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John Boy and Billy
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John Boy and Billy
John Isley (born August 15, 1956) and Billy James (born August 31, 1957), known as John Boy & Billy, are American radio hosts based in Charlotte, North Carolina. From 1986 to 2025, their comedic morning program The John Boy & Billy Big Show broadcast from 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time in several Southern and Midwestern states via syndication through Premiere Networks, primarily airing on classic rock, active rock, and country music stations.
The format consists of talk segments intermixed with music, contests, and skit-based humor. The two lead hosts serve as a double act, with John Boy the comic foil and Billy the straight man. Current events, right-wing politics, sports (mainly race car drivers), and male-oriented problems are common topics of talk. Broadcast states include North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
The duo frequently interviews musicians, comedians, NASCAR drivers, professional wrestlers, and other public figures, such as Robert Earl Keen, Killer Beaz, Manny Pacquiao, Stephen Curry, Rodney Carrington, James Gregory, Pat McCrory, and the late Tim Wilson. The show also markets a line of Bar-B-Que sauces (named John Boy & Billy Grillin' Sauce).
The show ended on December 31, 2025.
For more than five years, John Boy and Billy hosted the morning show at Top 40 WBCY 107.9 FM in Charlotte. Their comic talents made them number one with the station's 18 to 34 listeners. But John Boy quit in February 1986, while Billy stayed for a month and a half, partnering unsuccessfully with Bob Lacey and Jim "Catfish" Prewitt.
Competing station WRFX 99.7 FM changed to album rock that same year and needed a morning show. WRFX signed John Boy and Billy to be the station's wake up hosts, but they could not start their new show until November due to a noncompete clause. A $250,000 billboard and television campaign, in which they had bags over their heads, preceded their return. On November 8 at 9:00 a.m., WRFX announced, "They're back!" and played "The Boys Are Back in Town" by Thin Lizzy. One difference on the new station, said John Boy, was "We'll actually listen to the music ... we're rock 'n' roll guys."
John Boy was arrested at a night club October 21, 1990, and charged with felony possession of marijuana, but the charge was later reduced to a misdemeanor because the amount was small. As part of his plea agreement, John Boy agreed to broadcast anti-drug messages on WRFX.
Early in 1993, news came out that John Boy and Billy were being asked by Mel Karmazin (boss to Howard Stern) to move to Atlanta and syndicate their show. At the time, WROQ in Greenville, was the only other station carrying the show. WRFX general manager Jack Daniel said the station made a six-year deal that would keep John Boy and Billy at WRFX but also allow the show to be heard in Atlanta, Raleigh, Columbia, as well as Texas, with the hosts getting a share of syndication income. One disadvantage, however; the show would need to include less locally oriented humor that people in other markets might not understand.
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John Boy and Billy
John Isley (born August 15, 1956) and Billy James (born August 31, 1957), known as John Boy & Billy, are American radio hosts based in Charlotte, North Carolina. From 1986 to 2025, their comedic morning program The John Boy & Billy Big Show broadcast from 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time in several Southern and Midwestern states via syndication through Premiere Networks, primarily airing on classic rock, active rock, and country music stations.
The format consists of talk segments intermixed with music, contests, and skit-based humor. The two lead hosts serve as a double act, with John Boy the comic foil and Billy the straight man. Current events, right-wing politics, sports (mainly race car drivers), and male-oriented problems are common topics of talk. Broadcast states include North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
The duo frequently interviews musicians, comedians, NASCAR drivers, professional wrestlers, and other public figures, such as Robert Earl Keen, Killer Beaz, Manny Pacquiao, Stephen Curry, Rodney Carrington, James Gregory, Pat McCrory, and the late Tim Wilson. The show also markets a line of Bar-B-Que sauces (named John Boy & Billy Grillin' Sauce).
The show ended on December 31, 2025.
For more than five years, John Boy and Billy hosted the morning show at Top 40 WBCY 107.9 FM in Charlotte. Their comic talents made them number one with the station's 18 to 34 listeners. But John Boy quit in February 1986, while Billy stayed for a month and a half, partnering unsuccessfully with Bob Lacey and Jim "Catfish" Prewitt.
Competing station WRFX 99.7 FM changed to album rock that same year and needed a morning show. WRFX signed John Boy and Billy to be the station's wake up hosts, but they could not start their new show until November due to a noncompete clause. A $250,000 billboard and television campaign, in which they had bags over their heads, preceded their return. On November 8 at 9:00 a.m., WRFX announced, "They're back!" and played "The Boys Are Back in Town" by Thin Lizzy. One difference on the new station, said John Boy, was "We'll actually listen to the music ... we're rock 'n' roll guys."
John Boy was arrested at a night club October 21, 1990, and charged with felony possession of marijuana, but the charge was later reduced to a misdemeanor because the amount was small. As part of his plea agreement, John Boy agreed to broadcast anti-drug messages on WRFX.
Early in 1993, news came out that John Boy and Billy were being asked by Mel Karmazin (boss to Howard Stern) to move to Atlanta and syndicate their show. At the time, WROQ in Greenville, was the only other station carrying the show. WRFX general manager Jack Daniel said the station made a six-year deal that would keep John Boy and Billy at WRFX but also allow the show to be heard in Atlanta, Raleigh, Columbia, as well as Texas, with the hosts getting a share of syndication income. One disadvantage, however; the show would need to include less locally oriented humor that people in other markets might not understand.