2018_Issue 29 Creative Loafing Charlotte

CLCLT.COM | SEPTEMBER. 6 - SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 VOL. 32, NO. 29

1 | DATE - DATE, 2015 | CLCLT.COM

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NCDOT TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING SEPT. 17 FOR THE PROPOSED EXTENSION OF MCKEE ROAD (S.R. 3440) IN MATTHEWS MECKLENBURG COUNTY TIP PROJECT NO. U-4713A

CREATIVE LOAFING IS PUBLISHED BY WOMACK NEWSPAPERS, INC. CHARLOTTE, NC 28206.

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STAFF

PUBLISHER • Charles A. Womack III publisher@yesweekly.com

The N.C. Department of Transportation will hold a public meeting regarding the proposed project to extend McKee Road (S.R. 3440) on new location from Pleasant Plains Road (S.R. 3448) to East John Street (S.R. 1009) at the recently realigned McKee Road (completed as Project U-4713B) in Matthews.

The meeting will take place on Monday, September 17 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Pleasant Plains Baptist Church Family Life Center located at 3316 Pleasant Plains Road in Matthews.

The purpose of this project is to improve east-west connectivity in the area, improve access to East John Street and Pleasant Plains Road, and promote community interconnectivity by providing an alternative route to the Charlotte Outer Loop (I-485).

The public may drop-in at any time during the meeting hours. NCDOT representatives will be available to answer questions and listen to comments regarding the project. The opportunity to submit comments will also be provided at the meeting or via phone, email, or mail by October 1, 2018. Comments received will be taken into consideration as the project develops. Please note that no formal presentation will be made.

EDITOR • Ryan Pitkin rpitkin@clclt.com

EDITORIAL

ASSOCIATE EDITOR • Courtney Mihocik cmihocik@clclt.com FILM CRITIC • Matt Brunson mattonmovies@gmail.com THEATER CRITIC • Perry Tannenbaum perrytannenbaum@gmail.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS • Erin Tracy-Blackwood, Allison Braden, Konata Edwards, Jeff Hahne, Vanessa Infanzon, Ari LeVaux, Kia O. Moore, Grey Revell, Dan Savage, Aerin Spruill, Sophie Whisant

ART/DESIGN

ART DIRECTOR • Dana Vindigni dvindigni@clclt.com CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS • Justin Driscoll, Brian Twitty, Grant Baldwin

ADVERTISING

To place an ad, please call 704-522-8334.

SALES MANAGER Aaron Stamey • astamey@clclt.com

Project information and materials can be viewed as they become available online at https://www. ncdot.gov/news/public-meetings.

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Justin LaFrancois • jlafrancois@clclt.com Christos Kakouras • ckakouras@clclt.com ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Pat Moran • pmoran@clclt.com

For additional information, contact Sean Epperson, P.E., NCDOT Division 10 Project Team Lead, at 716 W Main Street, Albemarle, NC 28001, (704) 983-4400, or smepperson@ncdot.gov.

NCDOT will provide auxiliary aids and services under the Americans with Disabilities Act for disabled persons who wish to participate in this meeting. Anyone requiring special services should contact Caitlyn Ridge, P.E., Environmental Analysis Unit Public Involvement Officer, at ceridge1@ncdot.gov or (919) 707-6091 as early as possible so that arrangements can be made.

Persons who speak Spanish and do not speak English, or have a limited ability to read, speak or understand English, may receive interpretive services upon request prior to the meeting by calling 1-800-481-6494.

Aquellas personas que hablan español y no hablan inglés, o tienen limitaciones para leer, hablar o entender inglés, podrían recibir servicios de interpretación si los solicitan antes de la reunión llamando al 1-800-481-6494.

4 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

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A MEMBER OF:

12

Lo’Vonia Parks got all in her feelings to create this piece for the upcoming Boards for Bros exhibit at Salud Cerveceria.

The opening is on Friday, September 7. Check out our Top 10 on page 12 for more cool stuff to do.

ARTWORK BY LO’VONIA PARKS

We put out weekly 8

NEWS&CULTURE THE STATE OF EDUCATION Educators are demanding more than just better pay

BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK 6 THE BLOTTER BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

10

FOOD&DRINK THE HARVEST COMES HOME Former Healthy Home

Market executive brings new organic food store to Plaza Midwood

BY PAT MORAN

12 14

TOP 10 THINGS TO DO THIS WEEK

MUSIC MAKE SOME NOISE Joules experiments with music whether you like it or not

BY RYAN PITKIN 18 SPONSORED CONTENT: RHIANNON GIDDENS TO CURATE N.C. FOLK FESTIVAL 20 SOUNDBOARD

22

ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT DEATH OF A NEIGHBORHOOD Alvin C. Jacobs Jr. and Gantt Center capture destruction and displacement in Brookhill Village

BY RYAN PITKIN 24 ARTSPEAK: ROB TREVEILER BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

26

ODDS&ENDS 26 NIGHTLIFE BY AERIN SPRUILL 27 CROSSWORD 28 SAVAGE LOVE BY DAN SAVAGE 30 SALOME’S STARS

COVER DESIGN GO TO CLCLT.COM FOR VIDEOS, PODCASTS AND MORE!

BY DANA VINDIGNI

PHOTO BY ALIVIN C JACOBS JR. CLCLT.COM | SEPTEMBER. 6 - SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 VOL. 32, NO. 29

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CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 5

NEWS

BLOTTER

BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

JUUL CRAZE One e-cig user presumably couldn’t find the cash to fund their nicotine needs in the Commonwealth Park area of east Charlotte last week, so they took desperate measures. QuikTrip employees reported that between 1:50 and 2 p.m., the suspect stole an entire shelf of Juul electronic cigarettes and starter packs. Altogether, the thief made off with about $700 worth of merchadise.

The retail value of a Juul starter pack is only about $50, meaning the suspect was able to take off with about 14 packs. We’re still seeing more folks making snatch-and-grabs for packs of real cigs, but maybe this marks a healthier turn for our criminal population.

MOOOOOOVE YOUR CAR A 51-year-old

man who lost his way in southeast Charlotte was offered no Southern hospitality by the local populace last week. According to the the report, the victim pulled over on Elm Forest Drive off Idelwild Road to look for directions. The man was still looking for a new route when an unknown suspect strolled up to his Chevrolet Silverado and proceeded to dump milk all over the passenger side of the vehicle. The man reported that the suspect did $20 in damage to his truck in this udderly bizarre crime.

TAKE A HIT What presumably started

as a run-of-the-mill pot deal ended up backfiring on a suspect in the Idlewild South neighborhood of southeast Charlotte.

A 26-year-old man on East W.T. Harris Boulevard turned to police after he was robbed for a bag of marijuana, and things only went south from there. According to the report, the suspect pulled a firearm on the man and snagged the bag, but then in the ensuing struggle over the firearm, the suspect injured himself. The report does not state whether that means the suspect shot himself, but the victim made it out of the confrontation with only bruises and scratches — and hopefully his weed.

ROLLED OUT One suspect in the University area decided that he couldn’t — or wouldn’t — foot the bill for a Friday night dinner last week, and he was ready to fight anybody who said otherwise. Police responded to Kabuto Restaurant after the suspect tried to leave the premise around 10 p.m. without paying for his $83 dinner.

When an employee of the Japanese steak house attempted to stop the dine-and-dasher from leaving, the suspect reached into his backpack and stated, “I’ve got something for you if you keep following me,” then fled the scene. He presumably wasn’t talking about $83 dollars and a 20-percent tip, so the employee didn’t pursue the man any further.

FRIENDLY FAVOR One man in northeast

Charlotte showed a little too much trust in 6 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

someone who needed his vehicle for errands last week. The 51-year-old man discovered that his vehicle was missing around 9:30 p.m. one night, and knew of only one person who could have taken it. According to the police report, he called his prime suspect and she admitted to taking his car to complete some tasks on her to-do list and promised to return it afterward. The man complied to this better-to-ask-forgiveness-than-permission tactic, but when the suspect never returned with his car, that’s when he called the police.

The suspect and victim were apparently not very close friends, as he was only able to offer up her first name.

WORKIN’ AT THE CAR WASH Nobody

likes a dirty car, but some services you really shouldn’t cheap out on. A 30-year-old woman in the University area tried to save a few bucks to get her car cleaned, but got cleaned out instead. According to the report, the victim met with the suspect, who presented himself as a car detailer. They met in the Select Physical Therapy parking lot, and she paid the suspect $40 to detail her vehicle.

Things should have gotten a little suspicious to the victim when the detailer told her he would have to leave the lot with her car and bring it back in an hour, but she acquiesced and the suspect drove off with both her $40 and her Kia Spectra. Unsurprisingly, she never saw either one again.

HEAT WAVE North Carolinian summers

are no joke; the 90-plus-degree temperatures and high humidity could drive anyone to petty crime in search of a cool solution.

A woman living near Cedarwood Park off Independence Boulevard (what the hell was in the water on that corridor last week?) fell victim to someone looking to cool off in the end-of-summer heat. The 61-year-old woman reported that an unknown suspect stole the freon from her air conditioning unit, as was later confirmed by an HVAC repair technician. Y’all need to chill ... er, cool it ... ahh, just stop what you’re doing.

UNFORCED

ENTRY Family communication skills were at an all-time low when a woman in east Charlotte called police to report a breaking-and-entering case. Per the report, the 48-year-old woman claimed an unkown suspect entered her home while she was asleep and stole her debit card.

Miffed with the discovery of her lost card, she called police to report the mysterious theft. Later, officers discovered that the thief did not break into the home but was actually allowed into the residence with permission by another, overly trusting family member.

All stories are pulled from police reports at CMPD headquarters. Suspects are innocent until proven guilty.

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 7

NEWS

FEATURE

A woman holds up a sign admist a crowd of others marching in the streets of Raleigh, protesting the corporate tax breaks that companies recieve. The sign has the hashtag #CMSCivicsTeacher.

THE STATE OF EDUCATION Teachers are demanding more than just better pay

BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

0

N MAY 16, a sea of red descended on Raleigh.

Thousands of teachers across the state of North Carolina put in requests for leave and swarmed the streets, meeting with legislators to demand better pay, more funding and proper respect toward their profession. They donned red shirts that showed their alliance with the #RedforEd movement that has been sweeping North Carolina and the country.

Many educators in the CharlotteMecklenburg Schools system joined their colleagues for the march — enough of them that the school district and many others across the state had to shut down for the day.

