Black voices from the South and great American Music
Welcome back to The American South!
Thank you so much for being a part of our community.
As we celebrate Black History Month, I'm humbled to look back at the history of my ancestors and honored to look forward to what the next generation will bring. It's my joy to share a story from a Southern series, Hallowed Sound: How Black voices from the South made American Music what it is today. I can't even imagine my day without music. I don't have a favorite genre; I love it all (blues, hip-hop, R&B, funk...)
American South's Todd Price wrote a piece about jazz music, its origin, legacy and star power. I love the way the story illuminates how the traditions of jazz, so beloved in New Orleans, continue to make its mark in football stadiums, street parades and a myriad of places as an essential sound of the city.
Also, join us in celebrating our one-year anniversary and see a snapshot of the 'Best of American South,' compiled by reporter Andrew Yawn. He also penned a piece on health care workers reticent to take vaccines and the reasons may surprise you.
Take good care,
Ashley Hopkinson, Editor (The American South)
p.s. Looking for something to smile about? Check out these adorable Mid-South puppies. They will be featured in the Puppy Bowl. (Yes, of course that's a thing.)
What's the South talking about?
- Dolly Parton declined the Presidential Medal of Freedom, twice.
- Alabama prison funding can top 3 billion but is it enough?
- Yardi-Gras! New Orleans House Floats. Details: the official map.
Distrust, misinformation hamper COVID-19 vaccine drives for health care workers
For many health care workers, the vaccine was a welcome shot in the arm for an industry on the frontlines of a pandemic that's claimed 441,000 lives as of Feb. 1. But as states work to increase the supply of vaccines, the rollout has also met unlikely resistance from hesitant health care workers in the South and nationwide. What's stopping some Southerners from getting the vaccine? And what are leaders in the industry doing to address fears and concerns? Read more here.
Jazz mixed cultures and sounds along the Mississippi, and an American art form was born
"Saxophonist Donald Harrison, when he listens to the earliest jazz recordings, hears even older sounds. In the playing of those Black musicians from the early 20th century, Harrison discerns elements forged in New Orleans’ Congo Square.
A public market most days, on Sundays it was the one place in the South before the Civil War where Africans, both free and enslaved, could sing and dance in public. Here, the rhythms of Africa, played openly and with abandon, mingled with the musical forms of Europe." Read more here.
The Best of The American South: Our favorite stories from our launch year
We recently celebrated our one-year anniversary. Thank you for being so supportive of our work. We continue on the mission to tell stories that challenge us and celebrate us and welcome you, always, to our front porch to join the conversation! Read more here.