He is a legend in the world of Hip Hop. John “Mr. Magic” Rivas is the first DJ to bring the "Hip Hop" mixshow to the commercial airwaves in New York City. Sadly, he passed away due to a heart-attack on October 2, 2009.
Check his Wikipedia page and some of his classic radio shows below:
"Mr. Magic debuted in 1979 on WHBI-FM in New York City with “Disco Showcase” on the pay-for-time FM station. It was a far cry from the prime time in New York, what he didn’t realize was he was starting the very first rap radio show. A few short years would go by and Frankie Crocker, program manager for Inner City Broadcasting, took his rising star to commercial powerhouse WBLS with the first exclusive rap radio show to be aired on a major station.[2] Rap Attack, Magic's show featured Marley Marl as the DJ and Tyrone "Fly Ty" Williams as the show's co-producer. Magic moved full-time to WBLS-FM in July 1982. His reign on the New York City airwaves lasted six years and was instrumental in broadening the scope and validity of hip-hop music.[3] Mr. Magic recorded one 12" single as an artist "Magic's Message (There's A Better Way)",[4] produced by Spyder D for Posse Records in 1984. He is also interviewed in the 1986 cult documentary Big Fun In The Big Town.[5]
During the mid-80s there was a rivalry between Mr. Magic and Kool DJ Red Alert, who hosted a weekly show on WRKS-FM. The feud also played out between proxy rap groups, the Juice Crewand Boogie Down Productions (see The Bridge Wars). The Juice Crew – headed by Mr. Magic's on-air assistant, DJ Marley Marl – was named after one of Magic's aliases, "Sir Juice."[6]" -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Magic
DJ Premier wrote this on the day he passed:
“I WANT TO SEND OUT THE UTMOST RESPECT AND CONDOLENCES TO THE MEMORY OF JOHN RIVAS—-aka MR. MAGIC
HE PASSED AWAY THIS MORNING OF A HEART ATTACK…..
TRUE HIP HOP HEADS KNOW THAT HIS HISTORY IS SO LONG DUE TO HIM BEING THE FIRST RAP MIXSHOW TO EVER BE ON COMMERCIAL RADIO ON NEW YORK’S WBLS–(107.5) WITH MARLEY MARL AND FLY TY IN 1982-1984…….THEN WENT ON TO WHBI IN OCTOBER OF 1984 AND THEN BACK TO WBLS in 1985 and WDAS in Philly SIMULTANEOUSLY
HE PAVED THE WAY FOR ALL RADIO STATIONS THAT EVER DID MIXSHOWS AND ALSO SPARKED THE CAREER OF BOOGIE DOWN PRODUCTIONS DUE TO THE DISS HE SHOWED WHEN THEY CAME TO SHOP THEIR DEMO TO HIM AND WAS TURNED AWAY WHICH THEN SPARKED “SOUTH BRONX” AND “THE BRIDGE IS OVER”…….
HE WAS KNOWN FOR HIS DIRECT AND SARCASTIC ATTITUDE ON THE AIR AND EVERY ARTIST WANTED HIS APPROVAL WHEN IT CAME TO BREAKING NEW RECORDS……..HE EVEN HAD SONGS DEDICATED TO HIM BY THE LEGENDARY WHODINI–(“MR. MAGIC’S WAND”) WHICH WAS SURPRISINGLY PRODUCED BY ONE OF MY FAVORITE ARTISTS THOMAS DOLBY…….
SHOUTS OUT TO MARLEY MARL AND FLY TY FOR THE CORRECT INFORMATION ON THIS……
REST IN PEACE MR. MAGIC………….DJ PREMIER“
October 2, 1973: Proof (D12/Eminem) was born
#RIPProof