If the state’s educators are moved enough to march on Raleigh in droves, then there is a problem in the public education system.

Despite that day of action, many teachers still feel as though they have not been heard as they come into a new school year.

Kristine Barberio was an administrator in CMS for four years before she returned to the classroom for three years in Union County Public Schools. She has since transferred to Socrates Academy, a charter school in Charlotte.

“I think in general my concern about North Carolina is that teachers simply don’t have a voice,” she said.

Barberio described situations in which she felt teachers and educators were disrespected in the workplace but there was no well-structured formal complaint system to turn to. These complaints could vary from being asked to attend meetings during lesson planning periods or to perform tasks far outside of their job description.

Intense and interruptive testing schedules made it difficult for Barberio to effectively teach her students, she said.

Additionally, an increase in classroom sizes and a lack of funding for supplies and materials has also led educators to feel disrespected in their schools.

Part of what drew Barberio out of the public school system and into a charter school was the amount of freedom she felt she had to teach and advocate for herself and her students’ educations.

“I felt like I could actually teach my students again,” she recalled. “So instead of being asked to write lengthy mission statements on the board every day, having so many initiatives and programs that I 8 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

PHOTO BY DANNY TIMPONA

“YOU PUT YOUR MONEY IN WHAT YOU VALUE. AND THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA HAS NOT BEEN VALUING PUBLIC EDUCATION.” MARK JEWELL, PRESIDENT OF NCAE

was constantly trying to meet. [At Socrates Academy] I felt like I could go back and do my job and really advocate for my students.”

Another prominent problem that educators and school systems across the state are experiencing is reduced education budgets and monetary investment in schools.

Mark Jewell, president of the North Carolina Association of Educators, said that he came to North Carolina 21 years ago from West Virginia, citing that his home state was not valuing and investing in education as much as he would have liked.

Jewell stated that the appeal of North Carolina in the late 1990s was its longterm strategic plan to invest in education.

Investments in professional development and teacher salaries drew him to the state.

Unfortunately, those things that appealed to him have since disappeared.

“All of these things that brought me here were wiped out by the General Assembly in 2013 basically,” he said starkly. “I want to return North Carolina back to that leader of the southeast where it was a teacher destination for educators from across the country.”

He also said he sees a lack of funding as an indicator of what the state values.

“You put your money in what you value,” he stated. “And the state of North Carolina has not been valuing public education.”

At the ground level, Melissa Einsley, a science teacher at McClintock Middle School sees this lack of funding affecting her and her students in the classroom.

“You always have to buy your own supplies a lot of the time,” she said, a sentiment that many teachers echo. She added that she spends about $250 to $500 a year on supplies.

“Pencils, paper, notebooks, glue sticks … I always buy headphones, eraser tips, lead. You know these are basic supplies that some of my kids don’t even come to school with. I’ve bought backpacks before!”

Einsley finds a link between school children lacking in supplies and the behavioral issues that occur.

“Kids don’t want to be left out, they don’t want to be that student that doesn’t have the supplies for whatever reason,” she stated.

“A lot of behavioral problems are based on students that just can’t do things.”

Once her students have the right supplies

and can keep up on work, Einsley said “their whole outlook changes,” and while they might have once been a discipline issue in the classroom, “now they’re actually trying.”

IN FEBRUARY, THE school board released

a carefully compiled report called Breaking the Link. In it, the school system measured the positive correlation between the level of poverty of the schools in the district and the discipline issues that occur. Schools categorized as “high poverty” schools, like McLintock, tend to have higher instances of disciplinary action.

At-large CMS School Board member Elyse Dashew helped in compiling the Breaking the Link report. She said hopes the report will help shed light on the problems occuring so that the community can respond appropriately.

“I think there is a growing realization in Mecklenburg County that not everyone has the same access to opportunity,” Dashew said. “There’s a big disparity there and those problems in our community show up in our schools. And we can address a lot of those problems in our schools if the whole community can work together on it.”

Graph depicting the level of discretionary suspensions of K-12 students in each poverty level in CMS. There is a higher average percentage of students in “high poverty” schools receiving suspensions than in “moderate” and “low poverty” schools.

These problems also manifest physically in the school buildings.

Recently, a report surfaced that CMS had tested the water in 58 schools last fall and 27 of them were found to have dangerously high levels of lead contaminants. Of those 27 schools in the district, 13 were categorized as “high poverty” in the Breaking the Link Report.

Renovations are clearly needed in buildings across the district, but the county is having trouble getting the funding.

“We have schools that are so incredibly overcrowded and so many schools that are over 50 years old that are crumbling because we haven’t had the funding for catching up with that,” Dashew lamented. “That is not healthy for our kids or our teachers. That is not a healthy environment to spend however many hours a day, and however many days a year that our kids and teachers are together.”

Many who are not familiar with the way that North Carolina’s government is set up may be quick to point the finger at the school district or the county for not providing the funding necessary to give teachers a better salary, the budget for basic school supplies or to renovate and maintain the physical condition of the schools.

But the problem stems from the immense power of the General Assembly and an old

COURTESY OF CHARLOTTEMECKLENBURG SCHOOLS

1868 Supreme Court ruling from Judge John Forrest Dillon, who opined that local municipalities derive their power from the state. Under this legislative philosophy, cities and counties cannot make their own ordinances or laws unless sanctioned by the state government.

Charlotte saw Dillon’s rule in action during HB2, in that the state legislature contravened the city’s ability to create anti-discrimination ordinances.

School districts and counties create budgets that they propose to the state. The amount of it that is allocated is ultimately up to the General Assembly.

N.C. Rep. Mary Belk, the Democratic representative for district 88, said that when the General Assembly issues statewide education mandates and doesn’t fund them, it creates a hardship on the counties.

“By not funding the teachers the way they should and not having the number of the teachers and support personnel, that puts the burden on Charlotte-Mecklenburg,” she said.

These may not be huge issues now, but Rep. Belk thinks it could be a bigger issue down the road when teachers begin to leave the school districts for better opportunities.

“As matter of fact, not funding adequately ­— and not having enough teachers and not

Bruns Academy in the Seversville neighborhood is one of the schools on the ‘Breaking the Link’ report’s “high poverty” lists that also tested for dangerous levels of water contaminants.

having those teachers respected enough to give them their professional demands as far as compensation and as far as help — hurts industries because we’re going to end up losing teachers and continue to lose teachers.”

Ultimately, the health of the public education system affects the health of North Carolina’s economy. When schools are rated poorly, industries and families will leave districts, counties and the state in search of better public education for children.

“Public education is the economy. It’s going to affect property values. It’s going to affect industries coming into North Carolina,” Jewell stated. “Nobody wants to bring their company down here. You got to put all your employees and their kids through private school because the [public] schools are underresourced.”

While teachers like Barberio and Einsley are aware that some may look on their decision to march on Raleigh in May as a march for more money, they have made it clear that it’s about much, much more.

It’s about caring for the children that enter their classroom every day, and having the respect that a trained professional in any other industry would have. It’s also about coming together in strength and having the support of their community.

PHOTO BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

The march was a way for teachers to let the community know what they were experiencing. It was a call-to-action for all of North Carolina and to the General Assembly.

But they know that mending the public school system will take a long time; large changes will not happen right away.

“I think if we are going to be successful in North Carolina, we have to think incredibly long-term and incredibly strategically because this will not be fixed overnight, because it’s been torn apart for years,” Barberio said.

But, with the support of their communities, teachers in CMS and across the state can start to feel the ripple effects of their march, especially when gratitude and appreciativeness is voiced by people like parents, neighbors and administrators.

“There is this sense that teachers aren’t valued and aren’t respected in the general community,” Dashew commented.

“I, as one school board member, try to make it my mission to shift that narrative and to remind people that I interact with in everyday life to how grateful we need to be for our teachers, and how we need to respect them for the professionals and experts that they are.”

CMIHOCIK@CLCLT.COM

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 9

FOOD

FEATURE

Michael Maddox (in hat by front door) flanked by Organic Harvest Grocery staff

COURTESY OF MICHAEL MADDOX

THE HARVEST COMES HOME Former Healthy Home Market executive brings new organic food store to Plaza Midwood

BY PAT MORAN

W

HEN HEALTHY HOME

Market, the popular Plaza Midwood health food store, closed its doors for good in January, many customers were surprised and dismayed. How could such a business fail in a trendy and up-and-coming neighborhood that seemed a perfect fit for organic and fresh products, they wondered.

What went wrong? Michael Maddox has an answer.

“Part of [their] downfall is that two to three years ago they decided to bring in conventional products,” he explains. “You can’t intermix conventional with organic. It just doesn’t work.”

Maddox knows what he’s talking about.

He’s been in the food business practically since birth, learning the meat cutting trade at his family’s meat processing plant in Jefferson, Georgia. He moved into management at BI-LO grocery stores, before becoming the vice president of retail operations at Healthy Home Market from 2002 to 2015.

Maddox is currently the CEO of Organic Harvest Community Grocery and Café, the Alabama-based grocer opening a new health food store in October in the 10,000-squarefoot space at 1330 Central Avenue previously occupied by Healthy Home Market.

Organic Harvest, which sells organic and natural groceries, meat, beer and wine as well as fresh produce, currently has one store in suburban Birmingham, Alabama with two more on the way in the fall and spring. Maddox is spearheading the Alabama chain’s expansion. The Charlotte store is a particularly good fit for him, he says, since he designed and launched the Plaza Midwood Healthy Home Market store in the first place.

“When I designed that [Healthy Home Market] store and opened it there were a lot of expectations,” Maddox remembers.

“There was anticipation of building on Central and there were a lot of apartments planned. Now five years later all of that is built up and coming through.”

His design for the new Organic Harvest has been determined by the store’s target market, Maddox continues.

“There’s a great group moving into the neighborhood — younger professionals,” Maddox says. These consumers are smarter shoppers than previous generations, 10 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2016 | CLCLT.COM

“[CONVENTIONAL SUPERMARKETS] DON’T DIG INTO THE ORGANIC, THE NATURAL AND THE LOCAL, BUT THAT’S WHAT WE FOCUS ON. WE HAVE A FIVE-PAGE LIST OF INGREDIENTS THAT WE DON’T EVEN ALLOW THROUGH OUR DOORS.” MICHAEL MADDOX he maintains. They check labels, look at ingredients, work out regularly and are more discerning about what they put in their bodies, Maddox says. He believes Organic Harvest will fill a Charlotte market niche not served by conventional supermarkets in the area. ‘[The supermarkets] don’t dig into the organic, the natural and the local, but that’s what we focus on. We have a five-page list of ingredients that we don’t even allow through our doors,” Maddox continues. “I could blow your mind if I start explaining what some of those ingredients you find in everyday foods are doing to your body.”

