Macon musical pioneer Hamp Swain died Tuesday night.
Swain was Macon's first African-American disc jockey, according to an article on Georgiamusic.org.
He broke into the industry at radio station WMBL in 1954 and later moved to WIBB, hosting shows like "Ebony Bandstand" and "The Night Rider."
Swain – known on the air as “The King Bee” -- helped break artists like James Brown and Otis Redding.
He was also a musician himself and sometimes played the saxophone with another Macon star, Little Richard Penniman.
"This is the music I grew up on back in the day," said Bibb County coroner Leon Jones. "He was a legend in this community."
Swain died of natural causes at the Medical Center, Navicent Health.
He was 88.