SiriusXM remembers Outlaw Country’s own Mojo Nixon

Mojo Nixon, the legendary roots rocker and radio DJ, passed away on Wednesday, February 7. He was 66.

In the coming days, SiriusXM will pay tribute to Mojo, whose enthusiasm for music, irreverent humour, and genuine connection with his audience made him an invaluable part of the SiriusXM family. Over the years, he hosted shows on Outlaw Country (Ch. 62), SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90), and Raw Comedy.

Find and stream previous episodes of Mojo’s The Loon in the Afternoon show on the SiriusXM app.

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Maximum Mojosity Special

Outlaw Country will air Maximum Mojosity, a “best of” special that can be heard during Mojo’s regular 4–8pm ET time slot on February 9 with replays on February 10 from 2–6 pm ET and February 11 from 6-10 pm ET. Additionally, on Sunday from 12-2 pm ET, listen to Mojo Nixon’s Music City Mayhem from Robert’s Western World in Nashville. The special features Jessi Colter, Chuck Mead, Logan Ledger, Bobby Rush, Jesse Dayton, Norman Greenbaum, Brennen Leigh, Summer Dean, The Shootouts, Boy Golden Jesse Lee Jones, Emily Ann Jones, and Sarah Gayle Meech.

Mojo, whose real name was Neill Kirby McMillan Jr., passed away while onboard the Outlaw Country Cruise, an annual music cruise where he was a co-host and regular performer. He performed at the event just the night before. The cause was “a cardiac event,” his family revealed in a statement posted on Facebook.

Mojo Nixon and music

“August 2, 1957 — February 7, 2024 Mojo Nixon. How you live is how you should die. Mojo Nixon was full-tilt, wide-open rock hard, root hog, corner on two wheels + on fire…,” his family wrote. “Passing after a blazing show, a raging night, closing the bar, taking no prisoners + a good breakfast with bandmates and friends.

In 2017, Mojo reflected on his passion for music and his career during an exclusive interview with SiriusXM.

“I am immersed in hillbilly rock ‘n’ roll,” Nixon said. “Outlaw Country is where country and rock ‘n’ roll come together with a very bad attitude. If you’ve ever seen that picture of Johnny Cash when he’s giving the finger — that’s Outlaw Country in a nutshell.”

About Mojo Nixon

Mojo was born in Danville, Virginia, in 1957. His father ran a soul radio station (WILA) in town during the pinnacle years of soul, exposing his impressionable son to artists like Arthur Conley and James Brown.

“I was music crazy,” Nixon recalled. “I remember listening to Arthur Conley’s Sweet Soul Music like 700 times in a row.”

He took up the guitar during his teenage years and never looked back.

In the late 1990s, Nixon began his career in radio, working for local stations in San Diego and Cincinnati and officially retiring from performing music in 2004 (though he would occasionally come out of retirement to perform at SXSW and the Outlaw Country Cruise). He joined SiriusXM in 2005.

Mojo – who was prone to fits of laughter, roaring “yee-haws” and off-color jokes – told SiriusXM in 2017 he had “the greatest job in the world.”

“Spreading the love of hillbilly rock ‘n’ roll,” he said. “If it’s too rock ‘n’ roll for a hillbilly and too hillbilly for rock ‘n’ roll, and it’s got a bad attitude, we’re playing it on Outlaw Country, and it feels good!”