Tribute to Jeanne Parnell
By Angela Harden
Posted 3-17-26
WHCR mourns the loss of Jeanne Parnell, host of the Jeanne Parnell show. Her show aired onWednesdays from 8am-10am for nearly 30 years.
Jeanne cut her teeth in radio at a black owned commercial radio station in New York city and the late Joe Brown, former General Manager of WHCR brought her to WHCR in 1996.
Jeanne was a middle school teacher in New York City and although she grew up in another borough, she lived most of her life in Harlem and was proud to be a Harlemite.
From 1996-2024, Jeanne’s comedic sense of timing and irreverent wit made The Jeanne Parnell show one of the most popular on the station. When I’d walk down 125th Street in Harlem people would ask me if I was from WHCR and when I’d say yes, they would say, “I listen to Jeanne Parnell.”
Jeanne didn’t just produce a radio show about arts and entertainment, she put her heels on the ground and attended some of the events she covered. This solidified her relationship with the arts and entertainment community in Harlem.
Her show was originally called City Lights and the sole focus was arts and entertainment. She interviewed anyone who wrote a play, a book, sang a song or gave a concert. Some of her guests included the late Jazz great Miles Davis, R&B singers Melba Moore, Mary Wilson, Alicia Keys and Rhonda Ross Kendrick, Arthur Mitchell, founder of the Dance Theater of Harlem, the late Woodie King Jr., founder of the New Federal Theatre, theater critic Linda Armstrong, Voza Rivers, founder of Harlem’s New Heritage Theater, Robin Bell Stevens from Harlem’s Jazzmobile, Loida Lewis, widow of Reginald F. Lewis’, the first African American to build a billion-dollar company and Melba Tolliver, author of Accidental Anchorwoman to name a few.
Jeanne was instrumental in bringing R&B singer Alyson Williams to the station. Williams now hosts her own show called Love Notes in the chill zone with Alyson Williams Tuesdays 8-10pm.
Jeanne was also the catalyst for the renovation of WHCR. When I started managing the station in 2002, she told me that she didn’t bring guests to the station because she didn’t like how it looked. This prompted me to have ask Tony Rogers, former director of Urban and Governmental Affairs at City College if it was possible to get funding to give the station a facelift. Rogers added WHCR to City College’s request for city government funding and former Manhattan Borough President, C. Virginia Fields gave WHCR over a million dollars for the renovation.
Jeanne was also a professional dancer and one of her claims to fame was that she and the late Ruby Dee could have passed for twins and that she taught dance to Ruby Dee’s kids. She was also proud of the fact that she was R&B singer Alicia Keys’ kindergarten teacher.
In the 2000s Jeanne’s radio show morphed into a mix of arts and entertainment and politics. Some of her guests included political leaders like the late Shirley Chisholm, the first black female to sit in Congress and run for president, the late Congressman Charles Rangel, New York District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, Assemblyman Rev. Al Taylor, activist Rev. Al Sharpton and retired Assemblywoman Inez Dickerson.
In 2020 during the COVID lockdowns Jeanne’s shows were pre-recorded and her dear friend Harriet Michel, former President and CEO of the National Minority Supplier Development Council joined her to discuss politics. They had candid, spirited discussions about politics and our current president that the community clearly enjoyed from the feedback we got. They were right about the predictions they made about the current administration in the White House.
Rome Neal, producer of Banana Pudding Jazz and Lamon Fenner, host of Lamon’s Jazz Break at 8, Sundays 8-10pm kept up the arts and entertainment segment of the show by being regular guests.
In December 2022 Jeannereceived the Board of Directors’ Legacy Award at the 50th Annual AUDELCO Awards. The award recognized her decades-long role as a prominent voice for Harlem, particularly through her long-running radio show, The Jeanne Parnell Show, on WHCR. She was celebrated for her enduring contributions to Black theater and cultural advocacy. During Jeanne’s acceptance speech her wit kicked in and she quipped “well it’s about time.”
Jeanne Parnell was born on May 20, 1936 and would have been 90 years old this year.
Jeanne’ son, Richard Habersham it also a Harlemite with political aspirations. Richard has a son, Richard Habersham III, whom Jeanne affectionately called RP.
We will always remember that the Jeanne Parnell show truly served the Harlem community by providing a platform for local voices that worked diligently to produce art and entertainment that reflected our community in a positive light and to also empower the community with educational and civic awareness.
