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Tasha Bibb

contents

December 11 - 24, 2019 • Vol. 18 No. 8

ON THE COVER Unknwn, photo by Drew Dempsey

6 Publisher’s Note 9 Talks

11 Challenged A black woman won a seat in DeSoto County. Her white opponent wants the win overturned.

14 MS Boy Choir

usiness is Tasha Bibb’s pleasure. Starting as an intern for Innovate Mississippi, she quickly moved into a plethora of roles within the organization from state director for the United States Academic Decathlon in Mississippi to her current position as entrepreneurial development director. “I saw everything (Innovate Mississippi was) doing and just got really excited,” Bibb, now 36. She graduated from Forest Hill High School in south Jackson in 2001. When Bibb saw entrepreneurs starting their businesses, she believed she needed to be a part of it, which sparked her interest in the field of entrepreneurial development in the first place. “I just wanted to learn more about it,” Bibb says. “I wanted to fully immerse myself into entrepreneurship. (Innovate) allowed me to do that—to learn more—and the rest is history.” Bibb explains that she loves her work at Innovate Mississippi because she gets to interact with and help build small businesses all around her home state. “I enjoy working with entrepreneurs and those who are very enthusiastic about creating and making their dreams come true and also making a better future for their fellow Mississippians,” Bibb says. In her position, Bibb is responsible for the organization’s en-

16 Grand Openings Outside of her workplace, Tasha Bibb (right) spends the majority of her time with her husband, Robert, and her children, Preston and Sydnee.

New businesses in the Jackson metro

18 expat 19 Biz

21 RECH Foundation trepreneurial development program, the curriculum and methods they use to help those with small businesses. Bibb manages the development of more than 100 companies per year. She also coordinates entrepreneurial events and develops resources for her program. After graduating from Mississippi College in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, Bibb earned her master’s degree in the same field from Jackson State University, where she graduated in 2009. She said the degree’s versatility and stability are what drew her toward it. “I just saw that there was so much opportunity with a business degree,” Bibb said. “There were several roads I could take in terms of a career choice, and there are lots you can do with a degree in business.” Bibb, who was originally from Clinton, moved to Ridgeland when she married her husband, Robert Bibb, 12 years ago. She says her job takes up much of her time, but she usually spends her free time with her children Sydnee, 9, and Preston, 5. For more information on Innovate Mississippi and its work with entrepreneurs, visit innovate.ms. – Caleb McCluskey

Pauline Rogers helps formerly incarcerated invidiuals re-enter the workforce.

22 Bites 24 Cover story 27 arts 28 Melodies 29 Arts Preview 30 sPORTS 34 music listings 36 Puzzle 36 sorensen 37 astro 37 Classifieds 38 Gift Guide

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

courtesy Tasha Bibb

JACKSONIAN

publisher’s note Editor-in-Chief and CEO Donna Ladd Publisher & President Todd Stauffer Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin Creative Director Kristin Brenemen REPORTERS AND WRITERS City Reporter Seyma Bayram State Reporter Ashton Pittman Culture Writer Aliyah Veal JFPDaily.com Editor Dustin Cardon Investigative Fellow Nick Judin Contributing Writers Dustin Cardon, Bryan Flynn, Alex Forbes, Jenna Gibson, Tunga Otis Torsheta Jackson, Mike McDonald, Anne B. Mckee EDITORS AND PRODUCTION Deputy Editor Nate Schumann Editorial Assistant Azia Wiggins Consulting Editor JoAnne Prichard Morris ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY Senior Designer Zilpha Young Contributing Photographers Seyma Bayram, Acacia Clark, Imani Khayyam, Ashton Pittman, Brandon Smith ONLINE & DIGITAL SERVICES Digital Web Developer Ryan Jones Web Editor Dustin Cardon Social Media Assistant Robin Johnson Web Designer Montroe Headd Let’s Talk Jackson Editor Kourtney Moncure SALES AND MARKETING (601-362-6121 x11) Sales and Marketing Coordinator and Writer Andrea Dilworth Advertising Designer Zilpha Young Events Assistant Leslyn Smith DISTRIBUTION Distribution Coordinator Ken Steere Distribution Team Yvonne Champion, Ruby Parks, Eddie Williams TALK TO US: Letters letters@jacksonfreepress.com Editorial editor@jacksonfreepress.com Queries submissions@jacksonfreepress.com Listings events@jacksonfreepress.com Advertising ads@jacksonfreepress.com Publisher todd@jacksonfreepress.com News tips news@jacksonfreepress.com

