It is with a very heavy heart that we acknowledge the passing of radio icon Cody Anderson. According to his family he passed peacefully on Saturday evening. Cody was instrumental in breathing life into WURD and shepherding it over our almost 20 years, first as General Manager and most recently as a beloved host, mentor and friend. Like his biological family, the WURD family will miss him deeply. But we are grateful for his tireless and generous support of independent Black media, which he championed every day of his life, especially through his advocacy of WURD Radio.
Cartoon of W. Cody Anderson – Courtesy of Signe Wilkinson
Up until the time of his passing, Cody Anderson was actively involved at WURD Radio in a myriad of ways. He was the co-host of The Electric Magazine with Vikki Leach every Saturday from 7-9am; co-host of bi-weekly 10am Saturday morning shows with City Council President Darrell Clarke and Philadelphia School Superintendent Dr. William Hite; co-host of the weekly Laborer’s Live show every Friday from 4-5pm; and he regularly guest hosted wherever and whenever we needed him. His office was in the same building, on the same floor and just a few doors down from WURD’s offices. He flowed in and out of the WURD headquarters, offering gentle but firm guidance to our hosts, producers, sales team — all of us. He offered me wise counsel cultivated from a long career as a radio manager, entrepreneur and community servant.
On December 4th, WURD honored Cody in a 3-hour celebration at our annual Empowerment Experience event. During this program we heard from current WURD hosts, radio pioneers he worked with during his long career, and friends and family who have been influenced by his life and legacy. You can find a link to the AUDIO and see the video below:
Additionally, Cody was featured in the first episode of our new podcast, OnWURD: 2020 In Black, which explored the power, significance and possibility of Black owned and operated radio. Both of these offer a powerful record of Cody Anderson’s thoughts and insights, in his own words.
“WURD was his home. WURD was his family,” his oldest son, Kyle Anderson, said to me recently. And we are his.
Rest in peace and power Cody Anderson. His was a life well lived.
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