Sonic Sisters
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Sonic Sisters Memphis is exploding with women musicians like never before.
PHOTO: ADAM RINDY
Fighting On
LGBTQ group promises an appeal in Tennessee’s drag ban battle.
p6
PHOTO: KEVIN REED
South of Baltimore
The Dixon’s newest exhibits celebrate art in the South.
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PAINTING: ELAINE DE KOONING
NEWS & OPINION THE FLY-BY - 4 POLITICS - 8 AT LARGE - 9 COVER STORY
“SONIC SISTERS” BY FLYER STAFF - 10 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT WE RECOMMEND - 14 MUSIC - 15 AFTER DARK - 16
CALENDAR - 18 NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 19
WE SAW YOU - 21 BOOKS - 23 FOOD - 25 NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 26 ASTROLOGY - 27
- 28
PLAYING - 29 CLASSIFIEDS - 30
WORD - 31
THE fly-by
MEM ernet
Memphis on the internet.
CAMO
Nextdoor user
Roger Williams asked for name recommendations for the tricky-to-spot dog in the above photo. Some of the top names were “Pebbles,” “Camo,” “Waldo,” and “Rocky.”
FLY MUD ISLAND
Change has always been in the mix for Mud Island, as proven by a photo shared to the Memphis In Pictures, Places And People Facebook group last week.
As it enters a new phase with the Baron Von Opperbean immersive experience, it’s fun to remember the island was once home to an airstrip. It was used, largely, by business travelers who would land and take a pontoon ferryboat across Wolf River Harbor to Downtown destinations.
MUTANTS
Memphis summertime headed back into familiar “excessive heat” territory this week. It also opened up the human bu et for our beloved mosquitos. Let the grousing commence.
{WEEK THAT WAS
By Flyer staff
Questions, Answers + Attitude
Edited by Toby Sells
Tourism, Impeachment, & Human Trafficking
Another annual record, a TN congressman les against Kamala Harris, and Shelby County at risk.
BLACK GOLF
A Black-owned golf brand sought not only to expose more Memphians to golf but also to build more relationships on the links.
Eastside Golf brought its Community Golf Day back to the city last week at Overton Park 9 Golf Course. e event o ered free golf.
“Eastside Golf’s Community Golf Days are focused on diversifying the sport and bringing fans and players together at local courses to experience the fun of golf without the nancial barriers commonly found in the game,” the company said in a statement.
e lifestyle golf brand was cofounded by Olajuwon Ajanaku and Earl Cooper, and has been worn by people such as NFL player Patrick Mahomes and former President Barack Obama.
TOURISM RECORD
Tourism in Tennessee hit a record
$30.6 billion in direct visitor spending last year, according to new data from Tourism Economics and the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development (TDTD).
e gure is up 6.2 percent since 2022. e new record follows two consecutive years of doubledigit growth. Overall, tourism in Tennessee has grown 125 percent over 2019 pre-pandemic levels.
“Tennessee tourism is soaring, leading to bene ts to Tennesseans,” said Mark Ezell, commissioner of the TDTD. “[We thank] our destination marketing organizations across the state, in addition to our leisure and hospitality businesses in this amazing accomplishment.”
Total visitors to Tennessee topped 144 million last year. at is up 3 million people since 2022. is was pushed by growth in more day visits to the state.
IMPEACHING HARRIS
U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Nashville) led articles of impeachment against Vice President Kamala Harris last Wednesday for “high crimes and misdemeanors.”
Ogles is the controversial congressman who still faces allegations that he misrepresented his education and work background on the campaign trail, a move that earned him comparisons to disgraced former Republican U.S. Rep. George Santos (R-New York).
A congressional watchdog group also led an ethics complaint against him, alleging campaign nance violations. He
admitted to those violations in May. Ogles also told an activist in February, speaking about children being killed in Gaza, that “I think we should kill them all.”
Ogles’ impeachment claims that Harris, now the presumptive front runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, showed “gross incompetence in dealing with the crisis at the southern border and her betrayal of the American people.”
He blamed Harris, in part, for drugs on the streets, the rape and murder of “countless” women and children, and for allowing President Joe Biden to remain in o ce.
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Of all the counties in Tennessee, Shelby County’s population is the most vulnerable to human tra cking, according to the Tennessee Community Assessment 2023 Report released by the Engage Together Project. at ranking, on what has been labeled the Vulnerable Population Index, has been determined through a number of factors, like population density, poverty levels, crime rates, the percentage of population that speaks limited or no English, and much more. Individuals may be tra cked for sexual exploitation, forced labor or services, or organ sales.
Visit the News Blog at memphis yer.com for fuller versions of these stories and more local news.
POSTED TO
BY ROGER WILLIAMS
POSTED TO FACEBOOK BY KENNETH B KEIM
PHOTO: (ABOVE) COURTESY EASTSIDE GOLF | FACEBOOK; (BELOW) COURTESY RED SAND PROJECT | FACEBOOK Eastside Golf hosted a day of free golf; On Tuesday, nonpro t Restore Corps’ Red Sand Project brought attention to human tra cking in Memphis.
Fighting On { LGBTQ
By Kailynn Johnson
LGBTQ
group promises an appeal in Tennessee’s drag ban battle.
Friends of George’s, the LGBTQ theater company and nonpro t organization, has promised to appeal the 6th Circuit Court of the United States’ ruling on their recent lawsuit regarding Tennessee’s drag ban.
Last week the court reversed the U.S. District Court of the Western District’s decision to halt the enforcement of the controversial law. According to the organization, the court decided in a 2-to-1 ruling that they lacked standing, which led to the lawsuit being dismissed.
Melissa Stewart, attorney for the organization, said they strongly disagree with the ruling, and the court failed to address the constitutionality of the law.
“Instead, it decided this case on procedural grounds, holding that Friends of George’s does not have standing to bring this case,” Stewart said in a statement. “As Judge [Andre] Mathis’ dissent makes clear, this decision is contrary to the 6th Circuit and Supreme Court case law.”
Judge Mathis wrote in his dissent that part of Tennessee’s Adult Entertainment Act (AEA) is an “unconstitutional
content-based restriction on speech.”
“ e freedom to convey one’s ideas — no matter how unpopular — was seen as inalienable to the human experience, and the Framers of our Federal Constitution believed such freedom was ‘essential if vigorous enlightenment was ever to triumph over slothful ignorance,’” Mathis said.
Mathis went on to analyze the language of the Adult Entertainment Act which makes performing “adult cabaret entertainment” on public property or in a place that a child can view it a crime. ese performances are de ned as those that feature “topless dancers, go-go dancers, exotic dancers, strippers, male or female impersonators, or similar entertainers.”
e dissent said that Friends of George’s has the right to sue since the law could stop them from doing their shows.
e Tennessee Attorney General’s o ce argued that the company hasn’t been harmed by the law and can’t sue. However, Mathis argued they don’t have to be in trouble to challenge the law.
Friends of George’s was required to show that they planned to continue performances and that these produc-
tions were protected by the First Amendment.
e company showed videos of their past shows, which included satire of e View where performers “describ[ed] sexual acts including intercourse and masturbation,” and another video featured a group of actors satirizing a song by Meatloaf while portraying sexual acts.
While the First Amendment protects both words and actions, the “expressive conduct” must convey a clear message and be understood by the audience, which Friends of George’s productions do.
ough the district court ruled that the Adult Entertainment Act was unconstitutional due to its limitation of free speech, Mathis argued they made a mistake by saying Steve Mulroy couldn’t enforce the public property clause, as the theater group could not challenge that part.
“ e district court erred in enjoining Mulroy from enforcing the publicproperty provision of the AEA because FOG lacked standing to challenge that provision,” he said. “But the district court did not err in enjoining Mulroy from en-
forcing Tenn. Code Ann. § 7-51-1407(c) (1)(B) because that provision is a contentbased restriction on speech that fails strict scrutiny. us, the district court did not abuse its discretion by prohibiting Mulroy from enforcing that unconstitutional law in Shelby County.”
As the decision leaves the law in limbo, Friends of George’s said this means “thousands of drag performers as well as transgender and nonbinary people across Tennessee [will] face terrifying uncertainty about the legal rami cations they could face outside the con nes of 18+ or 21+ performance venues.”
Friends of George’s is preparing to host their latest production Death Drop at Hotel Le’George on August 2nd; however, they will only allow people ages 18 and up to enter.
ELVIS: BACK IN MEMPHIS
PHOTO: KEVIN REED Friends of George’s
POLITICS By Jackson Baker
A Matter of Wording
A ballot initiative seeks to put the nal ban on slavery.
Last week in this space we designated some of the most compelling races on the ballot for the August 1st election (state and federal primaries; county general election), which was scheduled to terminate this week.
ere weren’t many that were truly eventful, and the same fact holds true for most of the forthcoming follow-up races on the November 5th ballot. Few horserace scenarios, as it were. But that’s not the whole story.
Take the case of District 84 state Representative Joe Towns, for example. Towns was almost certainly due to be an easy winner in this week’s Democratic primary, in which he was opposed by one Vernell Williams. ( is column was written before votes could be tabulated.) And he’ll have no Republican opponent in November. But, as Towns indicated to the attendees at a fundraiser in his honor at Otherlands Co ee Bar on Monday night, his election concerns were rather more focused this week on the outcome of a statewide ballot initiative of his sponsorship on the November ballot.
is is a constitutional amendment — one to abolish slavery in the state of Tennessee. Eyebrows may be raised at this notion. One might think that slavery surely ceased to be a reality in the state long ago, at the time of the Civil War.
For the record, this is what the Tennessee constitution has to say on the subject, as of now:
“ at slavery and involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, are forever prohibited in this state.” (Article 1 — Declaration of Rights, Sec. 33)
Towns’ amendment would delete the words italicized above and would rewrite
the amendment to read (with italics indicating substitute language):
“ at slavery and involuntary servitude are forever prohibited. Nothing in this section shall prohibit an inmate from working, when the inmate has been duly convicted of a crime.” e di erence between the two versions may appear subtle, but the amended version, if passed by the state’s citizens, would eliminate the implicit license, in the original, to impose involuntary servitude on convicts as an exception to the ban on slavery.
In the amended version, there is no “but” clause. Inmate labor is to be regarded as a matter entirely separate from the issue of slavery.
Again, a subtle distinction, but one seen as crucial to Rep. Towns and his cosponsors.
• Meanwhile, the one legislative race destined to receive the most attention this fall, both locally and statewide, is the one for District 97 state representative between Democratic challenger Jesse Huseth and Republican incumbent John Gillespie (presumed, as of this writing, to become the victorious GOP candidate over relatively unknown party rival Christina Oppenhuizen this week).
e district is largely an East Memphis one, and the camps of both candidates regard its electoral fate as relevant to the political future not only of Shelby County’s suburban rim but of mixed rural/urban communities of similar a uence statewide. Both Gillespie and Huseth have raised formidable sums of money, and they are well-matched in most regards. Huseth is center-le ; Gillespie is center-right. One trait they have in common: Neither is a glad-hander in the standard political mode; both are earnest, almost solemn in their personal demeanors, and that is but one fact among many that augurs for a close race between the two.
PHOTO: JACKSON BAKER
A Democratic quartet at a Monday fundraiser for state Rep. Joe Towns was (l to r) County Mayor Lee Harris, David Upton, Towns, and Yvonne Acey.
AT LARGE
By
Bruce VanWyngarden
Paris Is Smirking
e French Olympics opening ceremonies were much adieu about nothing.
“Last night’s mockery of the Last Supper was shocking and insulting to Christian people around the world who watched the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.
e war on our faith and traditional values knows no bounds today. But we know that truth and virtue will always prevail.”
at was Speaker of the House (and cosplaying Christian) Mike Johnson responding to the Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony, which featured drag queens and maybe a naked Jesus? I dunno. To be outraged, you really had to be paying close attention, and I wasn’t. But Johnson wasn’t alone in his outrage. Here is a sampling of the reactions on X from folks proclaiming themselves Christians:
“A complete mockery of Christianity. is was by far the most satanic and disgusting ceremony I have ever seen. Do not defy Jesus Christ.”
“ e radical le is a greater threat than Iran, China, or Russia will ever be to the United States.”
“A serious POTUS would send our athletes home.”
It went on for two or three days. Elon Musk (who is a Christian now?) unfollowed the Olympics account. at will show them.
But here’s my favorite reaction: “France literally gathered its planners and made a list of EVERYTHING that would get under the skin of conservatives and said, ‘Let’s open with ALL of it!’”
To be fair, this last guy was actually onto something. As someone who is married to a French woman and who has spent a lot of time with her family and friends, I can say, without fear of contradiction, that that is precisely how the French would have approached this project. ey love pissing o the unsophisticated, tightly wound knobs of the world, i.e. MAGA-Americans.