The new store will open in the first week of October, Maddox says. He purchased the location through Healthy Home Market’s bankruptcy process in February, so assets including cash registers and refrigerator compartments are being repurposed. Since the space transition is not a full buildout from scratch, the main hurdles are housekeeping details, Maddox continues -— repainting, resurfacing the floors, putting up new signage, installing a new computer system and securing permits.

Maddox, now 63 years old, left the family

meatpacking business at age 22. After earning a bachelor’s degree in business marketing and management, he started working as a meat cutter at BI-LO. (Maddox also studied marketing and management and business administration at Cornell University.) Soon BI-LO’s management recognized that Maddox had a knack for organization and leadership.

“They would send me to operations that were not profitable and in trouble, and I would straighten them out,” he remembers. BI-LO put him through management training, and he progressed to district manager. Wanting to take a break from management, Maddox left BI-LO and started working for Healthy Home Market, then called Home Economist Market. Founded in 1979, Home Economist was originally just another grocery store, Maddox says. “They carried everything from soda pop to organic produce. They didn’t have an identity.”

Maddox hit it off with company president, owner and founder Gerald York, who noticed Maddox’s talent for grocery retail management. York asked Maddox to open the company’s South Boulevard store. After that, York and Maddox struck a handshake deal, Maddox remembers, granting Maddox total

flexibility and control in charting the course and establishing an identity for the company’s retail outlets. Maddox changed the name of the store to Healthy Home Market and moved towards stocking and selling organic and natural foods. In all, Maddox designed and opened a total of three stores. Under his stewardship, sales increased from $6.5 million to $18 million over the course of eight years. “Sales started growing because people knew they could come into our stores and expect quality products,” Maddox explains.

He reported regularly to York, who took on the role of silent president and owner.

“I met with him each month and told him how well we were doing and he was happy,” Maddox says. The situation changed when York, then in his 80s, decided to step aside for new management. “The [new] management’s approach was not conducive to what I was building and the direction I felt we needed to be headed,” Maddox says.

He left the company and started consulting, a career track that brought him into contact with Organic Harvest. A silent owner purchased the Hoover, Alabama-based store and hired Maddox as CEO, tasked with opening new stores and expanding Organic

Place

Michael Maddox says chickens will come home to roost at new organic grocery store in Plaza Midwood

COURTESY OF MICHAEL MADDOX

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Organic Harvest Grocery coming soon to Plaza Midwood Harvest into a chain. Organic Harvest’s mission will be similar to Healthy Home’s under his stewardship, Maddox promises.

They will not mix conventional products with organics, he pledges.

“We’re going to maintain our ethics and keep true to who we are,” he says.

As Maddox prepares to return to Charlotte — he still owns a home he bought in Sherrill’s Ford when he worked at Healthy Home Market — he admits that it’s bittersweet to return to his old place of employment. “I put a lot of years into Healthy Home Market and it was very sad to see it go down,” he says.

But for the most part, he has his eyes on the future. He’s focused on opening Organic Harvest stores and expanding the brand’s concept, Maddox says.

PHOTO BY PAT MORAN

ORGANIC HARVEST COMMUNITY GROCERY AND CAFÉ 1330 Central Avenue Opens first week of October ohgrocery.com

“When the Charlotte store became available it was the perfect opportunity to move in and add it to our portfolio,” he says.

“Now I just need to connect the dots between Alabama and Charlotte.”

PMORAN@CLCLT.COM

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 11

THURSDAY

THURSDAY

6

6

YIASOU GREEK FESTIVAL

MIGUEL

What: Yiasou is the Greek word for hello and goodbye, but you can’t credit the Greeks for inspiring Lennon and McCartney to write their single “Hello, Goodbye.” Instead you can give a shout-out to the Mediterranean country for giving us everything else – drama, philosophy, democracy and geometry. Why not celebrate the cornerstone of western civilization with live music, dancing and authentic cuisine like spanakopita, a savory spinach pie — not to be confused with Pi, which also came from the Greeks.

What: Do you remember Fatty Koo? Neither did anyone else until earlier this summer when a 14-yearold clip from the BET show Blowin’ Up Fatty Koo hit social media. In the clip, Miguel auditions for the group and gets shot down. Four critically acclaimed albums and a net worth of $125 million later, Miguel is asking, “Fatty Who?” A Fatty Koo member recently posted on Instagram using the “Money doesn’t buy happiness” argument, but we’re not buying it.

When: 11 a.m., runs through Sept. 9 Where: Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 600 East Blvd.

More: $3. yiasoufestival.org

When: 8 p.m.

Where: CMCU Ampitheatre, 1000 NC Music Factory Blvd.

More: $29.50 and up. charlottemetrocreditunionamp.com

12 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

THINGS TO DO

TOP TEN

Ani DiFranco SATURDAY

PHOTO COURTESY OF GMDTHREE

FRIDAY

7

FRIDAY

7

LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL

NORTH BY NORTH

What: Skateboarding. Art. Beer.

Helping kids. These are a few of our favorite things. Boards For Bros is a nonprofit organization based in six states, including North Carolina, that provide skateboards to kids who can’t afford them. A bunch of local artists have painted boards that will hang for sale in Salud Cerveceria through October 14. So, you’re not only helping kids, you’re supporting local artists at the same time. Not only that, you’re doing it in of the coolest microbreweries and tap rooms in the city. It’s a win/win/win.

What: If you long to groove to the sounds of the early 1970s, that tipping point between the psychedelic and hard rock eras, you can do two things: Go to PNC Pavilion on Sept. 11 and catch classic rockers Deep Purple. We’re sure they’re all nice blokes, but they’re also a pale shadow of their former selves. Or you can check out the riffing, snarling and swaggering garage rockers North by North, who gallop like Purple in all their glory.

They’ll be joined by local rockers The Business People and Joules.

When: Sept. 7, 7 p.m. - Midnight Where: Salud Cerveceria, 3306-C N. Davidson St. More: $Free. boards4bros.org

When: 10 p.m.

Where: Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St. More: $7. snugrock.com

SATURDAY

8

RAY DARTEN POP UP FASHION SHOW What: Create a fall wardrobe with the Ray Darten collection by Yetunde Olukoya. A doctor-turneddesigner, Olukoya is bringing her African-inspired designs to the Q.C. A fashion show will be followed by a pop-up shop with styles for everyone regardless of gender, age or size. Not only are the designs rooted in African culture, but they are sourced and handmade in Nigeria.

When: 11 a.m. - 6 p.m., Sept. 9 12-5 p.m.

Where: Charlotte Marriot City Center, 100 W. Trade St. More: RSVP; tinyurl.com/RayDartenPopUpShow

Let the Good TImes Roll FRIDAY

Panthers Season Opener SUNDAY

NEWS ARTS FOOD MUSIC ODDS

Yiasou Greek Festival THURSDAY PHOTO COURTESY OF YIASOU GREEK FESTIVAL

PHOTO COURTESY OF LO’VONIA PARKS

SATURDAY

8

ANI DIFRANCO

SATURDAY

8

THE BEAUTY STANDARD 2.0

What: Google D.I.Y. and you’ll find a picture of Ani DiFranco — or at least you should. In the ‘90s, she charted her own course, releasing her political folk rock on her own label Righteous Babe. A feminist and LGBTQ advocate, her only misstep seems to be the 2013 Righteous Retreat debacle, when she planned a getaway for fans at a former slave plantation. Now a mother of two, DiFranco may be older and wiser but she hasn’t mellowed. She remains a fearless firebrand and activist.

What: TeamBlkGrlFly is setting up shop to bring a day full of events aimed to celebrate, highlight and uplift black women. Join the community and support the cause with workshops, local artisan vendors, entertainment and panel discussions. Peruse local food, beauty and jewelry stands at this second installment of The Beauty Standard. Help change the Charlotte black woman narrative, or at least see some powerful local women in action.

When: 8 p.m.

Where: Neighborhood Theatre, 511 E 36th St. More: $35-40. neighborhoodtheatre.com

When: 12 p.m.

Where: Camp North End, 1824 Statesville Ave. More: $25 and up; teamblkgrlfly.com

SUNDAY

9

CAROLINA PANTHERS SEASON OPENER

PHOTO BY MELISSA MELVIN-RODRIGUEZ

TUESDAY

9

LOVE NEVER DIES

What: We’re ready to put all that unwatchable preseason mess behind us and focus on the 16 games that really matter, starting this Sunday with the Dallas Cowboys. And let’s get one thing straight from the jump: There is no more annoying fanbase in this country than the one rooting for the so-called “America’s team,” which makes it all the more important that Charlotte and the Carolinas show up on Sunday to drown out Dem ‘Boys and start the season with a W.

What: It’s the sequel you didn’t know you needed. Ten years after the end of the award-winning Phantom of the Opera, our main guy has since escaped to start a new life in Coney Island, where he can truly flex his musical muscles and let his singing soar. Alas, as love never dies, he’s still pining for his one true love, Christine Daaé. Will the two star-crossed lovers reunite in New York? Or will the Phantom’s new lifestyle among joyrides and freak shows mean the end of the ultimate love story?

When: 4:25 p.m.

Where: Bank of America Stadium, 800 S. Mint St. More: $400 and up. panthers.com

When: 7:30 p.m., performances run through Sept. 16 Where: Belk Theater, 130 N. Tryon St. More: $25 and up; blumenthalarts.org

WEDNESDAY

12

SHAPING CLT: UNPACKING PRIVILEGE What: What does privilege mean to you? Is it the white guy who shoots up a black church and is delivered Burger King by police? Or is it the neighborhood with four grocery stores in walking distance while others go unserved? Shaping CLT is a “social change toolkit” designed to vanquish apathy with regular programs hosted by Davita Galloway.

This one aims to find how privilege affects us and our communities and what we can do about it.

When: 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Where: Levine Museum of the New South, 200 E. 7th St. More: $10 for nonmembers. museumofthenewsouth.org

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 13

MUSIC

FEATURE

MAKE SOME NOISE Joules experiments with music whether you like it or not RYAN PITKIN

W it.

HEN YOU PLAY in an experimental rock band, you have to go into a set knowing that some folks aren’t going to get

And that’s ok.

