DEWEY HUGHES – The Man Behind: “Talk to Me”
If you grew up in Washington, D.C. in the late ‘60’s and ‘70’s, you have undoubtedly heard of the legendary Petey Greene. If you’ve heard of Petey, then you’ve experienced the brilliance of Dewey Hughes. Long before the era of the “shock jock”, “shock radio”, or “reality television”, Petey Greene and Dewey Hughes were doing it all. Well ahead of his time, Hughes somehow always seemed to have a penchant for seeing the future and being in the right place at just the right time.
Dewey Hughes is an interesting man to say the least. When I met him, I already had preconceived notions of who he was and what he was like. Assuming he would never agree to sit down with me for an interview, I initially blew off such a possibility. When prompted by my publisher to introduce myself, I did so with great hesitation. Having heard he doesn’t give interviews, I prepared myself for rejection. Well, to my surprise, he agreed to grant me that interview which unveiled a wealth of knowledge and experiences… so much so, we ran out of time. I jokingly said to him “Wow, I think I need another hour with you. We should do a part two of this interview.” Without hesitation he replied, “Sure, let me know when.” It was if I had struck pure gold.
He first gave me a bit of history when asked about his relationship with Petey Greene. Dewey Hughes gave Petey his first radio job at WOL-AM radio back in 1967, where he was the public affairs director at the time. Fresh out of the Lorton Reformatory in Virginia, Dewey rolled the dice and took a chance on an ex-con with no radio experience to be a disc jockey on WOL’s morning show which later became “Rap With Petey”. That gamble paid off, and Petey Greene went on to become a D.C. legend on radio, television, and in the community. However successful it proved to be, that union didn’t just happen. There was clearly a method behind the madness so to speak. The unlikely paring of Greene and Hughes was the making of industry magic that could not have been planned or duplicated. Petey was a prison mate of Hughes’ brother who talked about him so much, he “just had to see who this inmate with the alligator shoes was.” He was “on air” on a prison radio show talking to the inmates and telling jokes. He was a natural at what he did.
According to Hughes, Petey’s family was the community. “He was a guy who beat all odds to stand up and give a voice to people who didn’t have a voice. When you look at the Hip Hop community, they represent what Petey Greene was all about. He would say things that other people would not say.” The two formed a bond, and transformed radio gold into television with “Petey Greene’s Washington”, where Hughes served as Greene’s co-producer and director from 1976-1982. Petey Greene died of liver cancer in 1984, and Hughes spoke at his funeral.
Hollywood documented their experience in the movie “Talk to Me”. “There are lots of stories within the movie that are really wonderful. It wasn’t a huge box office success, but it continues to find audiences all over the place. I love it, I really do” says Hughes. To this day, Taraji P. Henson of “Empire” fame still credits “Talk to Me” as her favorite movie experience.
Dewey and Cathy Hughes
Raised in Washington, D.C., Dewey Hughes went to three different high schools, and admits he wasn’t very serious about school. “In my mind, school prepared you for an ordinary life. I didn’t want that. I couldn’t relate to that. I wanted to be an actor. I also wanted to sing like Frank Sinatra.” While the singing and acting didn’t take flight, writing, producing, managing, and directing did. Hughes had the tenacity to walk into the station manager’s office at WOL-AM, take a seat, and ask for a job. At the time, he had no formal training or experience in radio. “I just knew I wanted to be part of the new revolution in music at the station. The station had changed direction from all talk to music, and I wanted in.” After many attempts, he finally got a foot in the door, and never looked back. “I came in at the right time. I was the right person for the right situation, and it paid off for me.”
That may indeed be an understatement, because Hughes went on to purchase the very station he initially couldn’t get a job at. Dewey and Cathy Hughes became the first black owners of a radio station in Washington, D.C. WOL-AM went on to become the cornerstone of the now famous Radio One and TV One Networks. He has won ten (10) Emmy Awards, a Billboard Magazine Award, a Mayor’s Award, a Capital Press Club Award for “Excellence in Television Programming, and countless other awards and accolades. He is also a member in good standing of The Director’s Guild of America.
Since “Talk to Me”, people have been curious about the Dewey Hughes story. He says he has started writing his memoirs from the perspective of the many relationships he has had over the years with friends, family, etc. “I can’t see myself writing an autobiography, so I’m approaching it from that angle.”
Dewey Hughes’ journey has been a combination of good fortune, opportunity, preparation, and tenacity. “The key was not getting a big head or taking myself too seriously.” He currently lives in Venice Beach, California, where he writes and produces music.
See the entire interview in the QOTS film/video café.
Darryl Rembert
