Music

There's no part of the music industry Dyana Williams hasn't touched

WSHU | By Raina Douris,

Published June 25, 2026 at 7:00 AM EDT

In 1979, Chuck Berry performed at the first celebration of Black Music Month at the White House, and Philadelphia's Dyana Williams was there. In fact, she helped make it happen.

It's just one of the many landmark moments Williams has been part of since launching her trailblazing career as a radio DJ in the 1970s. She left college for her first paying radio job and remembers the conversation she had with her mother.

"When I dropped out, she's like, 'How are you going to make a living?' I said, 'Momma, I'm going to be in radio'," she says.

Williams' gamble paid off. The decision led her to remarkable opportunities, including the event where she first met and fell for Philadelphia International Records cofounder Kenny Gamble.

Kicking off our Sense of Place: Philadelphia series, Williams shares stories from her extraordinary life and career.

Featured Songs

George Cables, "Ebony Moonbeams"
Stevie Wonder, "Golden Lady"
Jerry Butler, "Love's on the Menu Tonight"
The O'Jays, "Darlin' Darlin' Baby (Sweet, Tender, Love)"
Chuck Berry, "Roll Over Beethoven"
T.I. (feat. Rihanna), "Live Your Life"
Eve (feat. Gwen Stefani), "Let Me Blow Ya Mind"

This episode of World Cafe was produced and edited by Kimberly Junod. Our digital producer is Miguel Perez. World Cafe's engineer is Chris Williams. Our programming and booking coordinator is Chelsea Johnson and our line producer is Will Loftus.

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Music World Cafe

Raina Douris

Raina Douris, an award-winning radio personality from Toronto, Ontario, comes to World Cafe from the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), where she was host and writer for the daily live, national morning program Mornings on CBC Music. She is also involved with Canada's highest music honors: Since 2017, she has hosted the Polaris Music Prize Gala, for which she is also a jury member, and she has also been a jury member for the Juno Awards. Douris has also served as guest host and interviewer for various CBC Music and CBC Radio programs, and red carpet host and interviewer for the Juno Awards and Canadian Country Music Association Awards, as well as a panelist for such renowned CBC programs as Metro Morning, q and CBC News.

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Kimberly Junod

World Cafe senior producer Kimberly Junod has been a part of the World Cafe team since 2001, when she started as the show's first line producer. In 2011 Kimberly launched (and continues to helm) World Cafe's Sense of Place series that includes social media, broadcast and video elements to take listeners across the U.S. and abroad with an intimate look at local music scenes. She was thrilled to be part of the team that received the 2006 ASCAP Deems Taylor Radio Broadcast Award for excellence in music programming. In the time she has spent at World Cafe, Kimberly has produced and edited thousands of interviews and recorded several hundred bands for the program, as well as supervised the show's production staff. She has also taught sound to young women (at Girl's Rock Philly) and adults (as an "Ask an Engineer" at WYNC's Werk It! Women's Podcast Festival).

See stories by Kimberly Junod