Mark Hepp and Charles Ovett of local kraut-inspired experimental rock band Joules have seen all sorts of reaction to their music, and it doesn’t bother them.

They once played a house party in west Charlotte in which only two of the 50 people in attendance stayed inside to listen to their set. When they finished up, the guy who booked them wouldn’t even speak with them.

They laughed it off as they packed their gear up while everyone outside gave them the cold shoulder.

Joules has a good following in other parts of the country, including Wilmington and parts of Pennsylvania, where they pack shows every time they’re in town, but it’s a been a rougher go in Charlotte, where the duo has been playing local sets for four years.

The local reaction has not all been bad, however, and when people get it, they really get it.

A recent screenshot on the group’s Facebook page shows a friend recalling a conversation with a guy named Matt who had just seen Joules play for the first time.

His reaction went something along the lines of: “Dude, fucking Joules! I saw them last night I mean … holy shit! I mean, fuck!”

It’s a familiar sentiment from folks who happen upon a Joules show, Heff said when I met with him and Ovett at Snug Harbor, where the duo will play on Friday, September 7, alongside The Business People, North by North and Reaves. The two haven’t played with any of those bands in the past, and there’s sure to be some folks in the crowd who feel like Matt, and some folks who spend the entire set out on the patio.

“We just want to play our music,” said Hepp, the band’s guitarist. “We just like doing what we do. If you like it, great. If you don’t, great. Thanks for sticking around.”

Hepp and Ovett aren’t ones to wait around for venues to call and book them.

They’re known for setting up shop wherever they can on the street or in an alley, then letting passersby catch them in action on their way to lunch or the like.

An alley behind the former location of Crown Station in the Elizabeth neighborhood 14 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

PHOTO BY RYAN PITKIN

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOULES

Mark Hepp (left) and Charles Ovett will be at Snug Harbor as Joules on September 7. Below, Joules goes to work in an empty warehouse. was one of their favorite places to play in Charlotte.

Hepp and Ovett met in the early 2000s, while Ovett was playing drums in Battle Beast.

When that band opened a sold out show for Lightning Bolt, a noise rock group from Rhode Island that served as an inspiration for Joules, Hepp was in the crowd.

Both men were surprised by the turnout for Lightning Bolt, and it convinced them that fans of the more experimental genres were here in Charlotte, they just didn’t know where to go.

The two stayed in touch over the years, as Ovett continued playing with Battle Beast and Hepp was playing bass with Robot Versus Rabbit. The two eventually started

playing house shows together, and when their respective bands dissolved, Joules was formed.

During their intense sets — sets that Matt described as making him feel like he was on drugs — the duo feeds off each other in a literal way.

Neither comes in with a designated setlist, just a couple beats in their head. They discuss what they’ve been listening to all day, what their moods are, how their days have been, and then they just start playing. They might stick to a certain foundation for their songs, but those songs change as they go.

“It’s a feeling to me. It’s almost like an emotion because, once we lock in and we know what it is, it’s like a mindset that we get into and we’re both in there together and we just feel each other,” said Ovett, who learned to play drums from his jazz musician stepfather.

Ovett even played drums for his dad’s band as early as age 13. It was an experience that still motivates his experimental nature, especially during live performances.

“Like any free jazz or free form music, you just feel each other and go off that and see what happens,” Ovett said.

Hepp compared the band’s shows to a morning commute; you may take the same way to work every day, but it’s a different experience every time. There are different cars on the road, and therefore different traffic patterns.

“It’s kind of like a sunset, you know?” he says. “You may see it one time and try to capture that, but you can’t.”

The two are currently working on capturing a sunset on record, which is relatively rare for them. Their last release, Humility, Insanity, Maturity, Compassion and Perseverance, in 2015, was just four songs ranging from 20 minutes to two minutes long.

There are no vocals in the EP, but the song titles hint at a certain emotional

NORTH BY NORTH, THE BUSINESS PEOPLE, JOULES, REAVES $7; Sept. 7, 9 p.m.; Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St.; snugrock.com

struggle that is apparent in the music.

Read in order, the titles state: “A broken heart, the silence before the rain/ There was nothing done to deserve this/ As you walk away, the wind blows your hair/ A voice, a dream, I remember it all.”

The songs seem to carry their listeners through the different stages of grief involved in a break up. The rage and anxiety peak in “There was nothing done to deserve this,” followed by a mournful wailing of the guitar on “As you walk away, the wind blows your hair.”

When I mention my “stages of grief” theory to Hepp and Ovett, they crack coy smiles and tell me the songs mean whatever I make of them.

“At that time, we were both going through particular situations,” Hepp said.

Ovett continued with an equally vague explanation.

“It was just for our love of women,” he said. “We all go through certain things.”

Surely, the two will go through certain things in the coming week, and that will all come out in their show at Snug on Friday night. We would suggest that when that all starts to spill out, you do yourself a favor and don’t go outside.

RPITKIN@CLCLT.COM

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Rhiannon Giddens

PHOTOS COURTESY OF N.C. FOLK FESTIVAL

Shots from last year’s N.C. Folk Festival.

MUSIC

SPONSORED CONTENT

HERE AS FOLK Rhiannon Giddens to curate special program for N.C. Folk Festival NORTH CAROLINA FOLK Festival organizers recently announced that guestcurator Rhiannon Giddens will be curating her own program as part of the 2018 North Carolina Folk Festival — a three-day weekend celebration of America’s roots and heritage in downtown Greensboro that takes place between Sept. 7 and 9.

Giddens, a singer and multiinstrumentalist of The Basement Tapes and Carolina Chocolate Drops fame, is originally from Greensboro.

An untiring explorer of and advocate for traditional music, Giddens first achieved national prominence as a founding member of the African-American string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, whose 2010 album Genuine Negro Jig earned the group a Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album.

18 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

Giddens has since gone on to record additional solo albums including Tomorrow is My Turn, which was produced by T Bone Burnett and released in 2014. In 2017, Giddens was awarded the prestigious MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in recognition of her ongoing work to reclaim African-American contributions to folk and country music and bring to light new connections between music from the past and the present.

The North Carolina Folk Festival invited Giddens to curate several specific programs for the festival.

Amy Grossmann, North Carolina Folk Festival director, said that, “Rhiannon is an exemplary performer and ambassador for African-American string and vocal traditions, with a passion for researching and sharing

the complex history of the people who carry on these living traditions. I think she sees her role with the festival as another artistic opportunity to lend her voice to the story of African-American string music, while fostering an ongoing appreciation for these traditions.

“We are thrilled that she accepted our invitation as a guest-curator for this year’s festival and we’re incredibly excited about the performers and specialists she is bringing to Greensboro. The program is outstanding.”

Giddens’ program includes a discussion with percussionist at Guilford County Public School on Friday afternoon, followed by “an evening of jazz, spoken word and tap dance, featuring Turrisi, poet and singer Lalenja Harrington and tap dancer Robyn Watson.

On Saturday morning, Giddens will host a symposium titled “Banjo Cultures and Community, Transformations through Time,” for which she will be joined by musician Amythyst Kiah; Greg Adams, an assistant archivist at the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage; banjo maker, researcher and musician Pete Ross; Michael Newton, leading scholar of Scottish-Gaelic heritage; and Kristina Gaddy, author and

banjo scholar.

Later that day, Adams will facilitate a banjo workshop alongside Giddens, Kiah, Ross, Gaddy and Karlie Keepfer of the Cabin Creek Boys.

Later still on Saturday, Giddens will take part in a workshop titled, “Roots of American Dance: from Flat Footing to Tap,” that will feature dancers like Watson, Matthew Olwell and Emily Oleson with Jason Sypher on bass and Eric Robertson on the mandolin.

Giddens will perform on Saturday night on the Blue Cross Blue Shield NC CityStage.

She’ll be performing songs from her albums Freedom Highway and Tomorrow Is My Turn along with Turrisi, Sypher, Ric RObertson and Isaac Eady.

On Sunday afternoon, Giddens wraps things up on the Wells Fargo Lawn Stage with a final workshop called, “Historic Dance Offs: An Improv Interplay between Banjo and Dance,” in which she will explore the relationship between banjo and dance, including the popularity of dance-offs.

For more infomration on the North Carolina Folk Festival, visit ncfolkfest.com.

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 19

MUSIC

SOUNDBOARD SEPTEMBER 6 BLUES/ROOTS/INTERNATIONAL Jonathon “Boogie” Long (Neighborhood Theatre)

COUNTRY/FOLK Cooper Alan (Rooftop 210) Open Mic with Lisa De Novo (Temple Mojo Growler Shop, Matthews)

DJ/ELECTRONIC Dende (Salud Cerveceria) Le Bang (Snug Harbor)

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Miguel, DVSN (Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre)

POP/ROCK Musicians Open Mic (Crown Station Coffeehouse and Pub) Bentwater (Comet Grill) The Emotron w/ Tiny City, B-Villainous & Witch Mote (Milestone) Family and Friends, Walden (Visulite Theatre) Highbeams (Tin Roof) Karaoke (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Mo Lowda & The Humble (U.S. National Whitewater Center) Shana Blake and Friends (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) The Underhill Family Orchestra, Young Valley, Honyock (Evening Muse)

SEPTEMBER 7 CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH Jazzy Fridays (Freshwaters Restaurant)

COUNTRY/FOLK Highbeams (Evening Muse) The Lenny Federal Band (Comet Grill)

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Electric Relaxation f. DJ Skillz (‘Stache House Bar & Lounge)

SEPTEMBER 8 BLUES/ROOTS/INTERNATIONAL Lovefest: Elusive Groove, Jah Will (Primal Brewing, Huntersville) Spasta - 11th Annual Greek Fest Weekend Greek Night: DJ Sheltz, Thanasti, Kosta X (Visulite Theatre)

CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH Jazzology (Comet Grill)

COUNTRY/FOLK HonkyTonk Outlaws (The Underground) Randy Rogers Band, Parker McCollum (Coyote Joe’s) Sally & George (U.S. National Whitewater Center)

DJ/ELECTRONIC DJ Jgood (RiRa Irish Pub) DJ FWB (Tin Roof)

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B

DJ/ELECTRONIC

Akita (Thomas Street Tavern)

Cosmic Gate (World)

POP/ROCK

POP/ROCK

7th Annual Kitty Cabaret (Petra’s) Ani DiFranco, Peter Mulvey (Neighborhood Theatre) Biggins w/ Bob Fleming & The Cambria Iron Co., Gar Clemens (Snug Harbor)

