Minneapolis Fox 9 hires new evening anchor Symone Woolridge

The local Fox 9 station has a new evening anchor: Symone Woolridge.

Starting in December, Woolridge will co-anchor the 5 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. news programs at KMSP-TV, the station announced Tuesday.

“Symone will make the perfect addition to our evolving news team,” news director Kelly Bishop-Huffman said in a statement, “as she is a true 21st century journalist who understands the importance of creating original content across all platforms, beyond her role at the anchor desk.”

For nearly three years, Woolridge worked as a morning anchor at a TV station in Milwaukee. But she already knows the Twin Cities and Fox 9. In fact, she’s been to chief meteorologist Ian Leonard’s house for dinner.

That’s because Woolridge’s partner is Ahmad Hicks, a sports host and reporter with Fox 9.

This new position puts Woolridge and Hicks in the same city for the first time in their careers and 10-year relationship, Woolridge said by phone Wednesday.

That’s especially welcome now, as they raise a 2-year-old.

“It’s just going to be so nice to be able to be a family and to be able to explore Minneapolis,” she said, “without having to worry about when the next flight is or when we have to hit the road.”

Woolridge, who is from Evanston, Ill., started at WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee in March 2022 and a month later became the noon and 4 p.m. anchor before being promoted to the morning show. Before that, she was a weekday morning anchor at WREG-TV in Memphis, Tenn.

In both Milwaukee and Memphis, Woolridge often left the anchor desk to report stories in the community.

“You feel a little more connected,” she said, “and people feel more connected to you, too.” It’s one thing for people to see an anchor on their TV, she continued.

But in Milwaukee, folks knew: “No, I actually see her in my neighborhood.”

Woolridge plans to do the same in the Twin Cities, she said. Being an anchor is a huge position, but “people who know me know I don’t just want to sit at an anchor desk ... I also love the mix of being able to still tell stories.”