Cedric Bailey has reached a significant professional milestone.

This month, Bailey is celebrating 40 years in the radio business in which he has distinguished himself in Gospel in addition to sports. A celebration is set for April 25 at the Morning Star Prayer Center in Fort Worth followed by another celebration at the HFV Wilson Community Center April 26.

Bailey described the events as a thank you celebration in which there will be friends and co-workers with stories to share about Bailey’s career.

“The reason that I am doing this, I don’t know how much longer I will be able to do this,” he said. “And I want to walk away on top. I don’t want to walk away when I didn’t get a chance to thank everybody.”

Finding a career

Bailey grew up in Ardmore and graduated with a vision to go to college and become a television reporter. Then, he also decided he wanted to go radio but began in television, working as a cameraman for KXII. He then found out about the communications department at East Central University and signed up for the program in 1982.

One teacher who left a lasting impression on him was Laurie Thomas, who was impressed with an intern shift that Bailey had turned in on a country station.

“When they heard the recording, my teacher looked at me and said, ‘Was it you that just said that.’ And I said, ‘Yes it was me,’ and I said it in front of her. She said right then, ‘If you follow this pattern and do whatever it takes, you will make a big impact in this industry.’

“And come to find out, she was right.”

After graduation, Bailey intended to get a job in the Dallas market but learned he needed more experience. He got in touch with Mary Johnson, who took Bailey to Channel 9 in Oklahoma City where he met meteorologist Gary England.

“They took me in,” he said. “She tried to get me in the door to work with the TV station. I was a reporter and did a story in Ardmore back in the day when they named Martin Luther King Street.”

Bailey’s next stop was in Ardmore when he received an opportunity with KEBQ. He got to go live on the air for an hour and close it out.

“I showed up at 5:30 and I signed on the mike and said my name and then I said, ‘It is time for Rick Dee’s’ And then, did the show and closed out and said, ‘Now is the time for the American Top 40 with Casey Kasem,” he said.

Change of plans

Bailey recalled the warm reception he received working in his hometown with callers letting him know he was doing a good job. But when his time was up in Ardmore, he looked at a career in the military. He enlisted with the intention of becoming an officer. When Bailey joined, he had two screws in his leg. It came to a head when he learned they needed to be taken out.

The surgery was unsuccessful, and Bailey fell back on the dream of getting into the Dallas radio market. He went south in 1987 and was roommates with his best friend Daymond Gardner.

“I couldn’t afford to live in Dallas,” Bailey said. “Not in an apartment at that time period. That was when, if you made $7 or $8 in 1986 or 1987, you were doing pretty good compared to making $3 or $4 in Oklahoma.

Bailey said he went to KDLZ and KNLK, working R&B on the weekend and doing Gospel. He had to make a decision on which one he would focus on.

“The R&B had a dangerous side to it, so I decided I wasn’t going to do that,” Bailey said. “It could either make you or break you. The money was good, but did I want to deal with the headache that went with it. So, I chose Gospel.”

Bailey was mentored by Joe Bagby, who was the voice of Gospel radio in North Texas. He also began making appearances, hosting concerts and events. His career trajectory continued to trend in the right direction when, in 2007, Willie Mae McIver gave Bailey the opportunity to work on a national level with the ABC Network.

“My show was picked up syndicated,” he said.

Bailey’s voice was heard across the nation on 42 stations at one time. In 1999, it became The Rejoice Soul Food Network. He traveled to places like Jamaica, Disneyland. At that time, he was also covering sports at the same time with the Mavericks and Rangers.

In 2007, Bailey reached another crossroads when it ended for Rejoice Musical Soul Food in the form he had known. He recalled knowing what he would do when a lifeline was presented by Mike Chandler with the affiliate WFMI in Virginia Beach. He called some friends and raised money that allowed Rejoice! Musical Soul Food Radio Network to be rebuilt.

“I tell you what, we have been going ever since then,” he said. “We started off with 12 employees and I am the lone survivor. And then, one day we went to the Grand Ole Opry House, and we were nominated for a Stellar Award. Looked up, it was in 2009, and we won the best radio station in America.”

Bailey’s work continued to draw accolades and in 2014, he was selected as the best radio announcer of the year. In 2023, Bailey was named the Radio Announcer of the Year during the 7th Annual Spin Awards Weekend Experience. It was the first time the award had been given.

Said the nominations kept coming. In 2014, Bailey was selected radio announcer of the year, beating out the best of the best.

He continued to host events, traveling and going to award shows.

“And then I got a call from Atlanta that I had won the radio announcer of the decade,” he said. “They had never given that award out before. That was just for what I did in the industry and then turned around and got the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award.

“It’s a great thing but the most important thing is, I get a chance on April 25 to say thank you to the people in Texas for being there for me. So, all my co-workers and friends will be there, and I will be able to say thank you. And then, here on the 26th, I will be able to go to the HFV Wilson Community Center and say thank you to the people who have spoken in my life.”

Coming home

Choosing to enter the field of gospel music has paid off for Bailey. It has allowed him to reach people and develop relationships while also providing comfort through music.

In 2018, Bailey said he felt it was time to come home to Ardmore. He had experienced ups and downs and felt it was the right time to come home.

“It is different being in Oklahoma, but I love it,” Bailey said. “Coming back home where you grew up. There are a lot of new people here in Carter County. I mean a lot of people.”

Bailey said he got with Lee Ann Pirtle and established an office on Main Street. He now has an office in Tim Longest’s The 7 on Broadway. He does a sports show and gospel show each morning.

“Then I come back in,” he said. “I have a Washington DC reporter. Her name is Mona Austin, and she does what we call The Slice News.”

Bailey also serves as the Voice of the Ardmore Tigers on KICM. He announces football, basketball, baseball, softball and track and field.

“The most important thing is, I have a relationship with the kids,” he said. “I always try to encourage them and let them know, ‘Hey, I grew up on the east side of Ardmore and those people over there, they were in my corner so now, I am remembering what my mentor told me, Carol Daube Sutton, told me I need to make sure that I give back to the community that gave to me. And I have honored that request since then.”