Longtime radio personality Tammie Holland was let go from 100.3 The Beat FM Friday morning (July 7). Her departure was the latest in a wave of changes for the station – which is part of the iHeart Media umbrella – over the past few years.
After initially working in television, radio proved to be a good fit for Holland when she joined the Tony Scott Morning Show. She was as a featured personality on what was then Majic 104.9. The pair meshed well as they shifted from morning to afternoon and back again. She eventually rose to the rank of co-host.
In 2014, Scott was let go after 25 years at Majic. Holland inherited the morning show and jumped in headfirst. Majic 100.3 became 100.3 The Beat and Holland held her post through the format switches for nearly three years – until a syndication deal with iHeart station’s Hot 97 Breakfast Club meant that she would move into the midday slot.
Her outgoing personality, natural charm and heart for the community made her an easy ambassador for the station and iHeart.
In addition her on-air duties, Holland often served as mistress of ceremonies for several high profile events in the region – most recently the 107th Annual Annie Malone May Day Parade – where she offered encouraging words and plenty of laughter.
“I’m just so thankful for all of the love and support I’ve received over the years,” Holland said.
It seems like a lifetime ago that Holland started out delivering the entertainment news for Tony Scott Morning Show. In the near two decades since, she became a personality in her own right. The pair shared the spotlight towards the end of his epic St. Louis radio run at Majic – and when he left in 2014, the show went on.
Holland hadn’t even settled in to going solo when the events in Ferguson drew an international spotlight on local media. Holland was one of the first media on the scene that fateful day on August 9, 2014. Even before she arrived, Holland used her social media platform to try to get answers. She reposted an image of Louis Head holding a makeshift sign made out of cardboard that said “The Ferguson Police just executed my unarmed son,” that floated through Facebook, Instagram and Twitter immediately after unarmed teen Michael Brown was fatally shot by former Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson.
In the caption she asked for people to fill her in on the details. Soon after, Holland was on the ground in the Canfield Green Apartments comforting an understandably inconsolable Lezley McSpadden. She appeared on Holland’s show days after her son’s death. The two seemed to share a genuine connection, which stemmed from Holland’s natural warmth.
“I’ve always enjoyed hearing her on the radio,” Danielle Brown said via Facebook. “I didn’t know her personally, but she was always so humble and personable and welcoming on the air.”
She is the same in person. Holland never seems to meet a stranger. When listeners would come up to her, they would walk away feeling as if they made a new friend.
Holland is yet to comment on her departure, and it is too soon to know what’s in store for her next – but based on the response to her departure, she will be dearly missed from the airwaves.
“Wishing Tammie the best of luck in her future,” said Facebook user Prisnice Watford. “I will miss her laughter.”
