By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Nielah Burnett and her partner/husband Trey Roberts have ambitious plans they hope will both revolutionize an industry and change attitudes and viewpoints regarding the importance of health and fitness in Black communities, both locally and nationally. What’s otherwise known as the wellness industry has become a major force in many cities, and is particularly growing in major urban areas like Atlanta, Washington D.C. and Charlotte. But Burnett wants to see the same appreciation for the importance of wellness and a holistic approach to life in Nashville’s Black community. Towards that end she and Roberts…
Author: Ron Wynn
As is so often the case, the mainstream media saw Sunday night’s 31-9 Super Bowl victory for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers almost solely as the result of Tom Brady going from the Patriots to a new team and winning yet another title. While there’s no question that Brady’s performance was impressive, and his track record of now being on seven Super Bowl winning teams is unmatched, there were many other arguably more important stories that were either overlooked or underplayed in the wake of Brady getting another MVP award and Super Bowl title. The first was the presence of Black…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — There will be something new for Tennessee State University football this year. While the pandemic wiped out their fall year, the Tigers are going to play a seven-game Ohio Valley Conference slate in the winter and spring, beginning with Jacksonville State Feb. 23. All the games will be on Sundays and four are set for Hale Stadium. Unlike most seasons, these games are not practice, but actual competitive contests that will count in the standings. That’s not the only good news coming from the TSU campus. The athletic department also announced last week that…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Though she no longer resides in Music City, Dr. Regina Vincent-Williams has a lengthy Nashville background. She’s been a prolific author and poet over the years, as well as formerly being part of the Tennessee State University family and also one of the original contributors to the WFSK-FM radio show “Freestyle.” She now lives in Fremont, OH, and combines being a motivational speaker with serving as an educational consultant and involvement in multiple local social and political activities. But her newest venture is an updated version of her very first book titled Surviving Life…
Another NFL coaching cycle has come and gone, and the numbers in terms of Black head coaches don’t get much better. The league has publicly pronounced diversity as a major goal. They expanded the Rooney Rule to make it mandatory for teams to interview at least two minority candidates for every coaching/management vacancy. Any team that does hire a minority head coach receives for two years two additional third round picks, Yet there was only one new Black head coach hired and one Arab American/Muslim out of seven openings. The case of Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bienemy continues to…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — The Tennessee Titans decided to make internal promotions rather than bring in new faces to their coaching staff. So the group that will lead the team into the 2021 season won’t be much different from the 2020 year except there will be old faces in new, key positions, most notably offensive and defensive coordinators. The biggest news is the Titans WILL officially have a defensive coordinator next season. Among the several announced changes last Friday, Shane Bowen moves over from the outside linebacker coaching role to formally take over as defensive coordinator. Bowen was…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — It’s been a busy awards season for Spike Lee, and he’s set to get another one shortly. It was announced this week that Lee and long-time collaborator trumpeter/composer Terence Blanchard would receive the Spirit of Collaboration Award from the Society of Composers & Lyricists. They will receive it at the second annual awards ceremonies later this year. Lee and Blanchard have worked together on 15 films and three television projects.Their many joint ventures have included “Jungle Fever,” “Malcolm X,” “25th Hour,” “Inside Man” and the Peabody award winning documentary “When The Levees Broke.” Lee…
Black History month coverage begins in The Tennessee Tribune and on TnTribune.com with the story about music during the Civil Rights era. Black History, which is American history, happens every day. During February, we will highlight many of the contributions and successes of Black Americans. Pick up your copy of the Tribune or go to TnTribune.com for articles found exclusively in the Tribune. By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Music played a huge role during and throughout the Civil Rights Movement, both in terms of providing inspiration, and serving as an illustration of the feelings and sentiments that were being…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — The list of candidates for the Titans’ offensive coordinator position got an interesting addition last week. Former Los Angeles Chargers quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton was reported getting interviews with both the Titans and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Hamilton is available because the Chargers fired head coach Anthony Lynn at the end of this past season. Lynn is now the new offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions. Hamilton’s name is of interest for multiple reasons. First, he helped rookie Justin Herbert adjust this season to the NFL and Herbert came on to have a good year…
By Ron Wynn Consistent excellence was the hallmark of Henry Aaron’s extraordinary baseball career, one that saw him earn 21 All-Star team honors in 23 seasons while playing for the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves, returning at the end to the Milwaukee Brewers. Aaron, who passed last week at 86, was never flashy, just routinely outstanding. Despite never hitting 50 home runs in a single season, he had eight 40-homer years. When Aaron retired he had amassed 3,771 hits (third all-time) and was the Major League career leader in runs batted in with 2,297 and total bases 6,856. It’s a measure…