KWEM radio in West Memphis began broadcasting on February 23, 1947, from 231 Broadway Boulevard and became an early platform for Delta blues and the emerging rock 'n' roll sound. From 1947 through 1955, local musicians performed live on the air, often under a rare pay-to-play model in which they found their own sponsors and used broadcasts to promote themselves and their performances. Artists including Sonny Boy Williamson, Howlin' Wolf, Johnny Cash, Ike Turner, Junior Parker, Hubert Sumlin, James Cotton, and Albert King appeared there during these years, often receiving their first radio exposure and gaining access to larger radio markets and recording studios in Memphis and Chicago. Inspired by live blues broadcasts on KFFA in Helena, KWEM began noonday live programs early in the station's history, with Sonny Boy Williamson, Junior Parker, Joe Willie Wilkins, Willie Nix, Forrest City Joe Pugh, and briefly B.B. King taking part. Elvis Presley also made an early appearance there before visiting Sun Records. Hearing these broadcasts inspired Albert King to learn guitar; he later began his career nearby at the T-99 Club in Osceola and became a major influence on Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, and Stevie Ray Vaughn. Playing on KWEM brought musicians some of the best live bookings in Memphis and across the Delta. Howlin' Wolf hosted a daily show there from 1949 to 1952, joined by young musicians Junior Parker and James Cotton, and after recording at Sun Records in 1951, he moved to Chess Records in Chicago in 1952, helping carry West Memphis blues into Chicago electric blues. Junior Parker had his own show on KWEM in 1953, the year he co-wrote and recorded "Mystery Train" for Sun Records, and in 1954 he followed Howlin' Wolf to Chess Records. Johnny Cash made his first radio appearance with a live performance there before signing with Sun Records in 1954, later hosting a weekly show with Luther Perkins and Marshall Grant; that first recorded live performance was later reported to have served as his audition tape at Sun Records. Dan Craft and the Craftsmen appeared on the Sunday program "Date with Delta" in 1948, leading to regular appearances through 1955 and the nickname "Delta Dan." KWEM featured black and white musicians and broadcast blues, country, and gospel alike, influencing thousands of listeners across the Delta and Mid-South and, along with Sun Records and Beale Street, helping develop and spread the Delta sound that evolved into American rock 'n' roll.