Don’t believe me? Here’s the artistic director of the opening festivities, omas Jolly: “We wanted to include everyone, as simple as that,” he said. “In France, we have freedom of creation, artistic freedom. We are lucky in France to live in a free country. I didn’t have any speci c messages that I wanted to deliver. In France, we are a re-
public; we have the right to love whom we want, we have the right not to be worshippers, we have a lot of rights in France, and this is what I wanted to convey.”
And it makes the joke even funnier when those who are outraged are, well, just ignorant fools. e opening ceremony had nothing to do with Leonardo da Vinci’s e Last Supper but was intended to be a (very) loose recreation of e Feast of the Gods, a 17th-century painting by Dutch artist Jan Hermansz van Bijlert that hangs in the Magnin Museum, in Dijon, France. e painting depicts an assembly of Greek gods, including Dionysus, on Mount Olympus for a banquet to celebrate the marriage of etis and Peleus. So no Jesus, no blasphemy, unless you think dressing in drag is satanic, in which case, well, I can’t help you.
But let’s be clear: ere is no war on Christianity. You’re not a victim. You are a member of the U.S.’s largest religious denomination, many times over. It’s also the largest denomination in France. You’re going to be ne. It’s all a matter of perspective: You’re outraged that children were involved in the opening ceremonies.
e French, conversely, are outraged that guns are the number one killer of children in America.
You’re appalled by a headless Marie Antoinette, Lady Gaga, and Celine Dion.
e French (and a lot of Americans) were appalled by the appearances of Kid Rock, Amber Rose, Hulk Hogan, and other creeps at the GOP convention two weeks ago.
You’re upset because you refuse to believe that the French weren’t intentionally blaspheming Jesus Christ and the Last Supper. Yet I’m seeing no outrage from MAGA types over the countless images circulating of Donald Trump being held from behind by a loving blonde Jesus, or even the one that came from a campaign source via email yesterday, of Donald Trump literally hanging on the cross; his loin cloth is an American ag, and Melania is kneeling at his feet. It’s worth a google to see it, if only just to show that blasphemy, like art, is in the eye of the beholder.
SharingLegacyThe
Celebrate 50 years of empowerment with us. Mark your calendars for three unforgettable events:
• Take Me Out to The Ball Game Kick Off @ Memphis Rednirds Stadium Aug 10 - 6:30 - 9 PM
• Soul of Connection Networking Mixer @ Soulsville Stax Museum -Aug. 23 | $25
• 2nd Annual Building Wealth Symposium @ Graceland Exhibition center Aug. 24 | $50
PHOTO: ROMOLO TAVANI | DREAMSTIME.COM
sonic sisters
Memphis is exploding with women musicians like never before.
While one might argue that a story on the musical auteurs of Memphis who happen to be women should run during Women’s History Month, we at the Memphis Flyer have come to realize that such extraordinary artists know no season, no time or age. Despite the music industry still being dominated by men, and Tennessee typically ranking low as a champion of progressive causes, the women of Memphis are clearly bringing it 24/7 — against all odds. Since the days of Memphis Minnie, we’ve had high achievers from those in their second decade of life (teen Zariya Scullark, guitarist for Above Jupiter) to those in their eighth (Joyce Cobb, a force of nature in jazz and soul). is city spawned one of the world’s earliest punk “girl groups” — the KLiTZ,
dating back to 1978 and celebrated in Rolling Stone at the time — and they in turn inspired others in their wake, from the Marilyns to the Hellcats. Indeed, all of them are still active today, from ongoing shows by the KLiTZ Sisters, to WYXR’s celebration of the Hellcats’ debut album in April, featuring all of the original band members, to the Marilyns’ record release show last month.
And the ladies have impacted the hiphop world for a long time as well, starting in the ‘90s with rap pioneer Lola Mitchell, aka Gangsta Boo, sadly departed last year. e reigning queen of all that is of course GloRilla, who, since her 2022 breakout hit “F.N.F. (Let’s Go),” has rolled from success to success, including her double-platinum hit remixes “Tomor-
row 2” and this year’s “Wanna Be,” both featuring Cardi B, the latter also featuring Megan ee Stallion and reaching the top 15 of Billboard’s Hot 100.
GloRilla’s ascendance to the top of the heap was cemented when she opened for Megan ee Stallion on her sold-out Hot Girl Summer Tour this year, including a triumphant hometown appearance at the FedExForum in May. is year, GloRilla has had no less than three singles in the Billboard Hot 100, with her album Ehhthang Ehhthang spawning the top 30 song “Yeah Glo!” and her Rihannacosigned hit “TGIF.” And only last week she released her new video, “All Dere,” featuring her CMG labelmate MoneyBagg Yo, wherein Glo enlists MoneyBagg to be her gym partner. What’s more, GloRilla
achieves all this as she projects a powerful sexuality, describing her music as “crunk and dominant.”
But we shouldn’t let Glo’s red-hot trajectory distract us from the legions of women working at a less spectacular level, yet still achieving artistic success. Unapologetic’s Slimeroni, now based in Atlanta, boasts nearly 160,000 followers on Instagram. Alicja Trout, fronting Sweet Knives, and Amy LaVere, performing with partner Will Sexton, both recently completed summer tours. e latest episode of Beale Street Caravan featured Memphis’ own Alexis Grace, and the show has spotlighted local women from Marcella Simien to Elizabeth King. Cyrena
(le to right) PHOTO: ARIEL COBBERT Talibah Sa ya; PHOTO: JAMES STRICKLAND Marcia Cli on of the KLiTZ;
PHOTO: JAMES STRICKLAND Rosey; PHOTO: JAMES STRICKLAND Glockiana
COVER STORY By Flyer Staff
PHOTO: JAMES STRICKLAND
Joyce Cobb
PHOTO: (INSET)
JAMES STRICKLAND
Haley Ivey
Wages, who will headline at the Overton Park Shell on September 7th, just played the Troubadour in Los Angeles in June. And veterans like Susan Marshall or Reba Russell both perform and work behind the scenes. Russell and engineer/producer Dawn Hopkins call their production team the “Blue Eyed Bitches.”
As our writers surveyed the landscape of Memphis women in music, we were overwhelmed by such success stories, collectively rattling o a list of several dozen female or gender- uid musical auteurs, all of whom confront the wall of male privilege on a daily basis. Some have responded by taking action as organizers. Memphis native Ebonie Smith, a onetime recording engineer at Atlantic Records, now an independent producer, founded Gender Ampli ed, “empowering women and gender-expansive music producers,” while still a senior in college in 2007.
ough she’s immersed in production projects, she calls the nonpro t her “passion work” and has seen it grow steadily.
“Warner Music Group gave us a pretty sizable grant a couple years ago,” she told the Flyer last year, “so we’ve been hiring sta and doing our music production camps in New York. We also did an event in Memphis with 4U Recording, for Women’s Equality Day in August of ’21, and that was a fabulous experience; we want to do more with them. It’s just a matter of setting it into motion.”
And two years ago, a recent Memphis transplant who goes by Miz Stefani founded the recurring Women in Memphis Music (WiMM) showcase series at B-Side bar (the next will be on August 28th), not to mention the online Radio Memphis show, at Time of the Month. Scanning the artists featured on WiMM’s Instagram page (@womeninmemphismusic), one is struck by the sheer volume and eclecticism of female and female-identifying artists in this city.
Underscoring this point, Miz Stefani points to one of her favorite quotes from a man who attended last year’s WiMM Fest extravaganza at the Hi Tone. “On his Facebook page he said that if, by some freak accident, all the male musicians were somehow eradicated from Memphis, he had no doubt that Memphis music would prevail with just the females that were le
in the city.”
Furthermore, having worked for EMI and Blue Note Records in New York, Stefani has witnessed music scenes elsewhere, yet she’s struck by the sheer eclecticism of women’s music here. “I think there’s not a music genre that we have not covered in Memphis,” she says. “Whereas in other places, I can’t nd such a wide variety of women performers.
“I mean, girls are everywhere here.
ey’re in reggae, Americana, jazz, hardcore, punk, rock, and hip-hop. And there are some doing genres that I don’t even have names for. Suroor Hassan is one of the artists that we’ve had on [the WiMM showcase] and she does this kind of hypoindustrial music. I wouldn’t exactly know how to put a one-word genre description on it. We’re all over the map, and it’s unbelievable. We can’t be pigeonholed.”
“I’m very hard-pressed about pushing my way into male-dominated spaces, because why the fuck not?” — Haley Ivey
With that in mind, here is a small sample of the startling variety of women artists who’ve emerged from the Blu City. While they’ve not all blown up like Julien Baker or GloRilla, they are their equals in terms of their artistry, vision, and sheer determination to thrive in male-dominated world: a veritable sisterhood of sound.
— Alex Greene
Brezay
In an era of eeting fame caused by TikTok snippets and audio remixes, Breanna Mitchell knows she wants her career to have longevity. Our interview in itself is an extension of her legacy, as we initially chatted about her streetwear brand, Brezerk, marked by its one-of-a-kind statement pieces enhanced by Memphis air and her uniquely archetypal vision.
Now, months later, Mitchell is focused on promoting her new self-titled EP, Brezay, and meeting di erent artists such as SWV, Xscape, and others. is release is
a notable one for Mitchell as she bares all as a rapper, allowing her to further display her versatility as an artist.
“It basically showed a di erent side of me,” Mitchell says. “ is was a very creative, hip-hop, commercial EP, and it’s a mix of everything. It’s about me being myself and not really focusing on the distractions and what people say, because I went through that a lot — guring out my sound and where I wanted my career to be and stu .”
Music has played a major role in Mitchell’s life since she was in high school. She and her producer Je rey Williams, aka Jkidd, began pursuing their artistry together as classmates, despite fellow students who moked them and the music they made. Mitchell admits their music wasn’t “good at all” then, but that was just her starting point. Rather than let the negativity de ne her, Mitchell sought to improve her musicality and the staying power of her work.
While she’s a jack of all trades, rapping was still fairly new to Mitchell before this EP. She admits that the creative process was nerve-wracking. She workshopped ideas with rapper Fresco Trey on a beat produced by Jkidd, also Mitchell’s manager and CEO of Grind City Records. Fresco Trey originally rapped on the beat, and tapped Brezay to hop on the track with them.
“I was like, ‘I ain’t ever rapped before; what you mean you gonna put me on the song?’” Mitchell says. “ e next day I got home and I just started writing to it — and it came out quick, too.”
e end product, “Pull Up,” marked a major turning point for Mitchell, as she realized she could hear herself on any type of project. at had always been a goal of hers, but it was at this moment that she was able to pinpoint her growth.
Part of that growth involved invoking intentionality in her work, making sure that her music wasn’t eeting or an attempt to hop on a viral trend, only to vanish. “Music is deeper than just going in the studio and hoping it goes viral,” Mitchell explains. “You have to put a lot of e ort behind it and my pop music de nitely involves that.” Mitchell says she wouldn’t describe her pop music as complex, but she says there’s a lot that goes into creating
her sound, including input from producers, writers, and musicians.
As we talk about her trajectory and her aesthetic pro le, she describes herself as a pop star. It’s a refreshing moniker, re ecting her quest to have a career that transcends not only time but genre. She’s reminded of the in uence that artists like Michael Jackson and Ciara still have on her life, as their work, whether upbeat or somber, has had the power to initiate conversations and discourse, regardless of the era.
As a Black female artist in Memphis, she calls her journey navigating Memphis’ sound and audiences “interesting.” ere’s what the industry and city audiences want, but there’s also what Brezay wants.
“It’s tough when you have to get people to recognize you when they’re used to a certain thing. It takes a little processing and dedication, but it’s de nitely teaching me a lot,” Mitchell says. — Kailynn Johnson Follow Brezay on Instagram @ brezay__.
