Timothy (Tim) Davies has been a broadcaster for 40 remarkable years. On January 2, 2025, Davies will be closing that chapter of his life and retiring from Urban One after 16 years with the organization.
Davies attended high school in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and took notice of the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication for its prestigious Peabody Awards. While attending Grady, Davies
would realize his passion for media.
After graduating in 1984, Davies landed his first role in broadcasting as part of the sales team at WLUB-FM (formerly WZNY-FM) in Augusta, Georgia.
“Sales and business appealed to me because you were creating advertising campaigns,” says Davies. “You come up with the ideas, put it together, run the spots and the client gets results. I felt that was pretty cool.”
Before landing that first job, as a recent graduate, Davies had received rejections from 29 different stations (radio and television).
“You don’t see it at the time, but rejection and objection, when it’s really hard, that’s when you really grow from the experience,” says Davies. “It made me more persistent, and also stronger, which I think helps.”
Davies’ advice for young broadcasters that are in similar shoes is to not just submit a resume to the job portal, but to take initiative in finding out who the hiring manager is and providing a sample of their work. With more than 500 resumes in a queue, these steps will help distinguish the applicants who are truly interested in the opportunity. 
After four years in Augusta, Davies made the move to Houston in 1988 and over the next 12 years saw exponential growth in his career and achievements. With iHeart Media’s KMJQ/KTJM/KYOK cluster, Davies moved up the ranks to become General Sales Manager.
From 2001 to 2002, Davies spent a brief stint with Cumulus Media as a market manager in Houston, before moving to the Greater Memphis area. As Market Manager, then becoming Regional Vice President, of Clear Channel Communications, Davies led the cluster to achieve market share growth, despite an overall market decline.
Davies’ return to Georgia, and the Atlanta market, would come in 2008, when an opportunity became available for him to join the team at Radio One Atlanta as Vice President and General Manager. In 2017, he would become Regional Vice President of the Urban One team.
“What I really enjoy is coming up with creative solutions,” says Davies. “That’s creative solutions for listeners, for the community, for advertisers, for the brands and then, helping the people that I work with, to help them grow. That really is what I enjoy.”
Davies’ love of creating solutions is evident not just in the improvements that stations see under his charge, but in career trajectories that individuals see as a result of his leadership. 
“I look back on having the opportunity to help people with pride,” says Davies. “Maybe it’s a promotion, or moving them to grow in another skill. Then, they grow into that new path. Two weeks ago, we moved about seven different people associated with some programming changes, each move was a growth opportunity for the people involved in the changes.”
As a leader, it is important to find new opportunities for growth, not just for the company, but for the people that make that company what it is. Sometimes, this means taking a risk that the person and the position will not fit together.
“The reality is if you’re not trying different things, then you’re not doing your job. Create that solution, and maybe that’s not the right solution, and you learn from it and move on,” Davies says.
From community initiatives to at one point acting as Chairman of the GAB, Davies’ involvement in Georgia broadcast extends beyond the confines of an office space.
“The most important part of our job is to help. That’s what you’ll remember. You won’t remember the ratings or growth, but you’ll surely remember when you helped your neighbors, significantly helped them in their lives. To me, that’s the joy of being a broadcaster,” says Davies.
Davies and Urban One make this impact happen day in and day out with their Atlanta stations. At the moment, that looks like taking part in the Black Radio United for the Vote, empowering voters to take part by providing resources and organizing voter registration events.
“It is absolutely key that broadcasters, as we do, as we always have and as we will continue to do, drive community initiatives that help our neighbors,” says Davies.
Local broadcasters have an incomparable value to the communities they serve, this value is rooted in the services provided. From holiday toy drives and voter registration events, to providing essential information during emergencies, broadcasters show up for these communities day-in and day-out.
Adapting to and embracing the ever-changing media and broadcasting landscape will be crucial in keeping local broadcasting relevant, Davies advises.
“Technology is going to continue to change. The people that create the content, that is what is most important, and embracing that, for our advertisers and our audiences. Now, I can tell you that moving forward, technology with AI is going to have a rapid, massive impact,” says Davies.
In addition to the massive technological developments taking place, broadcasters also continue to face the uphill battle of securing public opinion.
“There is an ignorance of what broadcasters and media do everyday to provide factual information, the best we can, based on the limited resources we have,” says Davies. “To combat this, broadcasters should continue to provide truthful and factual information, cementing themselves as a reliable source.”
As Davies leaves the hustle and bustle of broadcasting behind, he plans to reinvest in who he is in his retirement. He is looking forward to applying creative solutions to other interests, such as art and community involvement.
“When you’re doing something that you love for 40 years, and you pull away from it, it’s a little scary,” says Davies. “I love helping others and there are things that make me happy that I’ve been doing as part of the job, and now it’s a matter of doing it for myself. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Tim Davies has been a broadcaster for 40 years, the last 16 years of which spent with Urban One in Atlanta.
Throughout his career Davies has taken part in the Big Brother program and various boards, including the Georgia Association of Broadcasters and the Grady College Alumni Board.
Davies has been recognized by Radio Ink as one of 50 Great Managers by Radio Ink in 2012; a Radio Wayne Award Market Manager of the Year Finalist in 2010, 2014 and 2017 by Radio Ink; and the 2004 Radio and Records Market Manager/ General Manager of the Year (Markets 25-100) by Radio and Records. In 2024, Davies was a finalist of the Legendary Radio Manager of the Year Marconi Award.
