Joseph ("Butterball") Tamburro has been an integral part of the Philadelphia radio scene since 1964, when the young Italian-American auto mechanic from South Philadelphia first talked his way into a sales job at WDAS. It only took him a few months to get the DJ position he really wanted, while never losing sight of the fact that radio is a business, too. A lifelong admirer of soul music and R&B, Butterball (so named by then-Program Director Jimmy Bishop) began doing the first oldies show on black radio. His genuine emotion, warmth and love for the music were obvious to one and all from the start and he has been on the air continuously ever since.

Butter became WDAS-AM and WDAS-FM Program Director before long and held that title for over 30 years, a remarkable record of longevity in the radio industry. Named WDAS Vice President & General Manager in May 2001 in recognition of his contributions as both broadcaster and businessman, Butterball continues to this day to play a fundamental part in establishing and maintaining his radio stations as pillars of the community.

Two mayors -- Wilson Goode and William Greene -- have honored him for his role as community leader. So have Philadelphia City Council and the Pennsylvania State Legislature. He has lent his time and efforts to the NAACP, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, The AIDS Fund, The American Diabetes Association, the FBI, National Lupus Foundation, Linda Creed Breast Cancer Foundation, The American Jewish Committee, The Martin Luther King Center For Social Change and numerous other organizations.

He has received music industry awards and honors from the Black Music Association and trade publications such as BRE, Gavin Report, Impact, and Jack The Rapper.

1997 was a landmark year for Joe Tamburro, marked by his his induction into the Philadelphia Music Alliance Arts Bank's Walk Of Fame and by his receipt of the Philadelphia March of Dimes AIR Awards Lifetime Achievement Award.