‘The Other Side of Jackson'On April 3, DJ Young Venom and I were standing in the parking lot outside the North Midtown Arts Center watching Bob "Scrap Diggy" Nichols spin soulful house music on a pleasant Sunday evening to a sizeable gathering of many …
Pops PerfectionAn annual outdoor orchestra performance on a late-spring evening has become a staple for the Jackson metro over the past 30 years. Mississippi Symphony Orchestra Pepsi Pops at the Ross Barnett Reservoir is a family-friendly affair that welcomes picnic dinners …
Locking Into the RhythmBill Abel stands alone with his blues. The 48-year-old Delta resident (a Belzoni native, now living in Duncan) performs as a one-man band, playing electric guitar, singing, and keeping rhythm by playing drums and cymbals with his feet.
Get Your Art Out!I've lived in Jackson for 11 years now. I love this city and all it has to offer. I've had many musicians ask me how to get gigs here, as well as information on how they can get their music …
Reppin' ChristSamuel Roberson, 18, is an average teenager in a blue, yellow and gray polo shirt with a khaki cap on his head and John Hersey's "Hiroshima" in his hand. He wants to go to college and major in sports medicine. …
Mozart to MotownJackson State University music students take a journey "From Mozart 2 Motown" April 28. Featuring the JSU Opera Workshop and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble, the show begins with classical pieces and works up to musical theater numbers and jazz tunes …
Grammy Museum Planned for DeltaThe Grammy Museum, located in Los Angeles, Calif., will open another location in Cleveland, Miss., Bob Santelli, the museum's executive director, said today. Speaking at the Mississippi Economic Council's annual meeting today in Jackson, Santelli said that like the original …
Music that MattersMicah Smith is doing something many want to do. He has shut up, and he has written. He is following his dream. This self-taught guitarist-singer-songwriter is becoming what many adults dream about—a star. He moves people—not in the sense of …
The Learning to be 5th ChildJackson rapper Stephen Brown, aka 5th Child, spends the majority of his time in his bedroom studio making music. When he has a show to rock, you can count on him being there and killing it. The rest of the …
Don't Bogart That Gig, My FriendBack in the fall, a musician friend of mine asked me to give him my contacts for different venues locally and statewide so that he could try to get some gigs. Long before I became the music listings editor for …
Don PoythressDon Poythress' childhood piano teacher knew his talent was going to take him places. When he was 4 years old, his instructor told the Meridian native that he was going to grow up to be a country musician and perform …
The Go-To GuyEvery town has that guy, the one you go to who gets things done. He's the man everyone turns to when they have problems. In Seville, he happens to be the barber.
‘A Natural Thing'Let's start with a little history lesson. Back in the mid-1990s, hip-hop was at a crossroads. Groups like Company Flow and Anticon were pushing the boundaries of the genre into avant-garde directions that challenged the foundations of what could even …
The South And SXSWAnna Kline is one busy girl. The Jackson singer, songwriter, writer and Crossroads Film Festival member also serves as special projects officer for the Mississippi Development Authority.
Rocking CrossroadsThe competition at this year's Crossroads' Regional Music Video Showcase will be fierce. Throughout the past year, local filmmakers and musicians have spent hours filming, editing and producing videos aiming to outdo other Crossroads' opponents and even their own work …