Haley Ivey
If you’ve spent any time in Midtown’s music venues the last couple of years, odds are you’ve seen Haley Ivey, either in her punk incarnation, Little Baby Tendencies, or sitting in with other bands on ute, or maybe even dancing in a burlesque or ow arts show. Being a woman in the notoriously bro-y punk world “is something that I think about a lot, but it’s also something I don’t think about at all,” she says. “I’ve always been very strongly sensitive to
continued on page 12
(le to right) PHOTO: JAMES STRICKLAND Raneem Imam; PHOTO: ANDREW PERFECT PRODUCTIONS Brezay; PHOTO: JAMES STRICKLAND Alice Hasen; PHOTO: ADAM RINDY GloRilla
continued from page 11
covert sexism. I’m very hard-pressed about pushing my way into male-dominated spaces, because why the fuck not? When I was in high school, there was a guitar club that started, and it was all boys. I asked if I could join the club, and the teacher just kind of laughed me out of it. Being that young, I was just like, ‘Oh, I guess you’re right. I guess it’s silly that I would want to play guitar.’”
e Mississippi native has a degree in music but dropped out of graduate school for ute performance to pursue her own muse. “When I started the punk project, I saw some local women doing it — not necessarily playing the guitar, but fronting
bands. It was never about me being like, ‘I’m a woman and I’m doing this.’ It was just like, ‘ is is what I wanna do.’ When I rst started, I kind of picked up on ambivalence and judgment from men in the scene, just kind of assuming I didn’t know what the heck I was doing. I came across a lot of mansplaining. ere was some verbal violence in the beginning. But I will say at this point, having been a couple of years into it, I feel very welcomed and respected. I think a lot of men in the scene are very chill and nice and have opened their eyes.”
One set is all it takes to prove any sexist doubters wrong. Little Baby Tendencies’ jackhammer ri s, punishing speed runs, and full-throttle vocals are inspired by classic punk rock she rst encountered
Love
on Spotify. “System of a Down was my rst love because of their amazing ri s. But also, when I was a kid, it was my rst introduction to people talking about that kind of stu . But also, I pull being kind of being ridiculous from them. I love that aspect about them, too. Dead Kennedys are really fun because it’s kind of the same deal. Great risk, speaking on issues, and also being ridiculous … e way they express their feelings through words, it’s not necessarily poetic, except in its own way. e music is like short, clipped bursts of emotion. And the political stu — it was refreshing to hear people just say what they wanted to say, pretty much in any way they wanted to say it. And the ri s. Hella ri s.
Love me some ri s.”
ere are a few di erent versions of the story behind the name, Little Baby Tendencies. e most common one she shares is, “I lived with a cat named Little Baby, who was kind of an insane cat. … At this point, the name to me is just like the tendencies of being a little baby and being a human. e songs mostly center around environmental and political issues — I would say human rights issues over political issues — and mental health. I guess it is like an idealistic little baby because really what I’m saying behind the microphone is, ‘What the heck, guys? Why aren’t we prioritizing the health and wellbeing of human rights?’ It’s more like, ‘What the fuck?’” LBT’s rst album Bad ings keeps it short, sharp, and shocking. None of the
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(le to right) PHOTO: THOMAS SMITH e Marilyns; PHOTO: CAMERON MITCHELL Suroor Hassan; PHOTO: MIZ STEFANI Aybil; PHOTO: JAMES STRICKLAND Hope Clayburn
nine songs reach the three-minute mark, but they are all crammed to the brim with inventive riffs and drummer Tyler Harrington’s hairpin turns. Above it all are Ivey’s confrontational lyrics, delivered in mocking snarls and vocal cord-rending screams. And there’s more where that came from. “We just recorded our second record, and it’s supposed to come out this year,” says Ivey. “I’m not trying to make it a statement piece for myself, but there’s just a lot of really messed up stuff going on. … Being absolutely yourself is an act of resistance. My whole life I’ve been asked why I do this or had people telling me not to do this. And it just makes me want to do the thing even more.” — Chris McCoy Follow Little Baby Tendencies on Instagram @littlebabytendencies.
Suroor Hassan
When she moved to Memphis three years ago, Suroor Hassan didn’t know she’d find herself at home in the music scene here. At the time, she had just begun her Ph.D. program in philosophy at the University of Memphis, and she was just starting to rediscover her passion for music.
Growing up in Karachi, Pakistan, Hassan says she had limited access to the internet and cable, so her exposure to music was mostly through her mom. “She wasn’t like a musician or anything,” she says, “but she was just really into music. She had this huge cassette selection. She really liked
pop music, but she also listened to a bit of everything. We would listen to American music but also Pakistani music on the same drive to school. We would listen to Britney Spears, Avril Lavigne, Linkin Park, Michael Jackson, but then we would also listen to Nazia Hassan, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, all these Pakistani artists.”
Inspired by these musicians, the young Hassan would write songs, but by her teenage years, her interest waned. “I felt bored with being a singer-songwriter,” she says. “That wasn’t my vibe.”
Then she moved to Iowa to study at Grinnell College. “It’s kind of the middle of nowhere,” she laughs, but that’s where she discovered electronic music. “It opened a whole new world. I went down a rabbit hole of like, ‘Oh my God, these are such cool sounds that I can actually create.’”
Electronic music was what she’d been waiting for, something to scratch that creative itch. “I just didn’t have the resources before,” Hassan says. “There’s so much freedom [to it]. It’s like you’re literally giving birth to sounds. You’re starting with the waves and you’re manipulating the waves, and from there you can do whatever the fuck you want with it [to] mold it into songs. … That’s kind of like how my brain works creatively.”
Without any formal music training, Hassan went on to release her first album Lavender Showers in June 2023. Listeners can note 2000s pop influences at some
points in Hassan’s music, and Pakistani at others. “Some of my songs are in Urdu; that’s my native language,” she says. “One thing Pakistan does really well and really uniquely is percussion. We have these special percussive instruments like tabla and khol that make really cool sounds. And compositionally, [Pakistani artists] tend to write really cool rhythms that make you want to move your body in very strange ways. When you blend in those percussive sounds with electronic music, you end up with a very crazy musical experience that you’ve never experienced before.”
With this in mind, classifying Hassan’s music into a genre isn’t an easy task. “When people ask me what genre my music is, I’m just like, ‘I don’t know.’ There’s just so much baked into it,” she says. “I think ‘industrial hyperpop’ is a good distillation. It’s like pop music, but more experimental and distorted and maximalist, but I also like to add a lot of harsher, more industrial elements to it.”
Her collaborator and friend W1NDOW, self-described as a hyperemo artist, also understands the issue of genre. Together, they run the DIY music label/ artist co-op Purgatory Pressings. “We’re really trying to bridge the music scene in Memphis in terms of all the different subgenres that there are here,” Hassan says. “Both of us have noticed that it’s very siloed. The hard-core scene sticks to itself. The rap scene sticks to itself. The singer-
songwriter scene sticks to itself. They’re all really good, and our vision is to make all these different blooming subfields interact, and that way Memphis as a whole is really going to bloom as a music scene when we get all the cool stuff done and interact with each other.”
So far Purgatory Pressings has put on several mixed-bill shows at venues like the Lamplighter and Hi Tone, and they’ve taken over putting on Trans Nights at the Lamplighter at least twice a year. This June, Purgatory Pressings also hosted their first Purg Fest with 15 artists on the lineup. “We had never seen anything like that before in Memphis or anywhere, really, where you have so many different artists from so many different genres,” Hassan says. “We are planning on making it an annual thing.”
In the meantime, Hassan has plans to make more music after a busy year of performing and touring. “My first performance was last year,” she says, “and after doing more and more shows, I’ve gotten more comfortable. Now I always want to be performing. When I get on stage, there’s a part in my brain that clicks on … but it’s been really good to be back home and be in the studio and exploring sounds and music. I’m very excited for what’s to come.”
— Abigail Morici Suroor Hassan will perform at Hi Tone on August 2nd at 6:30 p.m. Follow her on Instagram @suroor.901.
steppin’ out
We Recommend: Culture, News + Reviews
South of Baltimore
By Abigail Morici
“Little of artistic merit was made south of Baltimore,” a curator for New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art once wrote in 1949. Despite that quote being from over a half-century ago, and despite the growth of scholarship on Southern art, more art museums in the South, and more exhibitions and publications on Southern artists, this sentiment carries weight — a certain lack of appreciation for Southern arts is evident in narrative of American art history. But the Dixon Gallery & Gardens’ latest exhibition “Southern/Modern: 1913-1955” seeks to counteract that.
As Julie Pierotti, the Dixon’s Martha R. Robinson curator, says, “ is exhibition and the publication that goes along with it are making a really big statement. ey are refuting the last 100 years of American art history that has largely helped the mindset that nothing worth looking at has been made in the South, and this exhibition says, actually, yes, there are some really consequential artists that either came from here or came through the South or looked to the South for their subject matter and for their inspiration.”
Organized by e Mint Museum, in Charlotte, North Carolina, the exhibit was 10 years in the making, Pierotti says. “It was narrowed down to 105 objects, but an important thing to know is that there are many Souths and there are many modernisms, from the Atlantic coast to states bordering the Mississippi River, as far west as Arkansas and Louisiana.”
For the show, the pieces are arranged into themes, from art re ecting religion and rituals, to pieces observing Southern landscapes, to works responding to current events and social issues. e exhibit doesn’t shy away from South’s dark side of racism and violence, Pierotti says, but it also includes moments of celebration and community.
“It’s a little bit of everything in the show,” she adds. “ ere’s a lot to take in. It’s a big story. ere’s a lot to learn in the exhibition.”
e show even includes a few local names like Carroll Cloar, Burton Callicott, and Ted Faiers. “So our own history in the MidSouth plays into the larger story of the exhibition, which is really great,” Pierotti says. at story continues into the present with the Dixon’s complementary exhibit “2023 Wilson Fellowship,” which features work produced out of a partnership between the Arkansas town of Wilson and the Dixon. Wilson, Pierotti explains, has been looking to enhance its arts scene, and so the collaboration brought about a fellowship, through which artists stay in Wilson for 60 days and take inspiration from the town for their art.
e rst cohort — Danny Broadway, Claire Hardy, ad Lee, and John Ruskey — have the fruits of their fellowship on display now at the Dixon. “ e works of art that came out of it are just awesome,” Pierotti says. “ ey really capture the soul of Wilson.”
“SOUTHERN/MODERN: 1913-1955” AND “2023 WILSON FELLOWSHIP: DANNY BROADWAY, CLAIRE HARDY, THAD LEE, AND JOHN RUSKEY,” DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS, 4339 PARK AVENUE, ON DISPLAY THROUGH SEPTEMBER 29.
VARIOUS DAYS & TIMES August 1st - 7th
Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy
New Daisy eatre, 330 Beale, ursday, August 1, 10 p.m. | Friday, August 2, 10 p.m. | Saturday, August 3, noon & 10 p.m., $48-$55, 21+
Get ready to step into the shocking world of Edgar Allan Poe at this spooky pop-up speakeasy. e Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy will take you through a four-part interactive show and cocktail experience spotlighting the in uential author’s most famed works.
Edgar Allan Poe historians will bring his Gothic writing to life through captivating retellings of tales like “ e Raven,” “Masque of Red Death,” and “ e Black Cat” — complete with libations, of course. roughout the experience, a skilled mixologist will shake up four signature cocktails to pair with each tale. Tickets are selling out fast. Get them at tinyurl.com/5fwmnjnh.
Death Drop at Hotel Le’George Evergreen eatre, 1711 Poplar, Friday, August 2, 8 p.m. | Saturday, August 3, 8 p.m. | Sunday, August 4, 2 p.m., $30, 18+
Prepare to be fabulously oored by Death Drop at Hotel Le’George, a side-splitting whodunit set in a crumbling seaside resort. Winston, the frazzled property manager, faces the monumental task of restoring the hotel’s former glory while navigating the chaos brought by a motley crew of eccentric guests and sta , and an unexpected death that rocks the hotel.
Death Drop at Hotel Le’George promises a theatrical experience bursting with heart, humor, and more plot twists than a drag queen’s undergarments. Performances will be next weekend, too.
Get tickets at tinyurl.com/ y2a9d7r9.
Memphis Roller Derby Double Header
Pipkin Building, 940 Early Maxwell, Saturday, August 3, 4 p.m.,$15/ adults, $5/kids, free/under 5
Memphis will be hosting Red Stick’s Capital Defenders (Baton Rouge, LA), who will be taking on the Memphis A-Tracks. Root for Memphis against Baton Rouge and then cheer for your favorite home team: Minions or Ghouls.
Schedule for the day is as follows: doors at 4 p.m.; Red Stick B vs. Memphis A-Tracks at 5 p.m.; Ghouls vs. Minions at 7 p.m. Pok Cha’s Egg Rolls will be there, and there’ll be beer, merch, baked goods, hal ime entertainment, and chuck a duck. Holly R. Whit eld will also be on-site to sign her 100 ings to Do in Memphis Before You Die. Tickets available online at tinyurl.com/4d58249e and at the door.
Elaine de Kooning, Black Mountain
MUSIC By Michael Donahue
‘Big Sound’
Macrophonics prepare to release their rst EP.
C
ooper-Young Porchfest 2022 was the catalyst for Macrophonics, which features lead singer Lawson Day, lead guitarist Justin Weirich, and drummer Margo Araoz.
