It seems hard to believe, and even more difficult to accept, but the Williams’ sisters careers are nearing their end. While neither Venus nor Serena has made any public statements announcing or even hinting at retirement, the signs are there. Last Wednesday both pulled out of the U.S. Open, making it the first time in 18 years neither sister will participate in that event. Serena Williams cited a torn hamstring, while Venus said her withdrawal came due to a leg injury. Their decision followed the departure of male stars Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. It’s the first time since 1997…
Author: Ron Wynn
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — One of reggae’s finest producers and most flamboyant performers passed away Sunday. Lee “Scratch” Perry died at a hospital in Lucea. The Jamaica Observer initially reported his passing. Perry was 85. His impact as a vocalist and performer not only was massive in the worlds of reggae and dub, but extended into rock and rap. His passing was noted by a number of international politicians and musicians, as well as Jamaica’s current Prime Minister Andrew Holness. “My deep condolences to the family, friends, and fans of legendary record producer and singer, Rainford Hugh Perry…
By Ron Wynn Amazon Prime Video is continuing to make its presence known in streaming circles and has now landed one of country music’s two biggest award shows. They announced Monday that Prime Video will stream the Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM) live in 2022. The awards, produced by MRC’s Dick Clark Productions, are moving from their longtime home at CBS, which has aired the ACM Awards every year since 1998. “We’re excited to continue to expand our content offerings for Prime Video customers by being the exclusive home for the Academy of Country Music Awards in 2022 and…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Over the last couple of years outstanding previously unreleased LPs of John Coltrane have been unearthed in different places. The latest example of that concerns a live version of the music many consider the greatest Coltrane ever recorded. That’s “A Love Supreme.” Until now it was widely assumed that there was only one live recording of “A Love Supreme.” It was recorded in July 1965 at a festival in Antibes, France, but never released until 2002. However various collectors, critics and historians were aware that “A Love Supreme” was played live in its entirety…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — There wasn’t really any question of if goalie Juuse Saros would sign a new deal with the Nashville Predators, only when would it happen. Saros inked the new deal last week, signing for four years and $20 million. Considering that Saros had arguably been the best goalie in the NHL for the second half of the season and had played well despite the Predators’ first-round playoff loss to Carolina, it didn’t really raise any issues when he filed for salary arbitration. The Predators avoided that hearing by reaching agreement on the new deal, making…
The world of major college sports continues to radically change, and over the next few years things will look totally different from how they’ve been throughout the 20th century and much of the 21st. The recent Supreme Court decision regarding what colleges could do regarding the regulation of athletes’ earnings has resulted in individual football players on campuses from Alabama to TSU and beyond making huge endorsement deals before they ever step on a field or a court. These are only the tip of the iceberg as athletes in all sports are now free to reap the dividends from name,…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — It took much longer than anticipated, but the man known as “The Genius” is now in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Charles was among the inductees announced last week along with Pete Drake, Eddie Bayers, and The Judds. Charles was announced as the annual Veteran Era artist. The Judds received the Modern Era Artist medallion. Bayers and Drake earned indction in the Recording/Touring musician category, with both receiving benefit of a tie vote, the first since 2010. The 2021 class brings the total Country Music Hall of Fame inductees to 146. Inductees are…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — There are many different specials coming from many networks chronicling the 20th anniversary of 9/11. As would be expected, native New Yorker Spike Lee has his own perspective on what happened and its impact, and he’s getting plenty of space on HBO to present it. His eight hour opus “NYC Epicenters: 9/11 – 2021 ½“ debuted Sunday night and continues on successive Sundays leading up to the finale September 11. The first half of the opening episode focused interestingly enough on something else – the COVID-19 pandemic and summer of protests that followed George…
With pro football teams beginning preseason games this month and college teams having camps, both the NFL and the NCAA are cautiously hoping that somehow they can make it through this season without games being delayed and/or postponed and rescheduled due to COVID-19. That hope may prove overly optimistic looking at the soaring rates of infection across the nation, in particular throughout the South. The NFL has already announced that not only do they not have contingencies in place for teams that might not have enough players in place for a game, but if teams cannot take the field with…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — He may be gone, but the music of Prince retains plenty of popularity. His newest posthumous LP “Welcome 2 America” was only released last week, but it is already his 20th Top 10 album on the Billboard 200 chart. It debuted at number 14 on Saturday, That feat makes Prince one of only 12 artists to have at least 20 Top 10 LPs in the charts’ 65-year history. Technically, “Welcome 2 America” is not a new album. Prince recorded it in 2010, but for whatever reason it has just now been released. It’s also…