A Sunday of Festivals April 17, 2011

Between the Rajun Cajun Crawfish Festival at the river end of Beale and the Africa in April at the other end, downtown Memphis was crowded Sunday. And the Grizzlies won their first playoff game ever!

Juke Joint Festival 2011/Africa In April 2011

This weekend has been a busy one, with Clarksdale's Juke Joint Festival, and Africa In April, Hot Wing Festival and the Dub Car Show in Memphis. I couldn't figure out which ones I wanted to do, so I went to Clarksdale and then back to Memphis to catch the tail end of Africa in April's first day.

From Austin to Memphis March 20, 2011

March 7, 2011-Hunter Promotions Industry Summit in Memphis

One day after the Southern Entertainment Awards in Memphis, Ricardo Hunter of Hunter Promotions sponsored an Industry Summit at Zodiac Restaurant and Lounge in Hickory Hill, and the event was extremely well-attended. Janie Jennings, Bigga Rankin, DJ Drop, Bigg V, Joe Gotti, Criminal Manne, Don Tripp, Smurf, 2 Deep, Devin Steel and Care Bear were just some of the regional industry veterans who were present.

Southern Entertainment Awards Day 2 and Mid-South Radio & Records Conference March 6, 2011

This weekend was a busy one for the music industry everywhere, with the CIAA basketball tournament in Charlotte, Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans, Ocean Springs, Mobile and a number of other coastal cities, and two urban music conferences in Memphis, the Southern Entertainment Awards and the Mid-South Radio and Records Conference.

The SEA's continued at the Cook Convention Center, with panels and the opening of the exhibit hall, and then at noon, the Mid-South Radio and Records Conference got under way a few blocks away at the Doubletree Hotel. The honored guest at this year's conference was Al Bell, former CEO of Stax Records, and current chairman of the board of the Memphis Music Foundation. Other notable guests included Ruby Wilson, James Alexander of the Bar-Kays, Toni Green, Skip Cheatham (former program director of Dallas' K-104), and Melvin "A-Cookin'" Jones.

Saturday night, despite the cold, rainy weather, SEA attendees enjoyed the Welcome 2 Memphis Kickoff Party at the Minglewood Hall, sponsored by Memphis promoter Ty Sanders.

The SEA Showcase, and the SEA Industry Mixer at Zodiac Restaurant & Lounge March 4, 2011

The first day of the Southern Entertainment Awards kicked off in Memphis Friday with a performance showcase at the Cook Convention Center downtown, followed by a industry meet and greet at Zodiac Restaurant and Lounge in Hickory Hill.

D-Cinn The Promotion Vol. 2 Mixtape Link

Here is the link to the D-Cinn mixtape I reviewed earlier:

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=FCVSPD21

New Memphis Mixtape: D-Cinn-Tha Promotion Vol. 2

Picked this cool new mixtape up at City Gear in the Wolfchase Galleria the other day, and it is really good. I had not heard of D-Cinn, but he is a young up-and-coming rapper from the Whitehaven neighborhood of Memphis. While some tracks like "Club Crunk" exude an atmosphere of traditional Memphis buck-jumping, others like "We Ain't Cool" show off D-Cinn's considerable lyrical skills. Incredibly, this mixtape is available for free at all local City Gear stores.

Yelawolf instore @ Sneak Peek, Memphis, April 24, 2010

Alabama hip-hop artist Yelawolf stopped by Memphis hip-hop boutique Sneak Peek for a brief instore Saturday afternoon, before heading to the Cozy Corner for a Memphis-style rib dinner and then his performance at the Hi-Tone.

When Storms Arise, April 24, 2010

Strange Fruit Vintage Clothing Launch, Memphis, April 17, 2010

Scenes from the launch of the new Strange Fruit Vintage clothing line launch at MPACT Memphis on South Main in the Arts District.

Africa in April Part IV, April 17, 2010