“It was the rst Porchfest I’d been to,” Day says. He told Weirich, “We need to play this.”
e two met when they were in the seventh grade at DeSoto Central Middle School in Southaven, Mississippi.
“I think when we really started hanging out more was in 10th grade,” Weirich says. “Physical science class.”
ey would “talk about music and movies for an hour,” Day says.
“I wouldn’t really pay much attention in school. I was more focused on learning music and listening to di erent stu ,” Weirich says.
Weirich was 11 when he bought his Fender Starcaster with le over birthday money and $300 winnings from a family golf tournament.
Day began singing six years ago. He originally was “too lost in video games and things.” Also, he says, “I was terri ed to hear my voice for a long time.”
He didn’t sing in front of an audience until he sang karaoke on a cruise. “I’m like, ‘I’m going to sing karaoke.’ And I did it every night on the cruise.”
“Get Down Tonight” by KC & the Sunshine Band was his first song. “I can remember being pretty nervous the first night. And then, I think, from every night onward, I didn’t really care.”
Araoz, who is from Birmingham, Alabama, joined the drumline in high school when she was about 10 years old. “Half the people in my school were in the band,” she says. “ at was what the school was known for. I got to see a drumline play live. It was the rst time I got to do this. I remember as a 9-yearold feeling the vibrations in my body. I said, ‘I need to do that. I’m put on this Earth to do that.’”
Araoz stopped playing drums and percussion when she was 14 to focus on her high school studies.
She majored in environmental science at North Carolina State University before moving to Memphis in 2021. She met Weirich when they worked together at Otherlands Co ee Bar. “I didn’t have a drum set when I moved here. I hadn’t played since I was 14. I was like, ‘Oh, that’s behind me. I’m no longer a drummer.’”
But, she says, “Justin encouraged me
“For now, it’s more about the ethos of punk than necessarily the direct sound.”
to buy a drum set and he just got the ball rolling for me to retry it.”
e trio got a practice space at O the Walls Arts, “all hanging out playing music and having fun with it,” Weirich says.
“It was such a cool experience,” Day says. “It felt like being in some kind of coming-of-age movie.”
e name “Macrophonics” was Weirich’s brainchild. “I like the imagery of ‘macro,’ being ‘big,’ and ‘phonics’ — ‘big sound,’” he says.
ey’ve described their music as “punk rock,” he says. “More the attitude for us in terms of musicality. We try to make songs that sound aggressive, but still kind of catchy.”
“Some of our songs, while they all have a bit of pop structure, sonically can be di erent,” Day adds. “ ey don’t t what people think of as ’80s punk.’”
eir songs are “just do-it-yourself” with “a little absurdist humor,” Weirich says. “Because humor helps the reality go down smoother.”
ey only had two originals when they signed up for their rst Porchfest in 2023. Day describes their show as “overwhelming. It was me and Margo’s
rst show.”
“I remember being very, very nervous. At that point I was kind of yelling instead of singing. I felt it was a controlled yell. But I was nervous as hell. Freaked out.”
Because it was hot, Day took o his shirt while he sang. He now sings shirtless most shows. “I didn’t want it to be a trademark, but I feel it kind of is.”
eir Porchfest experience was a success. “We wanted to keep doing it: ‘Okay. We’re pretty good at this. We can actually do this. Let’s keep it chugging along.’”
ey played shows at Growlers, Hi Tone, Black Lodge, and “a lot of Lamplighter shows,” Weirich says. Macrophonics is about to have its rst EP mastered. ey hope to release it “within the next month or so,” Weirich says.
Weirich doesn’t like to de ne their music genre. “I think we like keeping it vague like that. Who wants to be just a punk band? I feel like we have a lot more musical in uences to branch into, more things we want to do with the band. For now, it’s more about the
ethos of punk than necessarily the direct sound.”
Araoz also makes the band shirts. “I thri the material for the T-shirts,” she says. “And I carve out my rubber stamps myself. Me and a friend.
“Environmental science shapes how I move through the world in every aspect. I did nd a wholesale T-shirt company that uses a closed loop system for fabrics. ere’s no waste being produced from any part of the company. ey make new T-shirts out of old bers.
“I wanted to make sure I was producing a product that can be broken down and reused again, not end up in a land ll in Ghana.”
Macrophonics played their second Cooper-Young Porchfest this April with “a lot more con dence going into it,” Day says. “I had a whole year of experience kind of owing through my body.”
And, Weirich says, “We actually got our rst encore. When they asked us, all we had to add on was ‘Blitzkrieg Bop’ by the Ramones. We played it double time. We played it faster than the Ramones played it.”
PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE Lawson Day, Margo Araoz, and Justin Weirich
AFTER DARK: Live Music Schedule August 1 - 7
Live & Local Music
Cody Clark
ursday, Aug. 1, 6:30 p.m. |
Friday, Aug. 2, 7 p.m.
TIN ROOF
Earl “The Pearl” Banks
Tuesday, Aug. 6, 7 p.m.
BLUES CITY CAFE
Eric Hughes
ursday, Aug. 1, 7 p.m.
RUM BOOGIE CAFE
FreeWorld
Friday, Aug. 2, 8 p.m. |
Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 p.m.
RUM BOOGIE CAFE
FreeWorld
Sunday, Aug. 4, 8 p.m.
BLUES CITY CAFE
Sarah Jade
Friday, Aug. 2, 10:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Aug. 3, 10:30 p.m.
TIN ROOF
Soul St. Mojo
Wednesday, Aug. 7, 7 p.m.
RUM BOOGIE CAFE
The Rockin’ 88s
Monday, Aug. 5, 7 p.m.
BLUES CITY CAFE
Vince Johnson
Monday, Aug. 5, 7 p.m.
RUM BOOGIE CAFE
Lady E-Flat
A “Sax on the River” concert, featuring soulful music and great food. Saturday, Aug. 3, 7 p.m.
RENASANT CONVENTION CENTER
Live at the Lorraine with Tonya Dyson
Tonya Dyson is a cross-genre performer, neo-soul digital platform host, educator, and radio personality. She is close to the pulse of Memphis’ evolving beat. $100/general admission. Saturday, Aug. 3, 7-9 p.m.
NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM
Live and local music, every Wednesday night on the all-weather patio. Wednesday, Aug. 7, 7-10 p.m.
MOMMA’S
Rooftop Party Featuring DJ Jordan Rogers ursday, Aug. 1, 6 p.m.
THE PEABODY HOTEL
Witnesse
Jason “Witnesse” Sims commands crowds behind his turntables, whether rocking a party or a concert, with Memphis hip-hop jesters Lord T. & Eloise. Friday, Aug. 2, 9 p.m.
EIGHT & SAND
The Boneyard
Heavy classic rock. Friday, Aug. 2, 8 p.m.
NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM
The Deb Jam Band
Featuring Debbie Jamison and friends. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6 p.m.
NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM
Landslide (Fleetwood Mac Tribute)
Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 p.m.
NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM
Van Duren
The singer/songwriter, a pioneer of indie pop in Memphis, performs solo.
Thursday, Aug. 1, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
MORTIMER’S
Age of Panic
DIY Memphis presents Age of Panic. With Blistered Spirit, A Kiss Before Dying [Small Room-Downstairs]. Sunday, Aug. 4, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Album Listening Event: Jerry Garcia “Garcia”
Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6 p.m.
MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB
Almost Elton John & the RocketMen
Friday, Aug. 2, 7 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Amber McCain Band
Saturday, Aug. 3, 5 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Area 51
Friday, Aug. 2, 10 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Black Stone Cherry
With Nonpoint, Five For the Kill. Monday, Aug. 5, 7 p.m.
GROWLERS
Brian Wolff & The Howlers
With Mike Hewlett, Fearless Dave & e Tsunamis [Small Room-Downstairs]. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Devil Train
Bluegrass, roots, country, Delta, and ski e. ursday, Aug. 1, 10 p.m.
B-SIDE
Fearless Dave & the Tsunamis
With Melanfolly, Yesterday’s Trash. Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 p.m.
LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE
Full Metal Racket
ursday, Aug. 1, 7 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Izthmi
With Autolith, High, Crawldrawdiuqs [Small Room-Downstairs]. ursday, Aug. 1, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Jack Oblivian Band
Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 p.m.
BAR DKDC
Jay Jones Band
Sunday, Aug. 4, 7 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Jazz Saturdays with Memphis Jazz Workshop
Hear live jazz . $15/adult, $10/ adult 55+, $8/student, youth. Saturday, Aug. 3, noon-2 p.m.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
Joe Locke and The Ted Ludwig Trio Composer, bandleader, and conceptualist Locke is featured in the Modern Masters Jazz Series. Wednesday, Aug. 7, 7:30 p.m.
THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS
Sapphic Summer Send-Off
With Adrien, Celest, Your Mom, Stay Fashionable, Handsome Girl Pretty Boy, Suroor. Dance set at midnight with DJ Space Age [Big Room-Upstairs]. Friday, Aug. 2, 6:30 p.m.
HI TONE
Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox
ursday, Aug. 1, 8 p.m.
MINGLEWOOD HALL
Skinny’s Buttrock Birthday Bash
With live bands paying tribute to Nickleback and Creed. Saturday, Aug. 3, 9 p.m.
HI TONE
Stolen Faces (Grateful Dead Tribute)
Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 p.m.
B-SIDE
Symmetry Jazz
Gary Topper’s all-star jazz ensemble plays both standards and his unique originals. Wednesday, Aug. 7, 8 p.m.
B-SIDE
The Super 5
Saturday, Aug. 3, 9 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Vinyl Happy Hour
With Guest DJs every Friday. Friday, Aug. 2, 3-5 p.m.
MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB
Cory Branan
ursday, Aug. 1, 8 p.m.
HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY
Fifth Annual Hootenanny Saturday, Aug. 3, 1 p.m.
HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY Jombi
With Dream of Garden, Kirkos. Friday, Aug. 2, 8 p.m.
Joe Restivo 4
One of the city’s nest jazz guitarists leads his own quartet. Sunday, Aug. 4, 11
a.m.-2 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Louise Page and Friends With Late Night Cardigan, Too Small. Friday, Aug. 2, 10 p.m.
BAR DKDC
Magenta Sunshine (Asheville, NC)
Monday, Aug. 5, 9 p.m.
B-SIDE
Marcus Scott Friday, Aug. 2, 8 p.m.
RAILGARTEN
Mountain Grass Unit
Sunday, Aug. 4, 8 p.m.
MINGLEWOOD HALL
Ole 60
Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 p.m.
MINGLEWOOD HALL
Rhythm and Flow Bootcamp Showcase
Friday, Aug. 2, 7 p.m.
MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB
Roxi Love Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY
Shake the Monday Blues with Yella P Your Monday reset has arrived. $10/general admission. Monday, Aug. 5, 6-8 p.m.
SMOOTH LIVING RESTAURANT
Memphis Blues Society Weekly Jam
Hosted by Jackie Flora & Friends. ursday, Aug. 1, 7:30 p.m.
ROCKHOUSE LIVE
Richard Wilson Soulful Jazz and Bossanova Smooth and soulful. ursday, Aug. 1, noon-2 p.m. | Friday, Aug. 2, noon-2 p.m.
JACKIE MAE’S PLACE
Singer Songwriter
Sundays
Enjoy some of the area’s best local musicians every Sunday. Sunday, Aug. 4, 4-6 p.m.
MEDDLESOME BREWING COMPANY
PHOTO: CHLOE LITTLEFIELD
Louise Page and band will appear at Bar DKDC.
CALENDAR of EVENTS: August 1 - 7
ART AND SPECIAL EXHIBITS
2023 Wilson Fellowship Artists
e Dixon’s partnership with the town of Wilson, Arkansas, awarded residencies to artists Danny Broadway, Claire Hardy, ad Lee, and John Ruskey. rough Sept. 29.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Anna Parker: “The Beauty of Pointillism”
Each painting resonates with the meticulous arrangement of dots, circles, and strokes. ursday, Aug. 1-Aug. 29.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Artists’ Link Summer Show
Artists’ Link members offer visitors a variety of creative subjects and artistic media to enjoy. Thursday, Aug. 1-Aug. 28.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
“Bracelets, Bangles, and Cuffs: 1948-2024”
A remarkable collection of contemporary bracelets. rough Nov. 17.
METAL MUSEUM
“Branching Out”
Discover intricate connections between students, teachers, and casting communities, which branch out much like a family tree. rough Sept. 8.
METAL MUSEUM
“Health in Enamel” emes of health, healing, and spirituality crystallize with a survey of current enamel holdings in the Metal Museum’s permanent collection. rough Sept. 29.
METAL MUSEUM
“It’s a Fine Line”
New works by Stephanie Howard (Greenville, SC) and Khara Woods (Memphis, TN). rough Aug. 9.
