Barney Cannon

Who was Barney Cannon?

Floyd Keith Cannon, known as Barney Cannon, was an American radio personality. He was a DJ on radio station KWKH-AM in Shreveport, Louisiana, who was considered an authority on country music. When asked to name his favorite country singer, Cannon told his listeners that he liked all of the performers. He often gave tough country music trivia quizzes for his listeners.

Cannon was born to Floyd H. Cannon and the former Jean Campbell in New Boston in Bowie County in northeast Texas. He resided in Jefferson, the seat of Marion County, Texas. At the time of death, Cannon served on the city council of Jefferson.

Cannon launched his radio career in 1972 at the age of seventeen as a part-time announcer in Clarksville in Red River County, Texas. He also worked in his hometown of New Boston and landed his first programming job at KCMC in Texarkana, Texas. He then relocated for a time to Glasgow in southern Kentucky, to work at WCDS. Afterwards, he was a deejay in Wichita Falls, Texas, and Oklahoma City.

His last position was at KWKH, where he had worked since 1985. Cannon previously hosted the weekend edition of the Interstate Road Show, but for his last six years, he served as program director and morning show deejay. He acquired thousands of loyal listeners over the years. A former colleague, Frank Page, the first person to announce the entry of Elvis Presley at the Louisiana Hayride, told Shreveport Times, "I've lost a great friend, but country music has lost an even greater friend... He had a passion for country music, and he knew more about the Louisiana Hayride than even I did." KWKH was the home of the Louisiana Hayride, staged at the downtown Shreveport Municipal Memorial Auditorium. Cannon was an Eagle Scout in New Boston and developed a lifelong interest in camping.