Go Memphis

Organizers postponed the "A Different Me Tour" at the DeSoto Civic Center on June 12 due to a power outage, but at Monday's rescheduled show, headliner Keyshia Cole gave an electrifying performance. The R&B songstress took the stage rocking ripped, fitted jeans. Her boundless charisma filled up the three-level set that resembled an apartment building complete with fire escape and garbage cans with simulated flames. The R&B songstress took the stage rocking ripped, fitted jeans. Full story »

An aw-shucks attitude and confident determination, show biz guile and genuine love; that's the essence of Charley Pride. It's Thursday night in Tunica, and Pride is in a reminiscing mood. He's returned to his old stomping grounds for a Grammy-sponsored celebration of Mississippi music at the Harrah's Horseshoe Casino. Even now, some 40 years after his ascent, it's remarkable to consider that one of the most successful country stars of all time is an African-American from Sledge, Miss. Full story »

Like a kid playing records for his friends after school, Memphis director Craig Brewer is trying to turn people on to some of his favorite music artists with his current MTV-backed multimedia extravaganza, "$5 Cover." "The initial hope was that the world could see them," Brewer says of the project, which tells the barely fictionalized stories of a diverse cross-section of local artists, including rapper Al Kapone and roots-rocker Amy LaVere. Full story »

On their current tour, Jennifer Hudson and Robin Thicke share a backing band and star billing. But playing before a sold-out crowd at the Orpheum Theater on Monday night, the pair split on their approaches to modern R&B, with one delivering a high-energy performance heavy on the dance grooves while the other sang to the cheap seats in a pitch for full-blown diva-hood. Full story »

After a steady stream of releases at the beginning of their 15-year career, Memphis rap kingpins Premro "8Ball" Smith and brother in rhyme Marlon Jermaine Goodman, MJG, have been a bit stingier with their records lately. Last year's greatest hits collection aside, their last official collaboration dropped two years ago. Full story »

While an untold number of next-big-things have traipsed across the national stage since they began a dozen years ago, Death Cab For Cutie have remained a steady, under-heralded force on the alternative music scene, cranking out a steady stream of recordings marked by the lovely melodies and sinuous lyrics of frontman Ben Gibbard. Both qualities were on display Saturday night, as the band played a sold-out show before a crowd of about 2,300 at the Orpheum. Full story »

If there was one hurdle left for rapper Lil' Wayne, it was to master the art of live performance. The bar for live hip-hop is notoriously low, with most performers content to strut across a bare stage chanting over backing tracks. But to get to that genre-transcending level of superstardom of a Diddy or a Beyoncé, Wayne would have to put on a show. Sunday night he did just that with an intricately staged, intermittently brilliant performance before a crowd of about 6,000 at the FedEx Forum in Memphis. Full story »

The humidity. Our love of pork products. The regressive tax structure. Perhaps we just don't buy enough Mandy Moore records. Whatever reasons Ryan Adams may have for not liking the Bluff City, the alt country superstar delivered his second straight lackluster concert here Wednesday night at the new Minglewood Hall in front of a sold-out crowd of 1,500. Known for his testy and erratic behavior, even since giving up drugs and alcohol three years ago, Adams has a history of iffy shows here. Full story »

Saturday's IRIS Orchestra concert was an evening of wit, virtuosity, delicacy and grandeur. The star was trumpeter Alison Balsom, the U.K. phenom who co-owns the instrument along with the angel Gabriel. Her treatment of Hummel's Trumpet Concerto was exquisitely refined and beautifully turned. Full story »

Here's something to keep in the back of your head as you're reading about the Most Patriotic Album in American History. It was made by a Canadian. Mind you, television producer Douglas Hutton has done a lot of traveling across this great nation in the 30 years since he first dreamed up a concept album that would "tell the story of America." A notable Memphian appears in the thank you section of the liner notes. Full story »

Lucinda Williams didn’t require any buildup or big introduction as she took the stage for a sold-out show at the newly opened Midtown performance space, Minglewood Hall, on Tuesday night. At age 56, the veteran roots songstress sang and played with a confidence that was well-earned, as she delivered a wide selection of songs from across her 30-year career. Full story »

Even with the cameras swooping beneath her feet, wide-angle lenses cranked open so that she fills the television screen like an MTV siren, there’s no camouflaging the fact that Alexis Grace is the tiniest contestant on this season of “American Idol.” She barely scrapes 5 feet, has a child’s milky cheekbones and the pixie pink highlights of a teenage rebel on a Nickelodeon sitcom. She also has a voice that adds about 10 inches in all directions. The girl’s got soul. Memphis soul. Full story »

Old Crow Medicine Show and the Felice Brothers were the billed attractions, but the popular Americana bands ended up sharing the spotlight with the very venue in which they performed Sunday night as Memphis’ newest music room, Minglewood Hall, opened its doors for business. The night’s headliners, Old Crow Medicine Show, are the most unlikely stars to arise on the roots music scene in recent years. The band’s show Sunday was as wild and raucous as any rock show. Full story »

There was something fresh and bracing (mostly) about this weekend's Memphis Symphony Orchestra MasterWorks program. Full story »

Stolen Victoria’s Secret Gift Card Or Takeover; Girls Of The Gravitron -- This limited-edition, seemingly homemade disc — the CD “case” is a hand-folded Xerox — collects nine tracks, totaling just over 23 minutes of music, from this under-recognized DIY outfit, including their well-received 2008 7-inch “Malthusian Love Song.” Girls Of The Gravitron is made up of members of the more popular The Barbaras and Kazalok. Full story »