had four children: Melody, Darrell, Latrice, and Chanté. Melody became chair and chief executive officer of Midway Broadcasting Corporation (which owns WVON), while Darrell was his during his later years.

Spann died from Alzheimer's disease at his home in the South Side of Chicago, on March 14, 2022, at the age of 89.


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