Philadelphia radio veteran and 76ers public address announcer Matt Cord will return to 93.3 WMMR to take over as midday host on Dec. 1, station owner Beasley Media Group announced Monday. He will fill the vacancy left by beloved disc jockey Pierre Robert, who died last month.

Cord, now the morning host at sister station 102.9 WMGK, vowed to honor the Robert’s legacy in his new role. Robert was a host at WMMR for 44 years, spending most of that time on midday shows. He was found dead at his Gladwyne home on Oct. 29, prompting an outpouring of grief and joyful memories from longtime listeners.

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“Although no one can step into those sparkling high-top Converse and fill them, I’ve known Pierre for 35 years,” Cord said. “… I promise to carry his amazing spirit into the studio bearing his name and do my best to make him proud.”

Cord’s new show will air weekdays from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

WMMR Program Director Chuck Damico said it has been “incredibly challenging” for the station to regroup after Pierre’s death. Damico shared gratitude for Cord’s willingness to pick up the mantle of one of the city’s most respected radio personalities.

“Matt is a 40-year Philadelphia radio veteran, very talented, very welcoming, very trusted and beloved by the rock community,” Damico said. “No one can replace Pierre, but I know that Matt can do him proud and Pierre would absolutely 100% approve of this.”

Cord grew up in Delaware County and got his start in the radio industry in New York at Long Island’s 106.1 WBLI and later at WDRE (formerly WLIR). He first joined WMMR in the early ’90s with an alt-rock show called “Planet M” and later worked on the station’s morning show. He briefly hosted the midday show from 1994 to 1995, when Robert moved to mornings during the station’s “wake up and smell the karma” era. Cord was also an afternoon host at the former Y100 and hosted mornings on WBEN-FM.

Cord, a lifelong Sixers fan, parlayed his radio career into a job as the the team’s PA announcer in 1998. He became the in-house voice of the team’s ascendant years led by Allen Iverson and is now in his 27th year calling action on the floor at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

This will be Cord’s third stint with WMMR, whose mainstream rock format is consistently near the top of the Nielsen ratings in the Philadelphia market. The station boasts the top-rated morning show in the city with “Preston & Steve,” which joined WMMR in 2005 after debuting on Y100 in 1998.

Beasley Media Group said WMGK will soon announce a replacement for Cord on the station’s morning slot, where he has been the host since 2023. He first joined WMGK as midday host in 2020.

WMMR will hold a tribute concert for Robert on Dec. 17 at the Fillmore Philadelphia in Fishtown. The celebration has a bill that includes Brent Smith and Zach Myers of Shinedown, Lzzy Hale and Joe Hottinger of Halestorm, and Ed Roland of Collective Soul. Other acts include the Hooters and David Uosikkinen’s In The Pocket.

Robert was inducted into the Philadelphia Music Walk of Fame in 2019. The Bala Cynwyd studio that houses the station was renamed the Pierre Robert Studio in 2021. 

“We will all continue to honor Pierre in everything we do forever,” Damico said. “And the way to start healing and moving forward is by bringing Matt back home.”