Derek Curtis (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Elisium w/ The Four Faults, Shun The Raven and Affinity (The Rabbit Hole)

20 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

Fozmo, R-Dent, Sunday Boxing, Bryan Carpenter (Keg & Cue) Futurebirds (Queen Park Social) Holly Bowling (McGlohon Theater) Johnny Hayes and the Love Seats (Tin Roof) Kissel, Laura Staples, Paper Windmills, The Whiskey Predicament (Tommy’s Pub) Knowne Ghost w/ I Wish I Could Skateboard, Swamp & Heckdang (Milestone) Melodome, Young Mister (Neighborhood Theatre) Mike Strauss Band, Carolina Gator Gumbo (Petra’s) North by North w/ The Business People, Reaves, Joules (Snug Harbor) Opposite Box, EGI (Evening Muse) Sol Driven Train (U.S. National Whitewater Center) Throwback Thursday Party Band (RiRa Irish Pub) Underground Owls (Smokey Joe’s Cafe)

SOUNDBOARD Black Ritual w/ Neverfall, Krvsade and Morganton (Skylark Social Club) Chris Trapper, Diana Chittester (Evening Muse) Front Porch wsg: Michael Carlson & Gary Ramsey (The Rabbit Hole) Jay Mathey Band (RiRa Irish Pub) The Jump Cut (Tin Roof) Nicholas Roberts (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Olde Towne Criers (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular (The Fillmore) Postmodern Jukebox (Knight Theater) Sparkman Album Release (Full Band), Cameron Floyd (Evening Muse) Telltale w/ Downhaul, Ol’ Sport, Jail Socks (Milestone)

Open Mic with Lisa De Novo (Legion Brewing)

SEPTEMBER 11 BLUES/ROOTS/INTERNATIONAL Alexandro Querevalú (McGlohon Theater)

COUNTRY/FOLK Red Rockin’ Chair (Comet Grill)

Eclectic Soul Tuesdays - RnB & Poetry (Apostrophe Lounge) Soulful Tuesdays: DJ ChopstickZ, DJ JTate Beats (Crown Station Coffeehouse and Pub)

DJ/ELECTRONIC

BLUES/ROOTS/INTERNATIONAL

POP/ROCK

Yellowjackets (McGlohon Theater)

DJ/ELECTRONIC Bone Snugs-N-Harmony: Bryan Pierce (Snug Harbor) QCMC Festival 2018: BradleyCLT (Crown Station Coffeehouse and Pub)

SEPTEMBER 12 COUNTRY/FOLK

Omari and The Hellhounds (Comet Grill) Wild Child (The Underground)

Open Mic (Comet Grill)

CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH Jazz Jam (Crown Station Coffeehouse and Pub)

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B #MFGD Open Mic (Apostrophe Lounge) Knocturnal (Snug Harbor)

POP/ROCK Brangle (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Fall Residency with Calibre Rock (Petra’s) Find Your Muse Open Mic with Nicholas Roberts (Evening Muse) Jake Shimabukuro (McGlohon Theater) Karen Meat & Dana T, Patios Counselors (Oso Skate Park) The Monday Night Allstars (Neighborhood Theatre)

WITH SPECIAL GUEST

PARKER MCCOLLUM LIMITED ADVANCE $12 ALL OTHERS $15

SAT, OCTOBER 20

DJ/ELECTRONIC

ALL OTHERS $18

SAT, NOVEMBER 3

CORY SMITH

LIMITED ADVANCE $20 ALL OTHERS $25

SAT, NOVEMBER 10

MUSCADINE BLOODLINE WITH SPECIAL GUEST

KOE WETZEL

LIMITED ADVANCE $13 ALL OTHERS $16

SAT, NOVEMBER 17

❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

MORGAN WALLEN LIMITED ADVANCE $15 ALL OTHERS $18

FRI, NOVEMBER 23

❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

KARAOKE with Mike Earle (Petra’s) Bugalú - September Edition (Petra’s) Cyclops Bar: Modern Heritage Weekly Mix Tape (Snug Harbor)

POP/ROCK 4U: A Symphonic Tribute to Prince (Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre) Emit Radio’s Open Mic/Music Trivia Night (Dixie Pig, Tega Cay) Jason Cline, Benjamin Eisenberger, David Taylor (Tommy’s Pub) Quincey Blues (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Richard Buckner (Evening Muse) September Residency: Grown Up Avenger Stuff, Mammabear, Scott Yoder (Snug Harbor) Toward Space, The Flight Risks, Kissel (Milestone)

CODY JOHNSON LIMITED ADVANCE $15

❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

Open Jam with the Smokin’ Js (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Deep Purple, Judas Priest, The Temperance Movement (PNC Music Pavilion) Joseph, Kelsey Kopecky (Visulite Theatre) Jukebox the Ghost, The Greeting Committee (Neighborhood Theatre) Uptown Unplugged with Chassy Trio (Tin Roof, Charlotte)

POP/ROCK

SEPTEMBER 10

RANDY ROGERS

❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B

SEPTEMBER 9

CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH

SAT, SEPTEMBER 8

❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

[Orbit] 3 (Snug Harbor)

Brew-Grass Sundays: Radio Flyer Bluegrass (Cabarrus Brewing Company, Concord)

9/6 FAMILY AND FRIENDS + WALDEN 9/11 JOSEPH 9/8 SPASTA! 2018 9/9 SCHOOL OF ROCK 9/13 CBDB 9/14 NEVERMIND 9/15 OFF WHITE PARTY BROEMEL 9/19 NOAH GUNDERSEN 9/20 ofCARL My Morning Jacket 9/21ATLAS ROAD CREW 9/28 CAAMP 9/30 CASEY JAMES 10/2 MT. JOY10/9WELSHLY ARMS10/18 BLACK JOE LEWIS 11/7 WILL HOGE 11/10 THE NIGHT GAME 12/12BAYSIDE

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MUSIC

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CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 21

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COVERSTORY

DEATH OF A NEIGHBORHOOD Alvin C. Jacobs Jr. and the Gantt Center capture destruction and displacement in Brookhill Village RYAN PITKIN

L

IKE THE IMAGES he captures, Alvin C. Jacobs Jr. chooses his words carefully.

As we stand on Village Court in the back of Brookhill Village, where Jacobs has spent the last three months thoroughly documenting the lives of the last families who will call the 67-year-old community home, he contemplates every word.

Nobody in the neighborhood is outside on this Thursday afternoon. They’re all either at work or inside escaping the 90-plusdegree heat. But as we stand under the only tree we can find, Jacobs is in no rush.

The way he paces and looks down to consider each thought before he express it — but not so long as to lose the listener’s interest — you’d think this was a well-thought-out TED Talk, with thousands listening.

But I’m the only audience.

“I know who I am and I know what I know how to do professionally and creatively, but this is their space, this is their neighborhood, this is their community, and I had to be cognizant of how they were being viewed at all times,” he says before gesturing at the street lined with alternately pastelcolored units, the paint long worn from age.

Some are empty, already boarded up, and they’ll be demolished soon enough. Those who do still live in the units will eventually be evicted, their homes torn down.

“It’s one thing to say, ‘Hey, look at the buildings,’ but I didn’t want the project to be about the buildings, I wanted the project to be about the soul and the heart of the people,” Jacobs continues.

The project Jacobs is referring to is called Welcome to Brookhill, a newly commissioned exhibit that will front a new season of activistthemed exhibits at the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts+Culture.

The museum has called the new season Revealed: Where Art Meets Activism.

Kicking off with a preview party on the evening of September 7 and a community opening on September 8, Revealed will also include Question Bridge: Black Males, a multimedia exhibit that explores the implicit bias that black men face in the United States; and Hank Willis Thomas: What We Ask Is Simple, a photography exhibit on loan from the Jack Shainman Gallery in New York City that showcases photos from different 20th-century American protests 22 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

Alvin C. Jacobs Jr. in front of an empty home in Brookhill Village. ranging from women’s suffrage to the civil That’s tough, man. And I wanted to capture rights movement to Stonewall. not just the struggle of that, but the beauty At the forefront of the new Gantt Center of making it in spite of.” season is Welcome to Brookhill, an exhibit that For David Taylor, president and CEO at includes not only Jacobs’ photography but a the Gantt Center, it was also key that the deep dive into what life is for the folks living artist who tackled this project did so with a in the condemned community. The exhibit sense of empathy and humanity. includes insights from Jacobs and the residents “It was important we go in and be a part he spent months getting to know. It also includes of the community,” Taylor says. “I thought anecdotes and research about Brookhill done the Gantt Center needed to take a role of

by James E. Ford, a member of the Charlotte championing and illuminating the voice of Mecklenburg Opportunity Task Force. the voiceless. It was clear that the people that For Jacobs, who spent weeks walking are affected the most, when they show up the neighborhood and getting to know its in television or they show up in print, their residents before bringing a camera into the stories aren’t really told.” equation, it was important that the project Taylor met Jacobs at an arts festival focus on the human side of a story that has shortly after Jacobs moved to Charlotte six often been dehumanized in the news. years ago. Taylor remained aware of Jacobs’ “I made sure when it was time to work. Although considering other, out-of-town photograph and to document, my heart was photographers for this project, Taylor says the in the right place, and that they understood choice was an easy one when it came down to it. how they were going to be captured,” he says.

He says he wanted to make sure the Jacobs’ photos, all in black and white, Brookhill project would not be a one-stop show little girls playing in an inflatable pool, exhibit, and having someone local like Jacobs community elders talking with each other, who can continue to document the stories little boys reading comic books on their front of residents there was important to him. As steps, mixed in with landscape photos that the new artist-in-residence at Gantt Center depict the destruction of units already torn for the coming year, Jacobs will remain down and the dilapidation of homes that are close to the residents of Brookhill. He will either abandoned or still occupied. hold workshops to help connect them with The effect is a visceral feeling of black joy community resources while also continuing to tainted by condemnation. document their experiences.

“I wanted to capture the truth and the “We don’t just want to say, ‘Here’s some essence of hard work and dedication, but also pictures and thank you all, now come have not having control,” Jacobs says. “You go to some punch with us,’” Taylor says. “We want work. You worship God and you take care of to be there and to be a part of their journey your children and all these other things but in a sense that we want to continue to shine you just don’t know where you’re going to live. light on the challenges that they face.”

