NASHVILLE, TN – (TN Tribune) – An all-female line-up is set to honor country music luminary Alice Randall as part of The Black Opry’s Three-Year Anniversary Celebration this Thursday, April 25 at City Winery Nashville. Doors open at 6 p.m., show begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at citywinery.com/nashville.
Headlining the evening are Black Opry Revue’s Carmen Dianne, Caroline Randall, Denitia, Julia Cannon, Lori Rayne, Nikki Morgan, O.N.E The Duo, Roberta Lea and Sunny War who will perform previously unreleased songs from Randall’s catalog, in addition to original music. The recognition of Randall’s works comes on the heels of her newest release, My Black Country The Songs of Alice Randall (Oh Boy Records) and her latest book “My Black Country” (Simon & Schuster.) In addition, the Black Opry Revue will honor trailblazers Linda Martell and Rissi Palmer with select performances celebrating the past, present, and future of Black country music.
The Black Opry Three Year Anniversary Celebration Honoring Alice Randall is sponsored by The Change Agent·cy, Oh Boy Records and Wrangler. For more information on The Black Opry, visit BlackOpry.com.
The Black Opry is a fast growing organization that seeks to create equity and opportunities for Black artists working in the country, Americana, folk, and roots music industries. Although this music has been made by, and loved by, Black people since its inception, they have been overlooked and excluded from participating in it. The Black Opry wants to change that by advocating for the evolution of country music, as well as the other genres, to create a safe, welcoming space for Black artists, fans, and executives within the industry.
The organization’s signature program, The Black Opry Revue, is an ongoing tour of the U.S. that features an ever-changing lineup of unique Black artists. After the success of three stand alone shows in late 2021, the tour launched in earnest in January of 2022. The Black Opry Revue predominantly features acoustic performances “in the round,” a Nashville tradition where artists are able to share their music and stories with the audience in an intimate but powerful way, which is made even more impactful with the inclusion of Black voices. The Revue has provided more than 150 artists an opportunity to play paid dates at over 120 venues and festivals including notable venues Dollywood, CMA Fest, Newport Folk Fest, Americana Fest, Willie Nelson’s Luck Ranch and The Troubadour.
ABOUT BLACK OPRY:
Black Opry, founded by Holly G, is a home for Black artists and Black fans of country, blues, folk and Americana music. The Black Opry Revue showcases the diversity in sound and stories that Black artists offer to these genres. Black Opry Revue is currently touring nationwide featuring different artists. A full list of tour dates can be found at BlackOpryRevue.com.
ABOUT ALICE RANDALL:
Alice Randall is a New York Times best-selling novelist, award-winning songwriter, educator, and food activist. A graduate of Harvard University, she holds an honorary doctorate from Fisk University, is on the faculty at Vanderbilt University, and credits Detroit’s Ziggy Johnson School of the Theater with being the most influential educational institution in her life. She is widely recognized as being one of the most significant voices in 21st century African-American fiction.
Randall has presented across the nation: In auditoriums, libraries, museums, and ballrooms; in fields, in graveyards, and harborside. She once did a talk for a group of students as they marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. In all those spaces she weaves history, literature, practical wisdom, and political passion into powerful exchanges with large and small audiences. She covers expected territory in unexpected ways and makes unexpected territory accessible.
Her most frequent topics include: fiction, fiction writing, and literary theory; soul food cookbooks, Black foodways, and Black Cocktail culture; Black presence and influence in country music, country lyric in American culture, and country music through a feminist lens. She is known for integrating cooking demonstrations, food tastings, and even pop-up hula hooping sessions into her talks. Randall’s fiction has been or is currently being taught at a wide range of universities, including Fisk, Harvard, Iowa State, Penn State, Philander Smith, Princeton, Tuskegee, The University of Texas Austin, The University of Virginia, and Wesleyan.
