WURD radio hosts leave morning show

Two morning show hosts for WURD, the African American talk radio station in Philadelphia, announced their departures Saturday.

Mark "the AME" Kelly Tyler and Denise "the Writer" Clay issued statements saying they will miss their role as hosts of Wake Up With WURD, which aired Monday through Friday from 7 to 10 a.m. The two expect to be "back on the air in a new venue in the very near future," their statements indicated.

Efforts to reach the station for comment were not immediately successful.

"It is with mixed emotions that I have decided to leave WURD Radio as host of Wake Up With WURD," said Tyler. "I started at WURD almost three years ago as a volunteer host of a new show, Urban Insight. What began as a one-hour program quickly grew to a two-hour show and attracted a dedicated following each Friday evening."

Both Tyler and Clay thanked the Lomax family, owner of the station.

"Being on Wake Up gave me the chance to interact with listeners (and Facebook live viewers) around the world as well as the city's activist community," wrote Clay. "Radio is my first love, and I've always believed that it's the best place to tell the stories of people of color and other marginalized communities."

In October, host Solomon Jones, who writes a weekly column for the Inquirer and Daily News, left the station after three years. Jones, an ordained minister, moved to Praise 107.9, according to the Philadelphia Tribune.