SHEET CAKE
“Mission: Astronaut”
Get a taste of life as an astronaut, using skills like engineering, physics, teamwork, and fun. rough Sept. 2.
MEMPHIS MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY
“On Paper!”
An interactive exhibition celebrating the versatility and beauty of paper as a material initiating creativity and innovation. rough Sept. 29.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
“People Are People” is exhibition honors famed American designer Christian Siriano’s electrifying contributions to fashion. rough Aug. 4.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
“Southern/Modern: 1913 - 1955”
“Southern/Modern” seeks to encourage new admiration for the region’s rich cultural heritage through paintings, drawings, and prints from the era of progressive visual art in the American South, created in the rst half of the 20th century. Free. rough Sept. 29.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Summer Art Garden:
“Creatures of Paradise”
Memphis-based duo Banana Plastik present an environment lled with vibrant and whimsical beings. rough Oct. 26.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
“Summer Soirée en Violette”: New Works by Chère Labbé Doiron
Featuring Chère Labbé Doiron’s wonderfully unique landscapes using vivid colors and diverse materials. Weekdays only. rough Aug. 15.
ANF ARCHITECTS
“United Streets of America”
Vibrant paintings by local artist Carol Co ey Clark. rough Aug. 24.
MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE
HISTORY
Works by Heather Parker Jones Native to Memphis, Jones creates delight-driven works using bold colors, lines, and unassuming imagery.
Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. rough Aug. 29.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Works by John Roberts
Shaped by his family history, John Roberts paints to express the extraordinary within everyday environments. rough Aug. 22
DAVID LUSK GALLERY
ART HAPPENINGS
A Fashion History Tour with Ali Bush
An inside look at how fashion history informs contemporary designers like Christian Siriano from Ali Bush’s point of view. ursday, Aug. 1, 6 p.m.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
Munch and Learn: Southern Monuments with Dr. Lisa Williamson Williamson is a multi-media interdisciplinary artist with a focus in writing, painting, sculpting, and installation. Wednesday, Aug. 7, noon-1 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Pet Portrait Art Show
Art from the Memphis community inspired by our mutual love of pets. Friday, Aug. 2, 6-8 p.m.
BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY
Send the date, time, place, cost, info, phone number, a brief description, and photos — two weeks in advance — to calendar@memphisflyer.com.
DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS, ONGOING WEEKLY EVENTS WILL APPEAR IN THE FLYER’S ONLINE CALENDAR ONLY. FOR COMPREHENSIVE EVENT LISTINGS, SCAN THE QR CODE OR VISIT EVENTS.MEMPHISFLYER.COM/CAL.
BOOK EVENTS
Club de lectura (Spanish Book Club)
The August meeting will be devoted to Más allá by Julia Alvarez. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Scavenger Hunt: First Fridays on Broad Ave
Pick up a punch card from any participating shop for $5 and begin your hunt. Collect all your stamps and leave your nished card at any participating shop for a chance to win prizes from the shops on Broad. Friday, Aug. 2, 5-8 p.m. BROAD AVENUE ARTS DISTRICT
Super Saturday: End of Summer
Celebrate the end of summer on the plaza with bubbles and games. Test your color-mixing skills by making a variation of rainbow color wheels using markers and crayons. Free. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 a.m.noon.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
M.J. Wassmer: Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend e author speaks about his social satire about a man trapped on an island resort after the sun explodes. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6 p.m. NOVEL
CLASS / WORKSHOP
Adult Workshop: MoldMaking with Sarah Stobbe Silicone mold-making in multiple mediums such as soap, candles, resin, and more. Participants must attend both sessions, Aug. 6 and Aug. 8. $35. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 5-7 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Dried Flower Shadow Boxes Workshop
Craft stunning dried botanical arrangements and make your own personalized dried floral initial masterpiece. $75/one adult. Sunday, Aug. 4, 1-2:30 p.m.
MIDTOWN BRAMBLE AND BLOOM
Figure Drawing (Clothed Model)
Learn about gure drawing at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art. $10/member, $15/ general admission. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 a.m.-noon.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
iPhone Photography with Erica Haskett
Learn how to take stunning photos and capture the beauty of your natural surroundings using only your iPhone. $35. ursday, Aug. 1, 6:30-8 p.m.
OVERTON PARK
Project Pop-up
Participants explore a new part of the Dixon with an inspiring project for all ages. Supplies are provided. All ages. Free. Saturday, Aug. 3, 1 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Queer & Allied Theatre Troupe
An LGBTQ+Allied theater group for young people ages 14-21. ursday, Aug. 1, 5 p.m. PLAYHOUSE ON THE SQUARE
The Science Behind the Raw Pet Food Movement: Growth and Success Explained
A free webinar exploring the raw food movement’s surge in popularity and the science that backs it up. Visit hfu. hollywoodfeed.com. Thursday, Aug. 1, 8 a.m., noon, and 5 p.m. ONLINE
Sessions for the soul that has been silenced
A transformative creative and healing writing program to help participants to process trauma and create space for authenticity and vulnerability. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6-8 p.m. COSSITT LIBRARY
TN Master Beekeeping
Class
A basic level class on bee biology, management techniques, hands-on time in an apiary, and more. 18+. $125. ursday, Aug. 1-Aug. 2
AGRICENTER INTERNATIONAL
COMEDY
Comedy Open Mic
Hosted by John Miller. $10. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 8 p.m. HI TONE
Jon Reep
A nationally touring comedian with a contemporary country point of view. Friday, Aug. 2, 7:30 p.m. | Friday, Aug. 2, 9:30 p.m. | Saturday, Aug. 3, 7:30 p.m. | Saturday, Aug. 3, 9:30 p.m. | Sunday, Aug. 4, 7:30 p.m.
CHUCKLES COMEDY HOUSE
Saturday Night Showcase is underground comedy show boasts a diverse and interesting line up each week that cracks smiles, shakes heads, and causes uproarious laughter. $15. Saturday, Aug. 3, 7 p.m.
MEMPHIS CLOVER CLUB
Uncensored Live
Comedy from Tylon Monger, Wild Beale, Tootie 2 Times, Hardface Nelson, and Mak of Memphis. Saturday, Aug. 3, 7 p.m. GROWLERS
COMMUNITY
The Mystic Live at the Green Room e Mystic is hosted by a rotating panel including Rabbi Micah Greenstein, Dr. Scott Morris, Rev. Joshua Narcisse, Dr. Rev. Lillian Lammers, and Kirk Whalum. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6-7 p.m.
THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS
PHOTO: COURTESY THE ARTIST Harbor by Heather Parker Jones, at the Memphis Botanic Garden
DANCE
Line Dancing with Q Line dancing lessons, 21+. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6-9 p.m.
DRU’S PLACE
Neon Demons Rave
A neon-drenched, candy-colored psychedelic dance rave with DJ Brian Hamilton and DJ Dosie. 18+. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 p.m.
BLACK LODGE
Sounds of Memphis: DJ AD
The Summer Art Garden by Banana Plastik provides the perfect colorful backdrop to an evening of dancing to DJ AD’s entertainment. Drinks and refreshments will be available for purchase. Thursday, Aug. 1, 6 p.m.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
EXPO/SALES
One Year of Bazaars at the Lamplighter
A one-year anniversary celebration of the Lamplighter Lounge’s bazaars. Saturday, Aug. 3, 2-6 p.m.
LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE
FAMILY
EmpowHER Memphis Back to School Bash
The EmpowHER Memphis Back to School Bash offers school supplies, engaging activities, and additional resources. Free. Saturday, Aug. 3, 1-3 p.m.
1192 VOLLINTINE AVE
Family Yoga at the Garden
A fun way for parents to bond with their kids. Bring a mat and water. Free with MBG admission. Monday, Aug. 5, 10-11 a.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Kaleidoscope Club (Ages 5-9)
Each week, participants will enjoy an art or horticulture project that sparks creativity and critical thinking. Wednesday, Aug. 7, 4 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Mini Masters (Ages 2-4)
Introduce your little ones to the arts and nature with crafts, movement, and more. $8. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 10:30-11:15 a.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Mommy and Me Baby Expo,
Presented by Methodist South Hospital
A family-friendly event with health education and prenatal information for expectant mothers. Meet the maternity team, enjoy light refreshments and a photo booth, and get prenatal information and breastfeeding education. Saturday, Aug. 3, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Mudpie Mondays
Children can craft their own mud pie using natural materials. This event is canceled if it is raining. Monday, Aug. 5, 10 a.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Story Time
Enjoy stories, songs, art activities, and creative play that connect with Collierville history. Friday, Aug. 2, 10:30 a.m.
MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE HISTORY
Story Time at Novel
Recommended for children up to 5 years, Story Time at Novel includes songs and stories, featuring brand-new books in addition to wellloved favorites. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10:30 a.m. | Wednesday, Aug. 7, 10:30 a.m.
NOVEL
Summer Splash
Overton Park Conservancy is popping up waterslides on the Greensward. Free. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
OVERTON PARK
Teen Fest 2024 Back to School Bash
With host Zamira Alexis; performers L.Y.E. Academy, Lil Q, RobenX, Liya Sarai, and Fresco Trey; and judges A.R. The Mermaid, Al Kapone, Tyke T, and Sunny D. Brinson. Includes free food and a backpack giveaway. Saturday, Aug. 3, 2 p.m.
FILM
Barbie
Design while you watch. Using the provided clipboards and pencils, customize a fashion illustration during the movie. $18. Saturday, Aug. 3, 2 p.m.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
Playtime
Jacques Tati’s gloriously choreographed, nearly wordless comedy about confusion in an age of high technology, from 1967. $5. Thursday, Aug. 1, 7 p.m.
CROSSTOWN THEATER
Space: The New Frontier 2D
From self-assembling habitats, commercial space stations, and rockets without fuel to the Lunar Gateway to deep space. Through May 2025.
MEMPHIS MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY
Turandot: Met Summer Encore
In this 2016 Met performance of Puccini’s extravagant masterpiece, soprano Nina Stemme and tenor Marco Berti star in a larger-than-life staging from legendary director Franco Zeffirelli. Paolo Carignani conducts. Wednesday, Aug. 7, 6:30 p.m.
MALCO PARADISO CINEMA GRILL & IMAX
FOOD AND DRINK
Blue Christmas Pop-Up
A festive summer cool-down with the King of Rock-and-Roll. Sundays-Thursdays, 4-10 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 4-11 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 1-Aug. 17.
BAR HUSTLE AT ARRIVE MEMPHIS
Canoes + Cocktails
A guided sunset paddle on the lake followed by specialty cocktails provided by Old Dominick, snacks from Cheffie’s, yard games, and music. Friday, Aug. 2, 7 p.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market
A weekly outdoor market featuring local farmers (no resellers), artisans, and live music. Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 a.m.-1 p.m.
FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
Feast On The Farm
ROBERT R. CHURCH PARK
SHELBY FARMS PARK CALENDAR: AUGUST 1 - 7
Feast on the Farm is Agricenter’s annual event to support its mission and celebrate growth and education. With a live and silent auction, delicious small plates from local restaurants and caterers, and toe-tapping live music. $125/ individual ticket, $250/couples ticket. Saturday, Aug. 3, 6-10:30 p.m.
AGRICENTER INTERNATIONAL, SHOWPLACE ARENA
Food Truck Fridays
Start your weekend right with the biweekly Food Truck Fridays event series at Caption by Hyatt, featuring delicious eats from local favorites and live music. Friday, Aug. 2, 5-7 p.m.
CAPTION BY HYATT
Memphis Farmers Market
A weekly outdoor market featuring local farmers and artisans, live music, and fun activities.
Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 a.m.-1 p.m.
MEMPHIS FARMERS MARKET
Vine and Thread: Champagne Tasting and Toast to Christian Siriano Toast the Christian Siriano exhibit in its final weekend with a party. With multiple sparkling wine tasting stations, live music, nibbles, and guided tours of the exhibit.
Friday, Aug. 2, 5-8 p.m.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
HEALTH AND FITNESS
Get Outside! Fitness - Adult Yoga
This Vinyasa style yoga class is dedicated to creating a balanced mind, body, and spirit. Saturday, Aug. 3, 9 a.m.
continued from page 20 ACROSS 1 Allow in
Cause for cake and candles, in brief 10 Figs. that average 100 13 Sam played one in “Casablanca”
Skye of “Say Anything …”
Border 16 It has spots 18 “___ #1!”
