Aris Hampers Death: What Happened To Grand Rapids DJ?: Everyone who knew and collaborated with Grand Rapids DJ Aris Hampers was stunned to hear of his passing. He was regarded as a sympathetic and career-focused radio legend.
Aris has a successful, four-decade career working at several regional radio stations. He was a member of the trailblazing rock & roll radio station Grand Rapids.
In this post, we’ll discuss Aris Hamper’s death in detail, look back on his career, and discuss his battle with cancer.
Aris Hampers Death: What Happened To Grand Rapids DJ?
Although the cause of Aris Hampers’ death has not been revealed, many people think it was caused by cancer.
There is currently nothing known about the Grand Rapids DJ’s burial arrangements when he passed away at the age of 73.
Aris wrote in December 2019 about how cancer had kept him silent for over three years. In February 2016, he first noticed a difference in his voice.
In the winter of 2018, they discovered a 1-1/2 inch malignant tumor on his windpipe after he had gone to the doctor for a checkup and been told there was nothing wrong with his voice.
Aris informed me in December 2020 that he was shattered but still there even if the harm the tumor had done to his larynx rendered him helpless.
It’s quite likely that the “non-invasive Cancer,” which claimed the life of his mother 30 years ago, is what caused Aris Hampers’ death.
Aris Hampers On The Air: Grand Rapids DJ
All throughout his life, Aris Hampers worked as a DJ for neighborhood radio stations. His four-decade career began when he signed up for a small radio station called WLAV.
He subsequently began to work at other regional radio stations, including Grand Rapids’ ground-breaking rock & roll station.
He was a dedicated worker who gave his best throughout his on-air shifts, and the station’s forward-thinking approach had a significant impact on many other radio stations.
One rumor stands out to many of his coworkers among the numerous others. There was a rumor that he kept a metronome with him in the radio studio so that the rhythm would remain constant when music changed.
Aris used extremely subtle approaches while working as a DJ at a radio station. When he faded from one song to another for the enjoyment of his listeners, he always kept the beat constant.
He first worked for WLAV for a period before moving on to FOX 101 and then WKLQ. His final radio shift in Grand Rapids before his formal retirement was at The Brew (101.3).
Aris Hampers Interest In Music And Movies
Most people are familiar with Aris Hampers as the Grand Rapids DJ, but very few are aware of his musical background.
He developed a love for music early on and, as a young guy, played keyboards and sang with a group named “The Soul Benders” in the late 1960s.
They even had a 1967 hit single recording from the local charts called “I Can’t Believe in Love.” The group’s name was then changed to Phlegethon.
Hampers also launched a disc store on 28th Street that mostly sold music CDs and laser discs with movies. Later, he relocated his disc store from Knapp’s Corner to Celebration Cinema.
His shop allowed him to sell some of his vast album collections that were left untouched in the basement of his home.