PHOTO BY RYAN PITKIN

That’s OK with Jacobs, who has no intentions of dipping in and out of the story, as he’s seen other outlets do. Always the image activist, he remains aware of the problematic issues that stories like this bring up in both the art world and the media world.

“We’re going to amplify this story, and with the continued programming we have to be extremely careful not to art-wash it, it’s not just beautiful pictures,” he says. “This is what it’s about to be a part of a community. You don’t parachute in with all your fancy equipment, do what you gotta do and then do something else.

These are my people. And it’s important that if there’s something that I can do and there’s a platform that I have if I can help anyone to tell their story then that’s my job.”

IN LIGHT OF the current political and social

climates in this country, Taylor has been rethinking his own job as president and CEO of Charlotte’s most prestigious institution celebrating the story of African-American culture.

I meet with Taylor in a boardroom above the exhibitions at the Gantt Center, overlooking a construction site across the street from the museum, in which construction workers are working on a 26-story office building to be anchored by Ally Financial, including a hotel that could very well be a boon to the museum’s business.

When I say as much, Taylor is quick to recognize that not all is well in a quickly developing city. He says he hopes exhibits like Welcome to Brookhill highlight the fact that development needs to remain inclusive. When I ask about the contrast between positive

PHOTO BY ALVIN C JACOBS JR.

“I WANTED TO CAPTURE NOT JUST THE STRUGGLE ... BUT THE BEAUTY OF MAKING IT IN SPITE OF.” ALVIN C. JACOBS JR.

development like that across the street and the displacement that’s happening a little further down South Tryon Street. He says he hopes the conversation around the Gantt’s upcoming exhibits will help spur city leaders and developers to do the right thing.

“Something’s going to go in that [Brookhill] space,” he says. “There’s certainly a tremendous amount of focus on affordable housing and these kinds of things, so hopefully we keep Brookhill at the top of the conversation so that some of those resources and things that are taking place [will help us] bring other collaborators to the table as well.”

The Revealed opening is just the beginning of a new mission Taylor has decided to pursue with the Gantt Center; a mission to “double down” on efforts to elevate the voices of marginalized communities and emphasize the importance of activism in the face of injustice, he says.

The new direction was inspired by a growing sense of political vitriol and increased dialogue around race and social justice in the United States. It’s different from anything Taylor done in nearly 10 years as president and CEO, he says.

“The social climate that we’re faced with kind of dictates to an organization like us — and those of us who believe in fairness and justice and equality — that we actually have to double down in the work that we do. We can’t just say we’re doing it,” Taylor says.

“It’s not reinventing our mission or anything of that nature. In simple terms, we’re doubling down on what we do. The current climate requires that we be louder and more intense, and more committed than ever about helping educate folks about making our community better and making sure that’s certain for everyone.”

Revealed is the first step in that mission, and Welcome to Brookhill isn’t the only piece.

What We Ask Is Simple is a powerful photography exhibit that literally forces its viewers to shine a light on the efforts of activists who spent the 20th century fighting to expose the darkest injustices in American society. Using retroreflective vinyl, Hank Thomas Willis turns iconic photographs — including one of Dorothy Counts being harassed as she integrates CharlotteMecklenburg Schools — into artworks that resemble overexposed negatives, which can only be seen when exposed to a flashlight in a dark room.

Taylor references the photo of Counts walking with her head up high as children and adults alike hit her with a barrage of insults. He then points out that CharlotteMecklenburg Schools remains one of the most segregated school systems in the country, despite the progress made in the early 1990s.

“It’s a reminder to us that the important work that we’re doing is not over because you can flashback,” Taylor says. “When you literally

REVEALED: WHERE ART MEETS ACTIVISM EXHIBIT PREVIEW PARTY Free; Sept. 7, 6-11 p.m.; Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture, 551 S. Tryon St.; ganttcenter.org

shine a light on some of these dark moments in history, or iconic moments in many cases still, they could very well be now.”

Taylor decided to purchase a part of another exhibit, Question Bridge: Black Males, to keep as a long-term part of the Gantt Center experience.

Clips that are about 20 seconds long are alternating across five TV screens depicting black men as they discuss the stigmas surrounding mental health in the black community. Some of them explain why they themselves refuse to seek help for issues they deal with.

To the right, a larger screen shows some of these same men simply looking at the camera, as if preparing to speak or posing for a picture. Of the seven or eight people sitting on the benches inside the exhibit, silently focused on the changing screens in the dark

room, none appear to be black.

Taylor says the exhibit is meant to force people to confront the implicit biases that they live with on a day-to-day basis, which they remain completely unaware of for the most part.

“One of the key things about it is it really becomes a restructuring of humanity,” Taylor says. “Those things about, ‘What’s your identity? How are you perceived?’ I think black men perhaps challenge more around identity. ‘What is it to be a black man?’ is an interesting question that we’re still faced with. But our hope is that it helps us address the issue of cultural competency and unconscious bias.”

AS I GET ready to wrap things up with

Jacobs in Brookhill Village, his eye catches a sheet of yellowed paper sticking out from the doorway of a nearby unit. There’s a small plastic scooter on its side in the front yard of the residence, but other than that, it’s clear it hasn’t been a residence in recent months.

Jacobs walks up to the door and pulls out the eviction notice. It’s dated May. The people living in the unit have long since left.

“This is what it all comes down to,” Jacobs says before folding the paper up and taking it with him. He plans to add it to the exhibit at some point.

SEE

DEATH P. 25 u

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | 23

ARTS

me because the character was similar to my dad. That’s easy mining. That’s kind of lowhanging fruit as far as acting goes, to be able to tap into.

This guy’s a little different because I’m not originally from rural Arkansas like this guy is. The fortunate thing is that I’ve lived in the South and run around with folks like that for the whole time I’ve lived here.

I’m not from the South but I’ve lived in the South longer than any place else in my life. I’m able to borrow some stuff for that.

I was able to talk to some of my friends who’ve been in law enforcement in that type of environment — very rural — and get a beat on that. So for me, for this character, a lot of it is research and application. Do the research and apply it and whatever sensibilities I bring it’s just me, it’s just who my personality is that comes through.

ARTSPEAK

HOW TO DODGE A BULLET Local actor still alive in kill-happy crime series

BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

THE QUIET RESORT TOWN of Lake Ozark, Missouri sets the stage for the Southern gothic crime drama, Ozark, a Netflix series that premiered its second season on August 31.

In the show, Jason Bateman plays Marty Byrde, a financial advisor who launders money for a dangerous cartel. After his partner is found skimming off the top, Byrde moves his family from Chicago to the Lake of the Ozarks in a spur-of-the-moment attempt to launder more money and save his own neck.

That’s where Rob Treveiler comes in.

The actor, who lives in Charlotte, plays no-nonsense Sheriff John Nix. Nix first meets Marty and Nancy Byrde when their oldest child, Charlotte, is caught joyriding a resident’s boat. The two butt heads immediately, setting the stage for plenty of conflict to come.

Creative Loafing caught up with Treveiler to discuss the new season of Ozark, the state of Charlotte’s film industry and whether he relates Sheriff Nix. Creative Loafing: A lot of characters were killed off in the first season, 15 in total. We still don’t know if you’ve survived the second season, but is it stressful to read through a script in a show like that?

Rob Treveiler: The nature with this type of programming now, the lid is off as far as that goes. Game of Thrones — whoever the lead guy was and they killed him in the third episode of that show — it was just, all of a sudden, the lid was off and everybody is in peril at any given time.

Every character. You just don’t know.

And so you just kind of have to live with that.

From my character’s standpoint, all I can do is look at the script and go, “He’s a threat and he’s a threat,” to me, to my character.

But you don’t know how the particular storylines are going to play out, because we don’t know. We don’t know until we get the scripts. But generally, the producers will notify you before the season that your time is going to come to an end. So a lot of times, you know before the season begins. You don’t know exactly how, but you know.

Without any spoilers, how does season two differ from season one and what are you excited about this season?

Season one set us up for a mayhem that ensues in season two, pretty much, and 24 | SEPT. 6 - SEPT. 12, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

CMIHOCIK@CLCLT.COM

Rob Treveiler as Sheriff John Nix in ‘Ozark’ Netflix makes us keep everything really close to the vest. But there’s a bit of attrition in the second season, I can tell you that. And there’s a new cartel element that’s present in the second season. They just don’t let us tell anything.

Pretty much across the board, the producers, Jason Bateman and everyone else, they’re really excited about how the second season came out. They liked it better than the first season, which I thought was an interesting comment because the first season was good.

You don’t really know how a show is going to come out when you’re working on it because there are so many variables and different balls in the air and until you see it as a uniform piece you can’t really go, “This is going to be great!” You can’t tell. So it was a pleasant surprise for everybody.

A few years ago, Charlotte was a hotbed for the filming industry but now it’s shifted to Atlanta because of the loss of film incentives here. What’s it like being a Charlotte actor and seeing Atlanta get all the action?

You just hope that the sensibility returns where they can see that it’s nothing but an upside and they reinstate some sort of incentive package because until then, the work’s going elsewhere. The work’s going to go where they have incentive packages. It’s either going to go to Georgia or Lousiana ... or Canada.

They’re going to go where they can shoot the most economically and profit the most in the backend. That’s the nature of the business. That’s the nature of almost every business. In the end, the money wins. We’re a cash-strapped state, it’s gotta come back.

How do you identify with the sheriff and if you see any similarities between yourself in real life and yourself in the role.

This particular character, it’s not as close to me as some other stuff that I’ve played. Like when I was in The Accountant, that movie with Ben Affleck, and I played his dad in a series of flashbacks. That was a lot closer to

PHOTO COURTESY OF NETFLIX

ARTS

COVERSTORY

ARTS

SUMMER MOVIE WRAP

DEATH FROM P. 23 t It’s been an incredible few years for Jacobs, who first gained attention around Charlotte for his photography when he stopped focusing on fashion and began hitting the streets to document protests and other direct actions against injustice.

He was inspired to do so by his experience in Florida, where he was attending the NBA All-Star Game at the time Trayvon Martin was killed.

After shooting photos of reactions to Martin’s killing, he changed his whole focus.

He’s since covered large-scale protests in Ferguson, Missouri; Chicago; Charlottesville; and the Charlotte Uprising in 2016, among other places.

He’s also begun to spread his wings elsewhere, serving as a team photographer for the Carolina Panthers, touring with Jay-Z and Vic Mensa and earning a number of other opportunities that photographers of all stripes only dream of.