Like a fox
Fertile soil 21 Jackson of country music
22 It has spots
Title song on the Beatles’ final studio album 29 Mob
Vicinity
31 Potential new job requirement, informally
32 Nov. 11 honoree
35 It has spots
40 Lengua de Mex.
41 Juiceless, as a battery
42 What “:” means in an analogy
43 Congressional hirees
45 Totally stumped
48 It has Spots
51 Jump with a turn on ice
52 Jazz’s James
53 “Forget ___” (advice after a breakup)
56 Where Johnny Cash shot a man, in song
57 It has spots
60 Onetime maker of Matchbox cars
61 Ingredient in gumbo
62 Throbbed
63 “Listen here!”
64 Products from Parker and Cross
65 Scampers DOWN
1 Google Play purchases
2 Rotary phone feature
3 “Quite contrary” girl of rhyme
4 Squid’s defense
5 Privy
6 Lummox
7 Stuffed grape leaves
8 Enero a diciembre
9 Still 10 “To the best of my knowledge” 11 Book of Islam
12 Tube used in heart surgery
15 Employee of the Month, e.g.
17 Inexperienced gamer, in slang
22 Writer O’Flaherty
23 Cousin of an emu
24 Honeycakes
25 Small complication?
26 Wedding dress material
27 Greek god with a bow
28 Source of day workers
Substitutes for
Art museum with
Blouse,
continued from page 19
Get Outside! FitnessFlow Yoga
A fun, dynamic and creative vinyasa flow class suitable for yogis of all ages. Thursday, Aug. 1, 6 p.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Get Outside! FitnessMat Pilates
A low-impact yet challenging workout that enhances your mind-body connection.
Thursday, Aug. 1, 10 a.m. |
Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6 p.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Get Outside! FitnessMental Fitness
This class offers a welldeserved break where you will clear your mind through calming breathing and guided meditation. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10:30 a.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Free Sana Yoga
Find your glow and fuel your soul with yoga every Tuesday at Comeback Coffee. This alllevels Flow class will surely leave you feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. Free. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 11-11:45 a.m.
COMEBACK COFFEE
Lunchtime Meditations
Clear your mind and improve your overall health with free meditation sessions every Friday. Friday, Aug. 2, noon-12:45 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Slow Your Roll | Saturday Morning Meditation
A serene start to your Saturday with some morning mindfulness, led by the experienced mindfulness educator Greg Graber. Free. Saturday, Aug. 3, 8-8:30 a.m.
CHICKASAW GARDENS PARK
Tai Chi
Instructor Marjean teaches gentle moves that will strengthen and calm body, mind, and soul. Thursday, Aug. 1, 7 a.m.
OVERTON PARK
Taijiquan with Milan
Vigil
Led by Milan Vigil, this Chinese martial art promotes relaxation, improves balance, and provides no-impact aerobic benefits. Ages 16 and older. Free. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10:30-11:30 a.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Yoga
Strengthen your yoga practice and enjoy the health benefits of light exercise with yoga instructor Laura Gray McCann. Free. Thursday, Aug. 1, 6-6:45 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Yoga on the River Candace will guide your yoga journey along the mighty Mississippi. Free. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6-7 p.m.
RIVER GARDEN
PERFORMING ARTS
Death Drop at Hotel Le’George
Friends of George’s unveils its newest, original show: Death Drop at Hotel Le’George: Ain’t Murder a Drag? Winston, a frazzled property manager, faces the monumental task of restoring a hotel’s former glory while navigating the chaos brought by a motley crew of eccentric guests and staff. $30/general admission, $60/VIP experience. Friday, Aug. 2, 8 p.m. | Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 p.m. | Sunday, Aug. 4, 2 p.m.
THE EVERGREEN THEATRE
Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy
A four-part interactive show spotlighting the influential author’s most famed works. Historians bring Poe’s writing to life through captivating retellings of tales like “The Raven,” “Masque of Red Death,” and “The Black Cat” — complete with libations. A skilled mixologist will shake up four signature cocktails to pair with each tale, such as “The Raventini,” making sure that each drink is as deliciously decadent as the next. 21+. Thursday, Aug.
CALENDAR: AUGUST 1 - 7
BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
Super Saturday at the Brooks with bubbles, games, and rainbow color wheels.
1, 8 p.m. | Thursday, Aug. 1, 10 p.m. | Friday, Aug.
2, 6 p.m. | Friday, Aug. 2, 10 p.m. | Saturday, Aug. 3, noon | Saturday, Aug. 3, 2 p.m. | Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 p.m.
NEW DAISY THEATRE
Monday Night Poetry
Set by Perform901
An immersive celebration of the written word, where the beauty of language comes alive. A creatively safe, diverse, and inclusive space that promotes thoughtful artistic expression and carefully curated collaboration. Monday, Aug. 5, 7:30 p.m. HI TONE
“Starlight Cabaret”
With Shanice R. Cassadine, Mychelle LaCroix Dupree, Aubrey “Boom Boom” Ombre, Taye Jadore Cassadine, “Miss Mid-South Pride” Wednesday Moss, and Rawki Matrix. Saturday, Aug. 3, 9 p.m.
DRU’S PLACE
Tramp Stamp: Drag/ Variety Show
A wild night of fabulous drag performances and entertaining variety acts at the Tramp Stamp Drag and Variety Show. Saturday, Aug. 3, 9 p.m.-midnight.
INK THERAPY
We So Memphis Competition
A talent competition for comedians, dancers, and rappers. Hosted and judged by DJ Zirk, G Nerd, Memphis Jookin’ League, DJ Ryanthemind, comedian Julie Hopkins. Friday, Aug. 2, 7:30 p.m. | Friday, Aug. 2, 7:30 p.m. GROWLERS
SPECIAL EVENTS
Back to School Ball
Queer Memphis celebrates school realness. Hosted by Caleb Armstrong and The True Icon, with DJ Space Age and DJ Avious. Sunday, Aug. 4, 9:30 p.m.
BLACK LODGE
Morrighan’s Bluff, Amtgard of Memphis
Meet Saturdays at noon for this medieval/fantasy live action roleplay game. Saturday, Aug. 3, noon.
W. J. FREEMAN PARK
Train Heritage Day
See model railroad displays and three historic rail cars, and learn about Collierville’s steam locomotive, Frisco 1351. Music by the Wayne Jerrolds Band. Saturday, Aug. 3, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE HISTORY
SPORTS
Memphis Redbirds vs. Gwinnett Stripers
$13-$86. Tuesday, Aug. 6, 6:30 p.m. | Wednesday, Aug. 7, 6:30 p.m.
AUTOZONE PARK
Memphis Roller Derby
Double Header
Red Stick’s Capital Defenders (Baton Rouge, LA) will take on the Memphis A-Tracks, followed by local teams
Ghouls vs. Minions. $15/ adult, $5/child (5-13). Saturday, Aug. 3, 4-9 p.m.
PIPKIN BUILDING
PHOTO: COURTESY CROSSTOWN ARTS
Playtime is a comedy about our confusion in a high-tech world.
Open Water Swim Clinics
Get tips, advice, and training from professional swim and triathlon coaches.
Sunday, Aug. 4, 6:30 a.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Wolf River Paddle: The “Lost Swamp Section” Paddle one of the most inspirational sections of the Wolf River, “The Lost Swamp,” a Class 1 meandering water trail approximately six miles in length. Saturday, Aug. 3, 9 a.m.
WOLF RIVER CONSERVANCY
THEATER
Carmen Jones
The classic musical by Oscar Hammerstein II, featuring music by Georges Bizet. Through Aug. 18. HATTILOO THEATRE
TOURS
Haunted Pub Crawl
Visit three local bars for ghost stories, dark history, and tales of the paranormal. Friday, Aug. 2, 7:30-10 p.m.
THE BROOM CLOSET
The Original Memphis Brew Bus
The Memphis Brew Bus is a Saturday afternoon trip into the amazing Memphis craft brewing scene. Visit three local breweries for tours, talks with the brewers, and of course beer. $59. Saturday, Aug. 3, 2-5:30 p.m.
THE BROOM CLOSET
PHOTO: COURTESY MEMPHIS
We Saw You.
with MICHAEL DONAHUE
Wrestling fans turned out for 901 Wrestling’s annual Wild Card Rumble, which was held July 20th at Black Lodge.
Anthony Sain, commentator with Kevin Cerrito, describes the event as a “13-man, over-the-top battle royal.”
And, he says, “It’s one of our premier events of the year.”
Describing the event, Sain says, “It starts o with two guys. A new guy comes in every two minutes. … You’ve got to throw guys over the top rope to be eliminated.”
Everybody is eventually eliminated except one. “ e True One of One” Kevin Bless was this year’s winner. “It got down to him and one other person and he threw that person over the top rope.”
As Rumble winner, Bless can participate in the 901 Wrestling Championship, the 1819 Championship, or the Tag Team Championship.
e event was in honor of the late 901 Wrestling wrestler Devin “Wild Card” Taylor, who died in a drowning accident.
Bless is “typically a guy that fans don’t get behind, but they were happy to see him win in honor of Devin Taylor. Bless was the last opponent Devin had before he passed away.”
More We Saw You photos at memphis yer.com.
PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE
above: (le to right) “ e MANE Event” Kontar “ e Great”; Tyler “ e Lion” LeMasters and Roscoe “ e Cajun Catapult” Monroe below: (le to right) “ e Star of the Show” Andy Mack; “Live Wire” Bobby Ford; “ e True One of One” Kevin Bless; Dorian Vain
BOOKS By Abigail Morici
Poetically Political
Tara
Stringfellow, author of bestseller Memphis, returns to poetry in her latest release, Magic Enu
Tara Stringfellow was born a poet. She realized this at the age of 3 when her father read her Edgar Allan Poe’s “ e Raven” one night instead of a bedtime story. “I was instantly in love,” she says. “I thought it was the best thing I’d ever heard. It felt like almost like hip-hop, because it was a rap. It rhymed. … I asked him to read it again. I was so in love with it, and he did. I stopped him, and I said, ‘ is is what I’m meant to do.’ I said, ‘I’m going to be a great American poet, like whoever this guy is’. And he said, ‘Okay, well then you’ll have to be three times as good because you’re Black, you’re a woman, and you were born into a country built to enslave you.’
“So I always knew that it would be a harder road for me as a Black American woman to get anything published, for anyone to even listen to me, let alone the biggest publishing house in the world. is country does not treat even Black little girls as if they’re worth much. I knew the road ahead of me would be a long and arduous one, and I might not make it.”
Yet she, arguably, has made it. Her debut novel Memphis, released in April of 2022, was a national bestseller and a Read With Jenna Book Club Pick. All the bookstores in Memphis carried her book. “Local businesses have made me who I am, put me on the map,” the writer says. “Women in Memphis found my book, especially Black women in Memphis. ey have put me on a map.
“My writing will always be political. It has to be.”
“To break out into this industry has been a godsend,” Stringfellow adds. “I don’t think it’s just talent and hard work. is world does not give that many opportunities to unpublished people of color, so I’ve been very lucky. It’s nothing short of a miracle. I just wish there were more opportunities for writers and authors of color to be more widely read in this nation.”
is isn’t anything new, of course.
Only 250 years ago Phillis Wheatley could not get her poetry published in the U.S., a fact upon which Stringfellow re ects a er the June release her collection of poetry Magic Enu ( e Dial Press). “It’s a huge historical achievement, I think, for the literary canon,” she says. “I’m very humbled.”
Poetry, a er all, is some of the oldest literature we have — think of Homer, Sappho, Vergil. ese are the works we’ve labeled as “classics.”
“[Poetry] is, to me, the highest form of literary work,” Stringfellow says. “I think poetry is revolutionary. I think it has the ability to reshape nations. … In a novel, you have a whole chapter to get your point across — I’m not knocking novelists, and novels, I love them. I’m in the middle of a novel — but in a poem, you have not even a page to get your point across. You might only have a line or not even a whole word, a syllable.”
e verses might be eeting, but their impacts are all the more striking, the smallest detail becoming a powerful source of imagery. In Magic Enu , Stringfellow’s poems are deeply personal. “ ese were written from my experiences over the years. e narrative voice and the poetry is o en
just my voice. Some of these poems have taken a long, long time to come to light. is collection is my life’s work. My art speaks for herself, and she speaks loud and clear and proudly.” ere are vulnerable moments within the pages, moments where she talks about her dad leaving her mom and her own divorce from her ex-husband; there are haikus about love, poems about the bonds between women and living in the South. At its core, Stringfellow observes, the book is intrinsically and unashamedly political, even in the personal. “ e simple act of a Black woman sitting down to write a sonnet is a political act,” Stringfellow says. “It’s a revolutionary act.”
Many poems, though, are explicitly political, like those dedicated to Breonna Taylor, Tyre Nichols, Trayvon Martin’s mother, and Gianna Floyd, all who were killed by or whose loved ones were killed by racially motivated police violence.
