On this day in 1907, one Nathaniel Dowd Williams (or “Nat D.” Williams as he would later go by) was born in Beale Street, the heart of the Blues scene he would eventually immerse himself in.
In addition to becoming a teacher at Booker T. Washington High School in 1930, Williams would also become the first African American radio DJ in Memphis for the renowned local station WDIA.
While not a musician himself, Williams would help introduce the world to such rising stars as Rufus Thomas and B.B. King through his own entertainment career.
Nat D. Williams would ultimately pass away on October 27, 1983 at the age of 76, but his legacy lives on today in both the stars whose careers he rose and the sound he dedicated his life to nurturing as he often stated, “I’m a Beale Streeter by birth, rearing and inclination.”
