Soulsville was the name given to the neighborhood surrounding the Stax recording studio where dozens of soul musicians who created the first great golden age of Memphis soul music lived. But Tonya Dyson didn’t think that the Memphis music scene’s best days were behind it. The music and culture had changed—hip hop and slam poetry came to the forefront, and a new generation of musicians had added a “neo” to soul—but the spirit was still the same.
“The thing wasn’t that there was nothing to do in this city,” Dyson says. “It’s just that people didn’t know about it.” And so she founded Neosoulsville.com to get the word on out the positive, progressive, and funky aspects of Memphis music and culture. Since its founding, Neosoulsville has moved beyond just reporting on the scene to making it happen by booking and promoting shows and connecting artists and fans. Dyson’s inside connection to and passion for the music she loves is no accident. She is herself a fantastic soul singer who says she can’t remember when she wasn’t making music—which makes Neosoulsville yet another example of Memphis musicians doing it for themselves.
A few years ago, the festival known as Arts in the Park was a celebration without a home. Even though it was a consistently popular festival for local, regional, and national artists of all stripes, the organizers found themselves bouncing between Overton and Audubon Parks. But they finally found an enduring home when they took on a new name and took to the streets.
RiverArtsFest is an annual fall gathering of painters, sculptors, photographers, crafters, and artisans who father to offer their wares among the galleries and shops of the South Main Arts District. The more permanent galleries and art spaces in the area open their doors to greet the flood of visitors, who are entertained by the multiple music stages and roving street musicians, and fed by the many South Main restaurants. But the RiverArtsFest is not just a gathering, it’s another sign that Downtown Memphis is a viable community again, where only a decade ago there was nothing but empty streets and urban blight.
The Memphis in May International World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest has inspired a lot of innovative cooking over its 30-year history. In April, 2002, it added something a little more enduring to its legacy: a restaurant.
Roger Sapp and Craig Blondis were regular competitors on the barbecue contest circuit for many years when they decided to use their pork expertise to start Central BBQ. Named for the prominent Memphis street where their first store was located, Central BBQ was immediately popular—and it’s not hard to see why. Central BBQ caters to Memphians’ seemingly bottomless appetite for slow-cooked pig meat with the usual assortment of ribs and sandwiches, as well as other, less common dishes such as barbecue salads, turkey breast, bologna and nachoes. There’s even a great portabella mushroom sandwich topped with smoked gouda cheese to serve the vegetarian clientele.
Today, even after opening a second location, it’s not uncommon to see patrons lined up out the door, waiting for a table. Just ask anyone—in the extremely competitive world of Memphis barbecue, Central stands out.
Annual music festival celebrating the past, present, and future of Memphis pop music. Sherman WillMont, the creator of the festival also runs a Memphis tour company and through Shangri-La Projects has eleased over 40 records, books, videos, and publications focused on Memphis bands like the Grifters, Simple Ones, Memphis Goons, Will Roy Sanders, and the Strapping Fieldhands (Philiadelphia’s finest). Shangri-la Projects also publishes an essential visitor’s guide to Memphis hotspots called Kreature Comforts’ Lowlife Guide to Memphis. Recent releases have included a book and 2 cd volumes chronicling Memphis awesome ’60’s & ’70’s garage band scene.
