John J. "J. J." Jackson Jr. (April 8, 1941 – March 17, 2004) was an American radio and television personality. He was one of

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's five original VJs (along with

Nina Blackwood Nina Blackwood is an American disc jockey and music journalist, who was the first of the original five MTV VJs (along with Mark Goodman, J. J. Jackson, Alan Hunter, and Martha Quinn). She has been an actress and model. Early life and career Bl ...

Mark Goodman Mark Goodman (born October 11, 1952) is an American radio host, TV personality and actor. He is best known as one of the original five video jockeys (VJs), along with Nina Blackwood, Alan Hunter, J. J. Jackson and Martha Quinn, on the music ...

, Alan Hunter, and

Martha Quinn Martha Conrad Quinn (born May 11, 1959) is an American actress and Radio personality, radio and television personality, best known as one of the original video jockeys on MTV (along with Nina Blackwood, Mark Goodman, Alan Hunter (VJ), Alan Hunter ...

). In his appearances on MTV, Jackson often went by and introduced himself as "Triple J".

Career

Jackson first gained prominence while working at WBCN in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

in the late 1960s, then at KLOS in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

for ten years. Jackson was one of the first DJs to introduce Americans to

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

. In 1976, he was featured in a voice-only performance as a DJ of the fictional KGYS radio in the movie ''

Car Wash A car wash, carwash, or auto wash is a facility used to clean the exterior, and in some cases the interior of motor vehicles. Car washes can be self-service, full-service (with attendants who wash the vehicle), or fully automated (possi ...

''. He was a music reporter for

KABC-TV KABC-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the ABC network. Owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division, the station maintains stud ...

when he was tapped as one of MTV's original "fab five." As a VJ, Jackson hosted the long-awaited and much anticipated "unmasking" of

KISS A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

. He was one of the few

African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

to DJ an "album rock" radio station. After five years at MTV, Jackson returned to Los Angeles radio, JJ's first gig after MTV was 106 KWST then at

KROQ-FM KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock"). The stat ...

in 1987, then as program director of modern rock/alternative station

KEDG KEDG (106.9 FM) is a radio station broadcasting an adult contemporary format. Licensed to Alexandria, Louisiana, United States. The station is currently owned by Flinn Broadcasting Corporation. Its studios and transmitter are separately locate ...

("The Edge") until May 1989. He later returned to KLOS, and hosted the afternoon shift at smooth jazz station

KTWV KTWV (94.7 FM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, and broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc., and airs an urban adult contemporary radio format. KTWV has studios on ...

("The Wave") for one year. He also hosted Westwood One Radio Network's nationally syndicated radio show ''

The Beatle Years ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...

'' from 1995 until his death.

Death

On March 17, 2004, Jackson, 62, suffered a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

and died while driving home after dining with a friend in Los Angeles. Jackson had a daughter and three grandchildren.

References

External links

* 1941 births 2004 deaths African-American radio personalities African-American television personalities Entertainers from the Bronx VJs (media personalities) 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people {{DJ-stub