April 27, 2015

Gene Shay to receive Artistic Excellence award from Arts & Business Council

By Brandon Baker
PhillyVoice Contributor

John Vettese/WXPN

Gene Shay, who will receive the Artistic Excellence award from the Arts & Business Council, retired from WXPN in February.

WXPN folk DJ Gene Shay, 80, told the Daily News in January that, upon deciding whether to retire, he realized he had accomplished everything he set out to do with folk music and had "won about every award there is to get."

Apparently, he spoke too soon.

The Arts & Business Council of Greater Philadelphia announced recently that Shay, who retired in February, will receive the 2015 Anne d’Harnoncourt Award for Artistic Excellence.

According to the council, the award, which honors the former director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, is given to people who have "achieved national or worldwide acclaim, embodies artistic achievement and serves as an inspiration to the region both as an artist and a leader."

Shay, who's been called the "Grandfather of Philadelphia Folk Music," packed up his mic after 50 years in folk music broadcast. He spent 20 years with WXPN as the host of "The Folk Show," which originally began with WDAS in 1962 -- the same year he founded the Philadelphia Folk Festival.

The awards ceremony will be held May 12, at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Previous recipients of the award include Lee Daniels and The Tonight Show band leader Kevin Eubanks.

As for Shay's replacement at WXPN, the radio station previously told PhillyVoice that it was actively looking. Bruce Warren, assistant general manager for programming, told PhillyVoice on Monday that a replacement will be announced in May.

Brandon Baker
PhillyVoice Contributor