“Until Black children aren’t being gunned down in America for simply ringing somebody’s doorbell; until Black children aren’t having the police being called on them by white women for just being outside, being loud, because all children are all loud; until we have basic
civil rights in this country, my writing will always be political,” Stringfellow says. “It has to be. Nina Simone once said it’s the duty of the artists to re ect the times in which they nd themselves. And unfortunately, I nd myself in America in 2024 in some rather turbulent times.”
Yet Stringfellow also embraces the role of the writer as a bearer of hope. She notes how the other week, she saw a woman sitting at the Memphis Chess Club reading Memphis before Magic Enu ’s release. “It was so surreal to see my book out there [even two years later],” she says. “I hope the same happens with this poetry collection — that I see her, I see the cover, and a Black woman is reading her somewhere in Memphis. at is the ideal dream for me. at is the goal, to just bring a little bit of joy to Black women here in the South. Every book I write will be for the glory of Black Southern women.”
Indeed in her poem, “Hot Combs Cat sh Crumbs and Bad Men,” she writes, “God can stay asleep/ these women in my life are magic enu .”
PHOTO: JOSH LOONEY PHOTOGRAPHY
Tara Stringfellow
FOOD By Michael Donahue
Wow Moments
Paulette’s rede nes ne dining with a revamped experience and menu.
I
f you haven’t been to Paulette’s Restaurant lately, it’s time to revisit it.
Daniel Clark, Paulette’s food and beverage director, made changes to the menu at the restaurant, located at e River Inn of Harbor Town at 50 Harbor Town Square. But he kept what makes Paulette’s Paulette’s.
A native of Paris, France, Clark has worked in the hospitality business in Europe, South America, and the United States. In Memphis, he’s been with Adam’s Mark, Graceland, and the Marriott. His River Inn position includes Terrace and Tug’s Casual Grill.
He visited Paulette’s when he was asked to take the job last November. “I wanted to see what I was getting involved with,” Clark says.
He was pleased with what he saw. “It is a restaurant that has so much potential. I saw that it was lovely and has a good name in Memphis. And has a feel for the past without being outdated.”
Fine dining has changed in recent years, Clark says. “It’s very di erent from what it used to be.”
Instead of being elegant but sti , ne dining restaurants are elegant but also have “a sense of peace.” Not quiet but comfortable, he says.
Clark wants to “keep the tradition and the hospitality” of Paulette’s, which was founded in the mid-’70s by Paulette Fono. It was later bought out by the late co-owner George Falls. “First of all, you cannot replace George Falls. Nobody can replace such a gure. But what we can do is revive the essence of what Paulette’s is.”
And that’s ne dining without being pretentious.
Working with the owners, Clark updated the dinner menu, but kept signature items, including let Paulette’s, the salmon, shrimp and grits, and red sh with crab meat.
He’s now designed all the Paulette’s menus, including lunch and brunch.
Clark was able to introduce a “more exciting” lunch menu. He based his ideas on the type of lunches served at private clubs, including the old Crescent Club, where he was director
of operations. ese were places where working people could get an “elegant, quality lunch” even if they only had an hour to eat.
Paulette’s owners allowed Clark to “put some personal ideas and a little bit of his French in uence” in his menus.
“But Paulette’s is not a French restaurant, although it sounds like one.”
e restaurant is “American/ continental.”
Fono, who came up with the original concept for Paulette’s when it was on Madison Avenue, is Hungarian, Clark says. ey served a lot of crêpe dishes, including ham palacsinta, a ham crêpe.
“Over the years it became ne dining.”
Paulette’s, which moved to Harbor Town in 2011, still features crêpes, including a chicken, asparagus, and
PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE
Alessandra Daniele and Justin So er
“Paulette’s was an exceptional experience for all of the senses.”
spinach crêpe at lunch and crêpes Suzette at dinner.
New dinner items include a blackened barramundi and seafood angel hair pasta; veal chop Normandy, a dish made with a bone-in veal chop, wild mushrooms, and Calvados cream sauce; and pistachio-encrusted rack of lamb served with a pesto instead of “the traditional mint.”
Clark kept Paulette’s famous popovers with strawberry jelly as well as the signature Kahlúa pie, a “monument of chocolate, co ee ice cream, and Kahlúa.”
His son, Jeremy, surprised him when he told him he loved to eat at Paulette’s. “My son is in his 30s. He has long hair and tattoos. But he’s very current. He’s a nice young man. Stable.”
Jeremy, who also celebrated his wedding anniversary at Paulette’s, told Clark it was the type of place where he and his wife could have a nice conversation.
Clark thought if a 30-year-old thinks that way about Paulette’s, which is kind of a classic ne dining place, so will his friends. “Going a er these folks is my new goal. To be able to attract these young people.”
He thought, “How do we make Paulette’s a place they will think of for a special occasion?”
Clark wants Paulette’s to pop up in their minds when they think, “Where could I have a nice, quiet, elegant, romantic dinner?” e “wow moment” is what Clark says he’s going for. And sometimes that means old-school. He’s serving crêpes Suzette table side, the way restaurants did back in the day, along with bananas Foster and cherries jubilee.
Clark also is revamping Paulette’s wine list. “I’m a very di erent wine person than most. I’m not going to throw some ne, exquisite language at you on how to di erentiate the aromas of nectarines and blueberries. at’s not me.”
He wants to bring back the old Paulette’s wine dinners, but they’re not going to be “driven by a winemaker.”
Clark doesn’t want wine reps who are going to push wines from their wineries. Paulette’s wine dinners will be more like classes on the “general knowledge of wine.”
Justin So er, 29, and Alessandra Daniele, 24, recently tried some of Paulette’s new menu items, including the barramundi, lamb, and let. ey also had the crêpes Suzette, which Daniele described as “incredible.”
“We had such a good experience at Paulette’s and would de nitely recommend it if you were looking to do something di erent, romantic, and slightly outside of the city,” Daniele says.
And, So er says, “Paulette’s was an exceptional experience for all of the senses.”
Clark wants guests to “have an exquisite dinner at Paulette’s, a nice conversation, have some smiles, and leave with the impression that they want to come back.”
He adds, “Food should be the reason they come. ey leave with a total experience. Not just the food.”
MY HEALTH is our health
Since welcoming little one, life expanded while my world contracted.
More complexity, less time
Every day I advocate for my baby whether it’s at daycare or the doctor’s office.
And every day, I push off one thing my own health.
Cardiovascular disease is the #1 killer of new moms, with risks can last for months post-partum.
So, I’m taking action and starting the conversation, with not just my doctor, but with other moms I know, too.
Because not only do I want to be a great mom — I want to be a mom for a very long time.
Locally supported by
NEWS OF THE WEIRD
By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication
Questionable Judgment
At a McDonald’s in Booval, Queensland, Australia, a customer caught an employee using a french fry heat lamp to dry a dirty mop head, Yahoo! News reported on May 20. The customer said the mop had just been used to mop the floors; she heard another employee say, “I don’t think you should be doing that as it could be a safety issue as it can catch on fire,” but the first worker just “laughed it off.” A spokesperson for McDonald’s Australia called it an “isolated incident” and said the staff had undergone “retraining” on food safety procedures. [Yahoo! News, 5/20/2024]
As a 32-year-old man and his 66-year-old father argued on May 28 in Commerce City, Colorado, the father allegedly shot several times at the son, CNN reported. The father was believed to be intoxicated. While his aim was right on, a fluke saved the younger man’s life: A .22-caliber bullet lodged in the 10-millimeter-wide silver chain link necklace he was wearing at his throat. The victim escaped with just a puncture wound; his dad is charged with first-degree attempted murder.
Scientists in Japan are at it again, Oddity Central reported on May 31. The Japanese tech company Kirin Holdings has released the new Elecispoon, a metal-and-plastic, battery-powered spoon that will improve human taste buds’ perception of salt, thereby allowing them to use less salt in their foods. Overconsumption of salt is a health issue in Japan. The tip of the spoon’s bowl transfers an electric charge to the food it touches and generates an electric field around the tongue, which causes sodium ions to bond together. The spoon, which sells for $128, has four intensity settings. [Oddity Central, 5/31/2024]
• The website for the Republican National Convention featured a photo of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the convention was to be held starting on July 15, on each of its pages. At least, it was supposed to. On Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that the website section called “News and Updates” highlighted a photo of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam — not Milwaukee. According to an internet archive, the errant photo had been in place on the page since February. The RNC
declined to comment. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 6/5/2024]
• The South China Morning Post reported on May 27 that a 26-year-old man from Naringgul, Indonesia, was hoodwinked into marriage after dating his “wife,” Kanza, 26, for a year. Just 12 days into their union, the man, who goes by AK, became suspicious when his bride continued to wear her headscarf at home and avoided intimacy. After doing a little sleuthing, AK discovered that Kanza was actually a man who had been crossdressing since 2020. The scoundrel later told authorities that he married AK to steal his family’s assets. He was arrested and could face four years in prison.
[South China Morning Post, 5/27/2024]
Um …
Neighbors in Palm Beach Country Estates in Florida are upset about the noise levels they’re enduring from I-95 and the Florida Turnpike, which run side by side through the area, WPTV reported on June 5. Resident Greta Foriere, who lives two houses from the turnpike, said it’s like being tortured 24 hours a day: “You can’t go outside.” She and other neighbors are lobbying for a sound wall to muffle the noise, which she has recorded as reaching 146 decibels. Neighbor Gary Johnson said he wouldn’t have bought his house if he’d known about the noise level. Fun fact: The highways have been in place for 60 years. [WPTV, 6/5/2024]
Crime Report
Six Bricks & Minifigs stores across southern California have been targeted by Lego thieves, the Los Angeles Times reported on June 5. The popular figurines lifted from the Lego resellers amount to about $100,000 worth of merchandise. Katie Leuschner, who owns the store in Whittier, said that on May 3, burglars broke glass to enter the store, then filled trash bags with the booty. “They’re not stealing big box sets,” she said. “They’re stealing minifigures, and those individual guys go for $500 to $600 apiece, so they’re easily stolen and resold for a quick profit.” Other cities have been hit, too, by what one website calls a black market for Lego items. Leuschner and other owners are modifying their storefronts to be less vulnerable to the thieves. [LA Times, 6/5/2024]
NEWS OF THE WEIRD © 2024 Andrews McMeel Syndication. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
ARIES (March 21-April 19): One meaning of the word “palette” is a flat board on which painters place a variety of pigments to apply to their canvas. What would be a metaphorical equivalent to a palette in your life? Maybe it’s a diary or journal where you lay out the feelings and ideas you use to craft your fate. Perhaps it’s an inner sanctuary where you retreat to organize your thoughts and meditate on upcoming decisions. Or it could be a group of allies with whom you commune and collaborate to enhance each other’s destinies. However you define your palette, Aries, I believe the time is right to enlarge its size and increase the range of pigments you can choose from.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The star that Westerners call Arcturus has a different name among indigenous Australians: Marpeankurrk. In their part of the world, it begins to rise before dawn in August. For the Boorong people of Northwest Victoria, this was once a sign to hunt for the larvae of wood ants, which comprised a staple food for months. I bring this up, Taurus, because heavenly omens are telling me you should be on the lookout for new sources of sustenance and fuel. What’s your metaphorical equivalent of wood ant larvae?
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Seventy percent of the world’s macadamia nuts have a single ancestor: a particular tree in Queensland, Australia. In 1896, two Hawaiian brothers took seeds from this tree and brought them back to their homestead in Oahu. From that small beginning, Hawaiian macadamia nuts have come to dominate the world’s production. I foresee you soon having resemblances to that original tree, Gemini. What you launch in the coming weeks and months could have tremendous staying power and reach far beyond its original inspiration.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Ketchup flows at about 0.03 miles per hour. In 35 hours, it could travel about a mile. I think you should move at a similar speed in the coming days. The slower you go, the better you will feel. The more deeply focused you are on each event, and the more you allow the rich details to unfold in their own sweet time, the more successful you will be at the art of living. Your words of power will be incremental, gradual, and cumulative.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Virgo-born Friedrich August Kekulé (1829–1896) transformed organic chemistry with his crucial discovery of the structure of carbon-based compounds. He had studied the problem for years. But his breakthrough realization didn’t arrive until he had a key dream while dozing. There’s not enough room here to describe it at length, but the image that solved the riddle was a
snake biting its own tail. I bring this story to your attention, Virgo, because I suspect you could have practical and revelatory dreams yourself in the coming weeks. Daydream visions, too. Pay attention! What might be your equivalent to a snake biting its own tail?