His work is still a large part of the Know Justice Know Peace exhibit at the Levine Museum of the New South, meaning he’s currently a featured artist in two of the largest art institutions in a city not exactly known for its culture.

For an image activist who simply showed up at protests with a mission to record the truth and prided himself on complete autonomy as an artist and documentarian, he’s come a long way in a short time.

He says the success has come from simply “doing the work because it needed to be done,” without worrying about whether mainstream media outlets, gatekeepers of the cultural scene or anybody else was interested in what he was doing.

That’s a message he hopes to pass along at the exhibition preview party he will speak at on Friday night.

“I want you to know that you can look just like me, and you can do this. It’s not

FILM

The highs and lows of the sunny cinema season

BY MATT BRUNSON PHOTO BY RYAN PITKIN David Taylor some guy from someplace else. You know me. You’ve been knowing me. You’ve seen how I came up in this city. If I can do this, you can do this, but this is how you have to do it,” he says, referencing his tireless work ethic.

As for the continuing work around Brookhill Village, it’s something that he says has become a part of him. And it’s clear as we stand together under a tree on Village Court that it’s not something that will he will leave — or will leave him — anytime soon.

“The passion behind the story of these people is what gets me out of bed in the morning,” he says. “I have shot professional sports and major concerts and fashion events and editorials and the like, but there’s something about someone trusting you personally to not only capture their likeness through a photograph, but also telling the story that, if given the opportunity, they would do so themselves.

“This was difficult and different, because it wasn’t just a photojournalistic standpoint,” he continues. “These are my friends, so I had to take care of them, their reputations, their homes, their community, their neighborhood.”

But in the end, it’s Charlotte’s neighborhood. Welcome to Brookhill is an attempt to get folks to admit it.

RPITKIN@CLCLT.COM

#ShapingCLT: Unpacking Privilege

Wednesday Sept.12th 2018 6:30-8:30pm at Levine Museum of the New South

Tickets $10 September’s installment of the #ShapingCLT series will focus on Unpacking Privilege in Charlotte.

Food, games, and activities will move the conversation along.The examination of Charlotte’s future will move participants beyond conversation towards civic action.

WITH SUMMERTIME tragically on its

way out, it’s time for the annual glance at the movies audiences and critics checked out over the past four months. Here, then, are some of the seasonal highlights and low points.

Biggest Disappointment: Solo: A Star Wars Story. For the vast majority of my life, Han Solo has been — along with Atticus Finch, Indiana Jones, James Bond, and a few others — one of my defining cinematic heroes, which is why it pained me to see the character’s iconic dimensions reduced so drastically and dramatically in this ultimately unnecessary addition to the Star Wars saga.

Those of us who grew up with the franchise since a young age and find it still rooted in our DNA deserved something better than a cash-grab that’s only moderately entertaining and not especially memorable.

Clearly, this feeling was shared by many, as this has emerged as the first Star Wars film to lose money for its studio — consequently, plans for further spin-off films (Obi-Wan Kenobi, Boba Fett) have been delayed if not altogether crushed. Added insult: L3-37, the most ill-conceived, most insulting, and allaround worst character to be found in any film this summer.

Biggest Stateside Bomb: Skyscraper.

Were it not for the Christmas smash Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, there might be more question marks circling the continued viability of Dwayne Johnson as a box office draw. After all, last summer found him headlining Baywatch, which ended up losing $11 million stateside, while this past spring saw his Rampage coming up $21 million short in U.S. profits. Neither, though, flopped as bad as Skyscraper, a generic action yarn that cost $125 million yet only grossed $67 million — a $58 million tumble. As with Rampage, it took the international audience to save the picture from total disaster, with foreign earnings up to $225 million.

Biggest Surprise: Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Considering I wasn’t a fan of the 2008 hit Mamma Mia!, I wasn’t expecting much from this belated sequel.

So imagine my delight to discover that this outshines the original in virtually every department, with better singing, better dancing, and better humor. Bonus props to Lily James (Cinderella, Baby Driver), who is excellent “playing” Meryl Streep (i.e. the young Donna in flashback scenes).

Sexiest Stud: Andy Garcia. Forget about Tom Cruise, Chris Pratt, and the other boys of summer. Only Andy Garcia had the distinction of wooing the ladies in two films

DISNEY

Biggest Summer Disappointment: ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ this summer. Book Club found him sweetly seducing Diane Keaton, while Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again saw him lavishing his attentions on Cher. In real life, Garcia is 62 years old — I guess people in that age group aren’t called sexagenarians for nothing.

Best Scene-Stealer: Awkwafina, in both Crazy Rich Asians and Ocean’s 8.

Runner-up: Eeyore in Christopher Robin.

Most Unexpected Reference To A Werner Herzog Documentary: Book Club.

The character played by Candice Bergen hasn’t had sex in 18 years, leading one of the other ladies to quip that her vagina is a “cave of forgotten dreams.”

Most Expected Reference To A Sharon Stone Blockbuster: The Happytime Murders. Given the film’s focus on puppet pudenda, it’s scarcely surprising when a femme fatale flashes her forbidden felt a la Stone in Basic Instinct.

Best Tagline: “Opening Wide” — The Meg. A declaration that accompanies, well, pretty much every movie takes on additional meaning when it comes to this shark flick.

The Warner p.r. department knew it, too, since the words on the poster were positioned directly inside the title creature’s gaping maw.

Best Performances: (Alphabetical) Toni Collette — Hereditary; Elsie Fisher — Eighth Grade; Ethan Hawke — First Reformed; Charlize Theron — Tully; John David Washington — BlacKkKlansman.

Best Film: Eighth Grade. Television and YouTube star Bo Burnham makes an impressive feature-film debut as the writer and director of this raw and realistic movie about an introverted student struggling to survive her last week of eighth grade before preparing for high school. Yet the real story here is the knockout central performance by 15-year-old Elsie Fisher — her work as Kayla Day will break your heart. Runners-up: First Reformed; BlacKkKlansman.

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NIGHTLIFE

KICKIN’ IT FOR KICKOFF It’s football season in the Queen City again

Who are you after dark?

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couldn’t stand. Fans in West Virginia jerseys CHAD IS DRUNK. Chad is a huge were clearing have the most fun, as their football fan. On game day, Chad starts team trouced all over the poor Tennessee drinking way too early and by kickoff, Chad is belligerent. Before halftime Chad is either Volunteers, 40-14 (ouch). throwing up outside or getting kicked out of a But this year, I’ve traded in my dated bar. Not to mention, Chad has been drinking Panthers jersey to become a Wisconsin so much, you can smell it permeating from Badgers fan. Why, you ask? Welp, in the spirit his jersey. Chad will be lucky to make it of football season and genuine friendship, I home with memories of the final score and received a gift following the Tennessee v. without getting his ass beat. Whatever you West Virginia game. do this gameday, don’t be a Chad. *Cue next One of my boo’s friends wore this gameday commercial* ridiculously comfy flannel button up that It’s that time of year again. When the I would steal every chance I got last fall/ familiar smells of vomit, urine, beer and winter. And it just so happens the primary grilled food fill the air in Uptown Charlotte. colors were red and black — perfect for him That’s right, that’s the smell of football to wear during a Wisconsin Badgers game. season. Close your eyes, take a deep a breath After he’d been drinking all day long, I and let the nostalgia run through your mind. thought for sure he’d be wasted. And I’m not going to lie. I’ve never I thought that was confirmed been much of a sports fan. But when he left he bar for a there’s something about the short stint and returned vibe in a bar on gameday, whether we’re talking on a LimeBike with a gift football or any other wrapped in Christmas sport, that I can’t resist. paper in the basket.

The energy is just so He sat down at our overwhelming that I find table with the gift in tow myself actually looking and proceeded to talk forward to the start of about a “house divided.” the game.

Now, I’m very familiar with In fact, last weekend I AERIN SPRUILL the concept during football couldn’t wait to pull out my season, however, the boo and Kelvin Benjamin jersey (I know, I I are not quite concerned with know, RIP). And I was only getting in dividing our “home” over the Duke Blue my car to go home and visit my family for the Devils and the South Carolina Gamecocks. weekend. I had so much #fomo as I watched So I began tuning him out, chalking up his my Charlotte friends’ Snapchat stories of spiel to his drunken state of mind. being at a Panthers tailgate or standing on He then proceeded to say that whoever the field at Bank of America Stadium, it was took the gift had to agree to be a Badgers ridiculous. And yet I missed the majority fan all season long. I heard some of the boys of the game because I was cooking dinner #priorities (or #fakefan). listening chuckle, as he’d just purchased a Nevertheless, there’s nothing like a game Panthers surf poncho for someone while in B of A stadium to remind you just how he was in Cancun. “I certainly don’t need a serious football fans can get in the Queen poncho,” I thought to myself as he handed City. Not to mention how serious they get me the box. when they have a four-day weekend.

Dazed and confused, I opened the present This past weekend was a prime example. while everyone watched #awkwardturtle! It Tennessee and West Virginia fans took over felt like an eternity had passed by the time I Uptown for a good ol’ game of football on finally opened the box to the exact same red Saturday. No, I didn’t watch. I witnessed and black flannel I was stealing last winter! the aftermath at my favorite watering hole.

He and his wife happened to go by the J. And I’ll be honest, that’s enough prime time Crew outlet where he’d purchased it forever television for me. ago and it was still there! I could have cried.

I laughed as familiar and unfamiliar It was just another reminder of what the faces sauntered around Uptown in their spirit of football is all about! Go Badgers! drunken states. Some were carrying takeout But alas, the badgers are a college team, boxes timidly, nervous they were going so I can still remain partial to my home team to drop their “last supper.” While others Panthers. couldn’t wait for an opportunity to taunt BACLTALK@CLCLT.COM someone wearing the jersey of a team they

ENDS

CROSSWORD

I MISS YOU GUYS ACROSS

1 After, in Paris 6 Paparazzi target 11 Speedy 15 Close loudly 19 Instant replay mode 20 St. Teresa’s town 21 Guthrie of folk music 22 Snow beast of legend 23 Frenetic cartoon marsupial [#1] 25 Banging, as a drum 27 Bread type 28 Caviar eggs 29 It’s not currently erupting [#2] 31 -- distance 32 Capital of Kazakhstan 36 Kia model 37 Fragrant compound 38 “Just name it and I’ll do it” [#3] 43 Zine staff 44 Sarcastic laugh sound 45 Dust bit 46 Direction of sunup 49 Real guy?

