By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — No single musician ever did more to popularize and display an instrument’s capabilities and range than Pete Drake did with the steel guitar. The legendary player, producer and label owner was honored last weekend by the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum with official induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Drake, Ray Charles, The Judds, and Eddie Bayer all received their official medallions, had their exploits recalled and their songs celebrated. For Drake’s widow Rose, the event was a long time coming and certainly well deserved. But she wants fans to…
Author: Ron Wynn
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Alex Miller’s first impact on the national scene came when he appeared on “American Idol” last year doing straight, hard-edged country tunes. Despite being eliminated in the Showstopper Round, Miller’s sound and personality made enough of an impression to signal that he was someone with a great future. The next phase in his career has now occurred with the release of his excellent debut album “Miller Time.” It’s a portrait of a vintage style updated and adapted for modern audience sensibilities. Backed by a tremendous corps of musicians, Miller’s rousing, engaging and energetic vocals…
The Tennessee Titans raised eyebrows and also generated an unexpected publicity bonanza when they selected quarterback Malik Willis with the overall number 86 overall pick in the third round. Ordinarily, a third rounder is marginal, a player not quite guaranteed to make the team but with a decent shot to contribute down the line. But with fan disenchantment with incumbent Titans starting QB Ryan Tannehill at an all time high, suddenly the rumors began swirling that Willis was going to Tannehill’s successor sooner rather than later. Willis is a somewhat controversial figure among the draft projectors and scouts.While some consider…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Civil Rights attorney Ben Crump has been at the center of numerous key social justice cases, most notably George Floyd. Now he will be the subject of an ambitious new documentary series that will be released next month on Netflix. “Civil” is a biographical documentary that is directed by award-winning filmmaker Nadia Hallgren. It is being produced by the prolific Kenya Barrister, whose multiple creations for television and film include the just concluded series”Black-ish.” Hallgren’s most recent production was the Michelle Obama documentary “Becoming.” Others involved with this project include executive producers Erynn Sampson,…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Eric Roberson is both a fine vocalist and accomplished songwriter. The long list of artists he has worked with include Jill Scott, Musiq Soulchild, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Ouslande, Carl Thomas, Vivian Green, 112, and Will Smith among others. Besides being an energetic and engaging singer, Roberson is a professor at Berklee College of Music in Boston. That background is cleverly referenced on his latest single “Lessons,” and further explored in a new book titled “Lessons: 100 Thoughts On Life & Love.” But these are just the foundation for his latest album, also called “Lessons,”…
NASHVILLE, TN — Nashville SC will finally play before a home crowd this weekend, and they hope the first game in their new stadium will be a momentum starter that helps offset the disappointing end of their road trip. They played the LA Galaxy tough for 86 minutes, then one mistake ended with the only goal in a 1-0 loss. That completed a grueling eight-game road stint. The Galaxy had been threatening the entire evening. After a Galaxy corner kick, center forward Dejan Joveljić found the bottom right corner of the net in the 86th minute to seal the win.…
It’s become another of those self-fulfilling cliches that Blacks are no longer interested in baseball. The latest figures show only 7,8% of MLB clubs have Black Americans on the rosters. Despite the efforts for years of such organizations as RBI, Little League figures reflect a continuing disinterest in participation by Black youngsters. The growth of travel baseball, with its own set of expenditures, is widely viewed as another problem, while college baseball scholarships pale in comparison to what’s being offered in football and basketball packages, especially with the explosion of NIL (name, image, likeness) money available. But last week MLB…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Though David Bowie achieved fame and greatness as a musician, he also did his share of acting. His most memorable role came in the film “The Man Who Fell To Earth,” a 1976 film inspired by Walter Tevis’ novel of the same title. The film had such impact that no one’s dared try to do a new version. But now Showtime is tackling it in a different way, by creating a series. Showtime’s “The Man who Fell To Earth” debuted last Sunday. It’s a 10-part series featuring Chiwetel Ejiofor in the title role as…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — With more and more artists set to begin touring in the wake of the pandemic seeming to ease some, one of the nation’s most engaging and popular women performers will be coming to Nashville soon. The singer and songwriter Lizzo will begin her latest national tour this fall, and she’s heading to Nashville Oct. 23 at Bridgestone Arena. Tickets will go on sale Friday nationwide. Her latest LP “Special” is due in July. There’s already a hit single available “About Damn Time.” This tour will be produced by Live Nation and start September 23…
For decades while the nation’s predominantly white conferences refused to admit Black students HBCUs were the place where their athletic talent was allowed to flourish. There weren’t national networks airing their games and many major newspapers ignored the exploits, but NFL and NBA, even some MLB scouts found their way to these campuses and some of those leagues’ greatest stars were drafted and became household names. Then changing times and Civil Rights legislation eliminated state sanctioned segregation, coupled with extraordinary performances from pioneering Black athletes at previously all-white institutions. As the barriers were shattered, suddenly the SEC, Big 10, Pac-8…