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Please don’t succumb to numbness or apathy in the coming weeks. It’s crucial that you don’t. You should also take extreme measures to avoid boredom and cynicism. At the particular juncture in your amazing life, you need to feel deeply and care profoundly. You must find ways to be excited about as many things as possible, and you must vividly remember why your magnificent goals are so magnificent. Have you ruminated recently about which influences provide you with the spiritual and emotional riches that sustain you? I encourage you to become even more intimately interwoven with them. It’s time for you to be epic, mythic, even heroic.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Historically, August has brought many outbreaks of empowerment. In August 1920, American women gained the right to vote. In August 1947, India and Pakistan wrested their independence from the British Empire’s long oppression. In August 1789, French revolutionaries issued the Declaration of the Rights of Man, a document that dramatically influenced the development of democracy and liberty in the Western world. In 1994, the United Nations established August 9 as the time to celebrate International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. In 2024, I am officially naming August to be Scorpio Power Spot Month. It will be an excellent time to claim and/or boost your command of the niche that will nurture your authority and confidence for years to come.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): August is Save Our Stereotypes Month for you Sagittarians. I hope you will celebrate by rising up strong and bold to defend our precious natural treasures. Remember that without cliches, platitudes, pigeonholes, conventional wisdom, and hackneyed ideas, life would be nearly impossible. JUST KIDDING! Everything I just said was a dirty lie. Here’s the truth. August is Scour Away Stereotypes Month for you Sagittarians. Please be an agent of original thinking and fertile freshness. Wage a brazen crusade against cliches, platitudes, pigeonholes, conventional wisdom, and hackneyed ideas.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You’re never too old or wise or jaded to jump up in the air with glee when offered a free gift. Right? So I hope you won’t be so bent on maintaining your dignity and composure that you remain poker-faced when given the chance to grab the equivalent of a free
Astrologer Chris Zydel says every sign has superpowers. In honor of your birthday season, I’ll tell you about those she attributes to you Leos. When you are at your best, you are a beacon of “joyful magnetism” who naturally exudes “irrepressible charisma.” You “shine like a thousand suns” and “strut your stuff with unabashed audacity.” All who are lucky enough to be in your sphere benefit from your “radiant spontaneity, bold, dramatic play, and whoo-hoo celebration of your creative genius.” I will add that of course you can’t always be a perfect embodiment of all these superpowers. But I suspect you are cruising through a phase when you are the next best thing to perfect.
gift. I confess I am worried you might be unreceptive to the sweet, rich things coming your way. I’m concerned you might be closed to unexpected possibilities. I will ask you, therefore, to pry open your attitude so you will be alert to the looming blessings, even when they are in disguise.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): A friend of a friend told me this story: One summer day, a guy woke up at 5 a.m., meditated for a while, and made breakfast. As he gazed out his kitchen window, enjoying his coffee, he became alarmed. In the distance, at the top of a hill, a brush fire was burning. He called emergency services to alert firefighters. A few minutes later, though, he realized he had made an error. The brush fire was in fact the rising sun lighting up the horizon with its fiery rays. Use this as a teaching story in the coming days, Aquarius. Double-check your initial impressions to make sure they are true. Most importantly, be aware that you may initially respond with worry to events that are actually wonderful or interesting.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): At least a million ships lie at the bottom of the world’s oceans, lakes, and rivers. Some crashed because of storms, and others due to battles, collisions, or human error. A shipwreck hunter named Sean Fisher estimates that those remains hold over $60 billion worth of treasure. Among the most valuable are the old Spanish vessels that sank while carrying gold, silver, and other loot plundered from the Americas. If you have the slightest inkling to launch adventures in search of those riches, I predict the coming months will be an excellent tine. Alternately, you are likely to generate good fortune for yourself through any version of diving into the depths in quest of wealth in all of its many forms.
YOUR CLOSET HAPPY, MANE.
TV By Chris McCoy
The Olympic Spectacle
e 2024 Paris Olympics wows in the right place at the right time.
I’m not a sports fan. Baseball gives me ashbacks to the parade of humiliations that was my Little League career. e constant squeaking sound of sneakers against the oor in basketball games drives me insane. I used to think I liked to watch college football, but in fact I just liked eating fried food with my friends on fall Saturdays. I can do that without the head trauma component. Soccer? Too snoozy. Hockey? Too icy. Golf? Please no.
But I do love the Olympics. e games certainly share many traits that turn me o to professional sports. e massive civic expenditures the host cities have to endure certainly resonates badly with me, a citizen of a city and state that are currently spending hundreds of millions of dollars renovating sports stadiums while we lack a functioning mass transit system. Paris’ leaders seem to have handled that conundrum better than most cities. Many of the stadia and venues are temporary; the only permanent new construction is an aquatics center. In the opening weekend, this fact has made for some spectacular television, like beach volleyball matches played in the shadow of the Ei el Tower. e equestrian events take place on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles.
e opening ceremonies featured a memorable reference to one of Versailles’ former residents. I’m not sure what kind of opening ceremony I was expecting from the French, but a bloody Marie Antoinette holding her own head while singing a song from the French Revolution with the Gallic metal band Gojira playing on balconies over the Seine was not it. e opening ceremonies are always a mixed bag, at best. e producers have the daunting task of bringing everyone together
while making everything seem monumental, and something’s got to give. Paris’ opening ceremonies may just have been the best ever. ere was re, parkour, fashion, art, and a Dionysian bacchanal in the streets of Paris. Instead of marching into the stadium en masse, the teams paraded down the Seine in a otilla of boats. e only thing that didn’t go according to plan was the rain, which drenched hundreds of dancers along the riverbanks and chased away the crowd. But the driving rain also produced some indelible images, like a regal LeBron James holding the ag alo at the bow of the American boat like George Washington crossing the Delaware River.
The Olympics are a quadrennial update on the state of the photographic arts.
It was a rainy weekend in Memphis, so I was locked on the couch cramming as many events into my eyeballs as possible. For me, the weirder the sport, the better. I eschewed gymnastics prelims on the opening weekend in favor of rugby sevens. e French men’s team pulled o the upset of the games so far when they won gold in front of a hometown crowd, surviving a squad of swarming Fijians, who had, until Saturday, never lost a game in Olympic history.
For a professional appreciator of
the moving image like myself, the Olympics are a quadrennial update on the state of the photographic arts. e modern games excel at producing beautiful images; the photo editor for e Atlantic reportedly sorted through 25,000 wire photos on Friday. is year, the best television has come not from Paris, but from 9,700 miles away in Tahiti. e sur ng competition is being held there on a beach known as Teahupo’o, which translates to “wall of skulls.” With competitors riding 50foot waves breaking onto a razor-sharp coral reef, it may be the most dangerous event in Olympic history, but it’s super relaxing to watch. e camaraderie of the surfers having the rides of their lives while incidentally also competing for gold is the best example of the Olympic spirit. Gathering all of humanity together to see who can run the fastest and jump the highest may seem quaint in our
troubled world. But three wars raging across the globe makes the traditional Olympic truce seem like a pretty good idea. e most moving example of peak human performance came from Celine Dion. A er being sidelined from the stage for four years due to a rare neurological condition, she closed out the opening ceremony by slaying at a planetary level with Edith Piaf’s “Hymne a l’Amour.” As her fellow NBC broadcasters sat dumfounded, Kelly Clarkson, herself an accomplished singer, struggled through tears to nd words for what we had witnessed. It was the most authentic emotion I’ve seen on TV in a long, long time.
Watch the 2024 Paris Olympics on NBC or Peacock.
PHOTO: YALCINSONAT | DREAMSTIME.COM Let’s face it: e Olympics are must-watch television.
Our critic picks the best films in theaters. Harold and the Purple Crayon
This hybrid live-action/animation is a riff on the classic children’s book by Crockett Johnson. Harold (Zachary Levi), the boy with the purple crayon that makes the things he draws come to life, is all grown up now. But when a stranger named Gary (Jemaine Clement) gets a hold of a piece of the magic marker and decides to use the power for evil, Harold must reclaim his childhood imagination. Also starring Zooey Deschanel and Alfred Molina.
Trap
Admiral Ackbar stars as the head of a Rebel space fleet who realizes his attack on the second Death Star has led the fleet into an elaborate trap set by the Emperor. Just
kidding. This is an M. Night Shyamalan twist movie about a friendly serial killer (Josh Hartnett) who takes his daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) to a concert by pop star Lady Raven (M. Night’s actual daughter Saleka Shyamalan), only to find out it’s an elaborate trap set by the police.
Cruising
The Crosstown Arts Film Series presents the infamous William Friedkin film from 1980. Al Pacino stars as NYPD detective Steve Burns, who goes undercover in New York’s leather daddy scene to find a serial killer targeting gay men. While Burns slowly begins to see past his own homophobia, his fellow police officers refuse to take the deadly crime wave seriously. Cruising screens Thursday, August 8th, 7 p.m., at Crosstown Theater.
End-of-Summer Blues
Capturing the nal moments of summer vacation.
Summer break is over, and no one is particularly happy about it. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have time to still do something meaningful with your tweens and teens before homework starts rolling in.
Wonky’s Not So Famous Treats
We decided to surprise our kids with a “candy tasting.” Imagine if you went to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. You’d probably see treats of all shapes and sizes. Displays where everything is edible. Color-changing drinks. Chocolate in the form of solids, liquids, and everything in between. You might even battle some evil sea creature that’s made entirely from candy.
Actually, I’m describing our experience at Wonky’s Not So Famous Treats! is was the most amazing experience, with the coolest aesthetics. We all enjoyed the ocean decor and the jelly sh hanging from the ceiling. e kids enjoyed discovering all the edible items on the dessert platter. ose sweet and creative treats were mind-blowing. e kids sampled the tentacle twizzlers, chocolate rocks, gushy eyeballs, delicious cheesecake, and so much more. And Wonky’s o ered a variety of avors and textures: chewy, crunchy, chocolaty, fruity, sour, creamy, cold, gummy, and tarty. Oh, and the adult drinks were on point.
Final Summer Curriculum Update
Our kids nally rode the MATA bus, and the experience did not disappoint! We started o by giving them a bus schedule and explaining to them that they were to ride the bus from our community to Downtown. Together, they researched what the Downtown terminal looks like so they would know it when they got o . ey also familiarized themselves with the names of major streets they would encounter. We gave each child a dollar for the bus fare and dropped them o . Midway through their bus ride, we texted the kids and asked them how it was going. When they replied that they were bored, hubby and I decided to o er extra credit: “Great!!! Here’s your mandatory extra credit. A er exiting the bus, you must get on the trolley and use ‘Find My’ to locate us. We will be on South Main.” e kids loved the challenge, but it soon appeared that they were in over their heads. Ten minutes later, they called us. “Mom,” they said, “we got o too early. We don’t know exactly where we are.” I took a deep breath and replied, “You have all the technology you need at your ngertips. Figure out where you are and the distance to where you should be.” (Don’t worry, I knew exactly where they were.) Within minutes, they called back and said that they were a block from the terminal and were headed for the trolley. ey used “Find My” to locate us and rode the trolley to our exact location.
Here are the kids’ experiences in their own words: 16-year-old: I liked when the bus took o , but soon it was meh. 12-year-old: It was fun at rst, but the smell was odd. 12-year-old: When you rst get on, it’s fun! But when strangers started coming on and talking weirdly, it got awkward. 10-year-old: e ride was really bumpy and a little scary for me!
School-Year Prep
You might not be ready for school, but school is ready for you! Here are a few tips:
• If you have a teenaged daughter, make sure she keeps a “period pack” at school. is should consist of a few pads and wipes as well as a clean pair of underwear and school-appropriate pants. (Because accidents do happen.)
• Assign each teenager a laundry day. On that day, their laundry must be washed, dried, folded, or hung up.
• Remind the kids of the di erence between the school’s grading scale and your grading scale. (A 70 is still a D to me.)
• Create a school supply stash. Yes, you’re going to spend hundreds of dollars on school supplies. And yes, by October your child is still going to need something.
• Keep at least $40 in ones at home. Nothing is worse than nding out at the last minute that you need $13 for a eld trip. (Schools are not at liberty to give change for $20 and there’s too much to do in the morning to stop for cash.)
• Backpacks must be packed the night before.
Tips from teenagers to teenagers
• Complete your assignments as soon as you get them.
• Use your time a er school wisely.
• A friend who is mean to other people is not your friend.
• Get your clothes ready the night before.
• Charge your school device.
• Don’t skip rst or second breakfast.
• Always carry deodorant. Always.
• Never tell anyone your locker combination.
• Structure is your friend.
Also … my eldest got a 28 on the ACT! #proudparent. Patricia Lockhart is a native Memphian who loves to read, write, cook, and eat. @realworkwife @memphisismyboyfriend
PHOTO: PATRICIA LOCKHART Wonky’s features creative items on their dessert platters.