52 House-building charity [#4] 59 Shouts from cheerleaders 60 Recording studio control 61 Watch 62 Concave tummy part 63 Sauna spot 64 -- tai (mixed drink) 65 Hive group 66 “Sorority Row” actress Evigan 67 Annual publication of Benjamin Franklin [#5] 73 Jonathan Swift’s genre 75 Ark crafter 76 Egg case qty.

77 Prefix with con 80 Her “Hello” was a big hit 81 Horror film helper 82 Composer Franz 85 Singer Baez 86 What a green card grants an alien [#6] 89 Dated yet trendy 90 Be a vagrant 91 “Othello” baddie 92 “No kidding!”

93 -- -jongg

96 Available again because folks asked for it [#7] 104 Not silently 107 August sign 108 Old office note-takers 109 Ending with ethyl 110 Classic song by Rodgers and Hart [#8] 114 Platform that runs on Apple devices 115 Audiophile’s stack 116 Certain shore area 117 1988 film about an old baseball scandal (and what this puzzle has?)

122 Bakery tool 123 Brother of Cain 124 Comic Anderson 125 Passover dinner 126 Cruel emperor 127 Simple 128 Bulges 129 Not well-kept

DOWN

1 Wandering 2 Seek the approval of 3 Capital of Dominica 4 Record label for Bowie 5 Take off from a high nest, as an eagle 6 Academy students 7 Mother of Cain 8 Ullmann or Tyler of film 9 Yale athlete 10 Dis-tressed?

11 Cloth 12 “Am not!” reply 13 Serb, say 14 Pooch in Oz 15 Matches up, as files 16 Papal envoy 17 Paid (for) 18 Tweens, e.g.

24 Army denial 26 Sicile, e.g.

30 Suffix with access 33 Sportscaster -- Rashad 34 Weeper in myth 35 Not lifeless 39 Letters that follow pis 40 Converged 41 Tabby sound 42 -- es Salaam 47 City in Iran 48 Tennis top 49 Wifely title

50 Ceiling 51 Book division 52 Brow or lash 53 Say for sure 54 With 56-Down, entwined like shoelace ends 55 Own (up) 56 See 54-Down 57 With 78-Down, tone deafness 58 Pro’s vote 60 Cost to cab it 64 Singer Rita 65 Scornful cry 66 Dark mark 68 Gulf ship 69 Playwright William 70 Pigeon calls 71 Spy Mata -72 Timber tool 73 Syrup base 74 Sugary drink 78 See 57-Down 79 1969 Beatle bride 81 “-- la Douce” 82 Lutzes, e.g.

83 Bar of gold 84 Range 85 Taunt 87 Eatery check 88 Handy-andy’s inits.

89 Evaluate anew 92 Low spirits 93 Remit, say 94 -- -Lorraine 95 Schnozz 97 Maker of an exact copy 98 Brewing pot 99 “Sk8er --” (2002 hit) 100 Merges 101 Crack, as a cipher 102 Provided, as with talent 103 “-- Rides Again” (old Western) 105 In -- (not yet born) 106 “What’s the --?”

111 Trolley car 112 Caftan, e.g.

113 Jail division 118 Debt doc 119 Chewed stuff 120 Not square 121 Once named

SOLUTION FOUND ON P. 30.

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ENDS

SAVAGE LOVE

SHOOTING STARS Kinks worthy of a letterman jacket

BY DAN SAVAGE I’m a cis woman in my mid-40s, and my significant other has a cuckolding fetish.

My first response was “Oh, hell no!” But if I’m willing to have a threesome, how much further of a stretch is it, really?

He does have some experience with this varsity-level kink, so he knows what to expect. I’ve asked him some questions, but some things I prefer to research on my own.

My questions for you: (1) I don’t get cuckolding. I’ve read all about it, but nothing about it resonates with me. My SO really wants me to be into his fetish if I am going to act on it, but what if I’m just into being GGG? Can’t that be enough? (2) How should I go about finding appropriate candidates who would be into sharing this experience with us? I’m not really sure that I’d want someone with experience as a bull, because I don’t feel good about this playing out the way I’ve seen it in porn.

(3) We enjoy cross-dressing and chastity play. How do I find someone who will be cool about my SO sitting in the room in a cock lock and lingerie? (4) I kind of have a “type” (don’t we all), and I’m not certain my type plays into this kink.

I prefer someone who is very dominant in public but submissive to me in the bedroom. This doesn’t seem to align with your typical bull behavior. However, I do not enjoy being dominated. Do you think this matters?

CAN’T UNDERSTAND CUCKOLD KINK

1. Cuckolding isn’t that hard to understand: A me to send a face pic, and I did. He invited cuckold gets off on their partner fucking other me to his hotel. He didn’t have any gear people and being humiliated or degraded by with him, so I stopped at a hardware their partner and/or their partner’s playmates. store and picked up $40 worth of rope Seeing as you already enjoy dominating guys and duct tape on my way to meet him. and threesomes, CUCK, what’s not to enjoy But after 30 seconds of small talk, he said about a cuckolding scenario? he just wasn’t feeling it. I said OK, that 2. Vanilla PIV intercourse rarely plays out in happens, and I left. I’m totally confused. real life the way it does in porn. So whether I’m a decent-looking guy, and the photo you go with an experienced bull or find I sent is recent. I was freshly showered, someone who’s unfamiliar with cuckold play so no hygiene or BO issues. Obviously, but game, you don’t have to reenact you can’t force yourself to be into whatever cuckold porn you’ve someone, but could he have watched or read. Write your handled it better? Should own script! he have followed up with 3. By using your words, a message apologizing?

CUCK. Tell any guy who’s Should I reach out and interested in being your ask him what happened, very special guest star or is that just pathetic?

BONDAGE OFFER NOT (VSGS) that your SO is a DELIVERED AFTER GETTING cuckold and he’ll be there EVICTED in lingerie with his cock locked up. If that turns a DAN SAVAGE Typically when this happens VSGS candidate off, then he’s — photos exchanged, hookup not the right VSGS for you. arranged, mind changed — it’s 4. In most cuckold porn, the bull because the photos were out of date — the man who fucks the cuck’s wife or were not representative. Since we aren’t or girlfriend (or boyfriend or husband) in front of him — is the dominant partner. But, always the best judge of our own photos, again, you get to write your own script, and BONDAGE, you should ask a friend who if you want your bull to be submissive, make won’t bullshit you to look at your photos and give it to you straight. that clear to your potential bulls.

If your no-bullshit friend clears your photos, I’m a 54-year-old gay guy living in New then reach out to Mr. San Francisco. He had York City. I’m into bondage, and I have a to make a snap decision when you arrived profile on Recon with plenty of pictures with that bag of rope and duct tape: Did he showing what I’m into. A guy visiting feel comfortable letting this stranger render from San Francisco cruised me. He asked him helpless? In a vanilla hookup, he could

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give it a little time and back out after some foreplay — it’s a lot harder to back out when the foreplay involves rope and duct tape.

So send him a message via Recon. Open by telling him you aren’t buttsore or angry, and he had every right to change his mind, even at the last minute — which means he has nothing to apologize for, so you aren’t owed an apology and you shouldn’t message him if you’re seeking one.

Then ask if you said or did something that made him feel unsafe. If you did, BONDAGE, accept his feedback graciously — don’t argue with him or attempt to litigate what went down. Just listen. It may not have been your intention to freak him out by making, say, a few serial-killer jokes, but his impression is what matters, not your intention. And who knows? A sincere effort to get a little constructive feedback may leave him feeling better about you and up for playing the next time he’s in town.

My wife has a fantasy where she’s blindfolded and restrained on our bed. She hears the front door open, followed by footsteps coming up the stairs, and then she’s ravished by … who? She won’t know, presumably, until it’s over. My question: In fulfilling this fantasy for her, where anonymity and surprise are part of the appeal, what do I tell her in advance? Do I discuss the entire scenario with her, so she knows exactly what’s going to happen, minus the identity of the very special guest star (who would be a semi-regular we’ve played with before, but she wouldn’t necessarily know that at first)? That seems to eliminate the surprise element of the fantasy. Is it enough to tell her, without mentioning the specific scenario, that I’d like to make one of her fantasies come true, and ask her to trust me?

ETHICAL THINKING IN QUITE UNUSUAL, ELABORATE TIED TIGHT ENACTMENT

Presumably? There’s no room for “presumablies” when you’re arranging to fulfill a varsity-level fantasy. I’m guessing she’d rather not know who’s ravishing her before or during the big event, ETIQUETTE, and she may not want to know after. But you need to ask her what she wants — no presumptions — before you start making arrangements.

She might want to know everything in advance — including the identity of that stranger — or she might want you to decide everything. But you need to check in with her first.

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ARIES (March 21 to April 19) Aspects favor new romances for unpaired Ewes and Rams. Alreadypaired Arian twosomes experience renewed harmony in their relationships. Money matters also take a bright turn.

TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) Use that strong Bovine determination to help you keep the faith with your convictions while you move through a period of uncertainty.

Things begin to ease by the week’s end.

GEMINI (May 21 to

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LEO (July 23 to August 22) It’s OK to focus on the demands of your career. But try to avoid misunderstandings by also reaching out to family and friends. Your sharp intuitive sense kicks in by midweek.

VIRGO (August 23 to

September 22) Keep a rein on that green-eyed monster. Jealousy is counter productive.

Instead of resenting a colleague’s good points, concentrate on developing your own abilities.

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July 22) Concern for the well-being of someone in need is admirable.

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LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) Spending time on a creative project during this high-energy week can pay off both in emotional satisfaction and in impressing someone who is glad to see this side of you.

SCORPIO (October 23

to November 21) Now is a good time to start planning that trip you’ve put off because of the demands on your time. Be sure to choose a destination that is new and exciting.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) That upbeat mood in the first part of the week makes you eager to take on new ventures.

A more serious note sets in later to help you assess an upcoming decision.

CAPRICORN (December

22 to January 19) A high energy level gives the Goat the get-upand-go to finish outstanding tasks before deadline, leaving time for well-earned fun and games with friends and family.

AQUARIUS (January 20 to February 18) Dealing with disappointment is never easy.

But the wise Aquarian will use it as a vital lesson and be the better for it.

A close friend has something important to say.

PISCES (February

19 to March 20) Best bet is not to get involved in an argument between colleagues until you know more about who started it and why. And even then, appearances could be deceiving. Be alert.

BORN THIS WEEK You have creative gifts that inspire those who get to see this sometimes-

hidden side of you.

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