Iredell-Statesville Schools School & Family Magazine May 2016 | Page 10

Awesome Alumni
Billy “Buck” Blevins

Billy “Buck” Blevins, the Voice of
Statesville, was born and raised in Iredell County,
attending Scotts Elementary School, North Iredell
High School, (graduated from) West Iredell High
School & Appalachian State University.

Admitting that his Dad was a major
influence in his life, Billy Buck said, “He taught
me about being even tempered and being a
good listener.” How did his interest in radio
broadcasting and production begin? Billy can
chart that progression right back to school. “I
used to experiment with stuff. I was always
wiring up things and blowing fuses. I mixed
up some household cleaners and stuff, you
know like a mad scientist, took a smell of what
I created and almost had to go to the hospital
because it took my breath away. I loved
science. We had a model rocket club at Scotts
and I was always entering the school science
fair, but in my sophomore year at North, I got
the bug about radio. A friend of mine & I went to
visit a local radio station one evening. Someone
who worked there let us in to see what it looked
like and I guess that pretty well set things in
motion for what would be my career. I helped
start the media club at West High along with the
in school radio station, W.E.S.T.”

Billy began working at the local radio
station in Statesville while in high school.

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Iredell-Statesville School & Family

During his college career at App State
he worked at WASU Radio. Returning to
Statesville after college he worked at stations
WDBM and WSIC. In April of 1979 he began
working at WTQR in Winston-Salem. In 1986
Billy moved to WBIG in Greensboro, then in
1988 worked in Charlotte at WLVK. In 1990 he
started at WFMX in Statesville. In 2006, along
with a partner, the opportunity was presented to
purchase WSIC Radio. In 2009 that partnership
dissolved and he followed an opportunity to
buy WAME radio in Statesville. In 2015, Billy
started Signal Hill Media Partners, LLC, which
owns and operates WAME AM & FM.

Perhaps proudest of his children and
grandchildren, Billy is amazed at how fast
things seems to go by. “The
double ferris wheel at the Fair,
almost wrecking my Dad’s car,
getting married, then kids and
grandkids! It’s amazing how fast
this has all happened.”

That recognizable voice,
the wonderful laugh, the sincere
friendship that the citizens of
Statesville enjoy with Billy makes
him not only an awesome alumni
but perhaps the finest ambassador
this community could have.