His parents separated shortly before his birth, and he was raised by his mother in a house that had no electricity or running water.
As a teenager, he got a job sweeping floors at WGEA in his hometown, which led to him becoming a nighttime disc jockey at that station.
[1] Monk joined the United States Army; after leaving, he attended Troy University and worked at WTBF.
Through these roles, Monk was selected to become a guest announcer on the Grand Ole Opry, a country music radio show hosted by WSM in Nashville, Tennessee.
[3] Monk also co-produced songs for Keith Stegall and Randy Travis, and helped promote the latter to various record labels early in his career.