Born in 1923 and raised on a farm near Florence, Alabama, Sam Phillips never dreamed his love of music would lead him to become one of the most influential record producers of all time. However, his mark on history doesn’t only include discovery of rock ‘n’ roll stars like Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash, his visionary approach to broadcasting furthered opportunities for women and helped break down racial music barriers in radio.

Sam began his career in the music industry as Band Director at Coffee High School in Florence and worked as a part-time announcer for WLAY radio. The station was also the place where he met his wife, Becky, whom he married in 1943. Having discovered a love for broadcasting, Sam later attended Alabama Polytechnic Institute in Auburn, majoring in audio engineering for radio.

After honing his skills at WMSL in Decatur, AL, WLAC in Nashville, TN he worked as a disc jockey and engineer at WREC in Memphis, TN. Sam opened The Memphis Recording Service in January 1950. Through relationships with RPM Records and Chess Records, Sam produced music with artists such as B.B. King, Ike Turner, Little Milton and Howlin’ Wolf.

Eager to distribute records through his own label, Sam opened Sun Records in 1952. History was made a year later when a then unknown Elvis Presley recorded some of his first songs at Sun Records; his music had a unique up-tempo style which would come to be known as rock ‘n’ roll. Soon after, with Sam as the driving force behind his mega-stardom, Elvis became a world-wide star. As a result of his success, many other “rockabilly” musicians were drawn to Sun Records, including Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison and Charlie Rich—all of which became music legends in their own right.

n 1969, Sam sold the Sun label and prior to that was one of the first investors of the Holiday Inn Hotel chain. Other projects include creation of recording labels Phillips International and Holiday Inn Records and launching WHER , “the first all-girl station in the nation,” with his wife, Becky.

Today, Sun Studios is a national historic landmark and remains known as the birthplace of rock ‘n’ roll. Sam’s contributions to music history have earned him induction into The National Radio Hall of Fame, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, The Alabama Music Hall of Fame, The Blues Hall of Fame, The Rockabilly Hall of Fame, The Technical Excellence and Creativity Hall of Fame and The Country Music Hall of Fame. In 1991, he won a Grammy Trustees Award for his lifetime achievements.

Sam passed away in 2003 at the age of 80 years old. However, his legend lives on through his mark on the industry and children. Knox and Jerry, along with grand daughter Halley run the family business—Big River Broadcasting Corporation, which Sam founded in 1973. The company owns and operates several radio stations in the Florence, Alabama, area, including WQLT-FM, WXFL-FM, WLVS-FM and WSBM-AM.