Billy Parker passed away in a hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Monday, according to News On 6. As a disc jockey, Parker played a key role in the country music scene from the 70s to the 90s. He is remembered for creating one of the first all-night trucker programs, and also for making it to the charts he so often played. With several of his own songs, no less.
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In an interview with Voices of Oklahoma, Parker spoke in detail about his upbringing and life. He was 75 at the time and had been working as a disc jockey since he was a young teenager. At that age, he described himself as surprisingly "bashful and backwards."
Parker recalled, "I didn't have the personality to come out and say hey, I'm a singer, you know; although I would sing in the back room or play disc jockey." He laughed, "I had a nephew that would get in the room with me and he would interrupt me when I was reading a commercial from a magazine or whatever. I remember getting aggravated at him. 'I'm on the air! I'm on the air!' That was a long time ago. I was 14."
Several years later, Parker would be inducted into the Country Music Disc Jockey Hall of Fame. He would also go on to replace Cal Smith in the Texas Troubadoors band. In doing so, Parker would become known for his achievements as a jockey and an artist.
How Billy Parker Wanted To Be Remembered
In his later years, Billy and his wife would return to Tulsa, where he would establish himself as the "Voice of Oklahoma" at his home station, KVOO. In 2021, he would write an autobiography, called "Thanks A Lot", the title of a song of his. "Thanks A Lot", the song, was one of the 23 of his that charted.
When asked how he'd like to be remembered, here's what Billy Parker had to say. "I'd like to be remembered as a caring guy, a person who cares for other people and, at the same time, a person that don't expect sympathy because I'm not playing the old country every day like I used to play. And I'd like to be remembered as a person that everybody likes, which that probably would be impossible but still that's what I'd like."
Parker was 88 years old when he passed.
