Radio Personality 97.9 The Box
Madd Hatta loves his city, his community and especially, his listeners. That’s why the DJ for 97.9 The Box, stayed on the air during the last hurricane that blew through Houston.
“The last big storm that we had here … everybody was running out of the city. I actually stayed behind. I think when you get into radio, a part of your job is being a part of the community. So you [don’t] leave when the masses leave. You want to be the person that they get the information from. You want [to be] the familiar voice that the people know. And you want to be able to direct the people on what to do and what not to do,” says the North Carolina A&T alumnus.
It’s that commitment to the community that led Hatta to pledge to register 5,000 voters this past fall. “Every time there’s an election, I, and the radio station as well, have always tried to get people to vote. Something seemed different about this election. … I didn’t really think it would take a whole week to get 5,000 people registered. … I thought it was something we could do in a couple of hours. And I was very wrong about that. I stayed out there Tuesday through Friday at noon. I got sick out there, lost my voice, all kinds of things. But it was all to see all the people come out there in masses. And because of that, there was a serious change in not just our president, but [also] many areas like Houston [which] was a red area and highly Republican, but now we are very blue,” says Hatta.
Hatta’s not looking for fame or accolades. “My goal is to be a better human being. It would be hard for me to say what I want my legacy to be. I hope my legacy is that I’m a God-fearing brother that wants to do the right thing,” he says.
