By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Keyboardist Joseph Wooten has achieved distinction in two different settings for several years. He’s probably best kown as a member of the Wooten Brothers, one of Middle Tennessee’s finest bands and a group that performs with equal ferocity and brilliance funkm, rock, soul and blues numbers, both originals and classics. But Joseph Wooten is also well known and highly respected among rock fans for being a principal member and keyboard contributor to the Steve Miller Band. Next year will mark the start of his third decade in that role, plus he’s also an arranger…
Author: Ron Wynn
Eddie Robinson Jr. “Big” John Merritt. Jake “The Snake” Gaither. “John McClendon. Clarence “Big House” Gaines All these men became legends at HBCU institutions and are beloved figures to t his day. For a short while there were some who thought that Deion “Prime Time” Sanders might join this robust group, though anyone really familiar with the Sanders track record knew he was never destined to remain at an HBCU permanently. or even long-term. Sanders did what many white coaches do at smaller mainstream schools. They use their first jobs as stepping stones for eventually bigger positions. But Sanders didn’t…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — He was probably best known for long running roles in “Matlock” and “Walker Texas Ranger.” But actor Clarence Gilyard Jr., who passed last week at 66, also had major roles in such Hollywood film blockbusters as “Top Gun” and “Die Hard.” In recent years he had become a college film professor. Professor Gilyard was a beacon of light and strength for everyone around him,” UNLV film chair Heather Addison said in a statement. “Whenever we asked him how he was, he would cheerfully declare that he was ‘Blessed!’ But we are truly the ones…
NASHVILLE, TN — The long wait regarding Will Smith’s first project since the infamous Oscar slap moment is about to make its debut. “Emancipation” has its complete opening this Friday on Apple TV + after a previous soft opening in a few select theaters in such cities as New York, Atlanta and Washington D.C. But in a lengthy interview published this week director Antoine Fuqua reveals he had extensive talks with Apple TV + regarding the film. “They were very sensitive to myself, to Will, to all the people who worked on the movie,” Fuqua told Vanity Fair. “There was…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — With interest sky high at the moment for news about British royalty and in particular about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle., a new documentary about their relationship is coming to Netflix. The streaming service released a first-look trailer on Dec. 1 for the highly anticipated project. The series, which is directed by “What Happened, Miss Simone?” director Liz Garbus, promises an intimate account of the couple’s courtship — and unprecedented access to their tumultuous years as senior royals. In the first trailer, which shares an array of romantic photos of the couple but none…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — The Vanderbilt Commodores completed a surprising 5-7 regular season in disappointing fashion Saturday as in-state rival Tennessee rolled to a 56-0 victory. It was Tennessee’s 10th win of the season, and sets them up for prestigious bowl. Vanderbilt can point to some milestones reaches this season, but the finale revealed hom far they still have to go before being able to consistently challenge the SEC’s top teams. Despite not having either its top QB or wide receiver available, the players Tennessee did have proved far superior to Vanderbilt’s Joe Milton, the Volunteers number two…
Throughout his tenure at Jackson State University Deion Sanders has often been the talk of the college football world. This season he is a top candidate for national Coach-of-The-Year honors in FCS for the year his team is having at Jackson State. They are currently undefeated (11-0) and the favorite going into next Saturday’s SWAC title game against Southern. If they win that and the Celebration Bowl in Atlanta against the MEAC champ, Sanders squad would have completed a perfect season. Now in his third year at JSU, Sanders’ record going into the SWAC title game is 26-5. That coupled…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Because of a cancellation, the Tennessee State Tigers have been off for more days than planned. They haven’t played since last Wednesday, when they lost 77-72. It was their second loss of the pre-conference season against four victories. But the loss provided head coach Penny Collins with more information about the quality of his team. For one thing, he has plenty of firepower among his reserves. TTSU had four players in double figures. They were led by Dedric Boyd, Adong Makuoi and Christian Brown each with 12 points.They also got solid defensive pressure on…
NASHVILLE, TN — One of contemporary R&B’s finest performers will be back on tour next year. The legendary Anita Baker made the announcement last week. Baker, whose distinctive sound has won her right Grammys, announced that she would be doing a special run of live dates for 2023. The Songstress’ tour, produced by Live Nation, will bring her to 15 cities, kicking off on February 11th at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, FL making stops across the U.S. in Atlanta, Baltimore, Houston, and more before wrapping up in Oakland’s Oakland Arena on December 23rd. The tour celebrates Baker’s 40 years…
Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Viola Davis has earned many industry honors and accolades throughout her outstanding career. She’s currently starring in the film “The Woman King.” But last week she received some news that has the potential to put her in a special category: that of being an EGOT winner (someone who’s won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony) award. Davis found this out when informed she was being nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Audio Book Narration, and Storytelling Recording, for her narration of her book, “Finding Me.” She’s facing some formidable competition. Others nominated…