Gravy: King Biscuit Time

Southern Songs and Stories

Delta blues found its voice and audience on the airwaves of KFFA’s King Biscuit Time, a daily broadcast out of Helena, Arkansas. Bluesmen like Sonny Boy Williamson and Robert Lockwood Jr., who would go on to become legends, interspersed their own songs with advertising jingles. King Biscuit Time, which launched in 1941, gave unprecedented exposure to African American musicians while selling everyday grocery staples like flour and cornmeal. And it’s still on the air. Reporter-producer Betsy Shepherd travels to Helena to tell the story for Gravy.

Today, we’re sharing a special episode from Gravy, produced by our friends over at Southern Foodways Alliance and distributed by APT Podcast Studios. Gravy showcases a South that is constantly evolving, using food as a means to dig into lesser-known corners of the region, to complicate stereotypes, to document new dynamics, and to give voice to the unsung folk who grow, cook, and serve our daily meals.

Listen to more episodes of Gravy and follow the podcast here.