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Jackson Free Press 125 South Congress Street, Suite 1324 Jackson, Mississippi 39201 Editorial and Sales (601) 362-6121 Fax (601) 510-9019 Daily updates at jacksonfreepress.com

The Jackson Free Press is the city’s award-winning, locally owned news magazine, reaching more than 35,000 readers per issue via more than 600 distribution locations in the Jackson metro area—and an average of over 35,000 visitors per week at www. jacksonfreepress.com. The Jackson Free Press is free for pick-up by readers; one copy per person, please. First-class subscriptions are available to “gold level” and higher members of the JFP VIP Club (jfp.ms/ vip). The views expressed in this magazine and at jacksonfreepress.com are not necessarily those of the publisher or management of Jackson Free Press Inc. © Copyright 2019 Jackson Free Press Inc.

Email letters and opinion to letters@jacksonfreepress.com, fax to 601-510-9019 or mail to 125 South Congress St., Suite 1324, Jackson, Mississippi 39201. Include daytime phone number. Letters may be edited for length and clarity, as well as factchecked.

Engagement, Solutions, Race Equity and IPAs // by Todd Stauffer

’m a fan of the holiday season. I like the music, lights, decorations and schlocky movies. And one of the pleasures of the holidays is making a special effort to get out to a walkable urban environment and do some “shopping.” And, by “shopping” I mean slipping into a bar between excursions into local shops. On a winter night, that first sip from a tart, citrusy IPA—preferably brewed near where I’m drinking it—is divine. Most recently, Donna and I did that in Asheville, N.C., over Thanksgiving; before that, it was in Columbia, S.C., where we’d gone first for a conference. And I pulled it off again this past week, during TeamJXN’s Downtown Holiday event, a co-sponsored affair with Downtown Jackson Partners, Visit Jackson, The Westin Hotel, the King Edward Apartments, Pinnacle Building, Art Lofts and others. It was an excellent opportunity to get out in a wind jacket, stroll around, peruse the craftsy items for sale and, eventually, land at a bar for that IPA. One of my companions on that downtown stroll was Dr. Mukesh Kumar, formerly the director of planning and development for the City of Jackson and currently (again) a professor at Jackson State University. Mukesh sat with me this week for the Let’s Talk Jackson podcast (listen at www.letstalkjackson.com), and we talked a little about how planning affects a city’s growth and prosperity. So, in the past few weeks, I’ve been in southern cities, including Jackson, walking around (and drinking IPAs). In my travels, Jackson (while improving) lagged behind the other two cities, at least in my experience of them. In trying to noodle out why, the best I’ve come up with is this: enough of us have to want Jackson to do better, and then take action. Sound simple? Obviously, it’s not. But there’s hope—the City of Jackson has had Mukesh and his team working for the past two years to grease those wheels. TeamJXN, Visit Jackson, Downtown Jackson Partners, the Mississippi Museum of Art, the Art Center of Mississippi, Thalia Mara, the Community Foundation for Mississippi and others have taken an expressed interest in downtown redevelopment. All those groups have put money and/or human resources into encouraging engaging events and features downtown, where the Jackson Free Press sets up shop in the heart of state and local government.

As we go into 2020, I think two things could help downtown Jackson become more vibrant. First, interest and awareness in downtown need to be curated. Throwing regular. coordinated events, and advertising them widely, would definitely help. Second, we as citizens and patrons need to participate in those events and make a point of heading downtown. If you haven’t spent some time in downtown Jackson this holiday season, get thee to Capitol, Congress, Lamar and

Todd Stauffer, Publisher

Commerce. There are some great places to drop in for an IPA (or similar) on a chilly evening: Hal and Mal’s, 4th Avenue, Parlor Market, the hotels’ bars and restaurants, El Centro, the Iron Horse Grill, the Old Capitol Inn (check its hours). The past few weeks have also given me occasion to meet with some remarkable old friends who are working to promote race equity in this country. The reason that Donna and I went to Columbia, S.C., was because we were invited to attend (and she was invited to speak at, alongside Rukia Lumumba) the Southern Equity Summit. The Summit is organized by the South Carolina Collaborative for Race and Reconciliation, based out of the University of South Carolina and run by Dr. Jennifer Gunter. You may know her as Bingo Holman, whom we first met in Jackson when she was bar manager at Hal and Mal’s. She was later the first assistant editor and writer for the Jackson Free Press in its early days. Sitting with Bingo and Donna in the bar at the Graduate Hotel in Columbia (I was drinking an IPA) took me back to

old times. But seeing her success now also served as a reminder of what one person can do when they decide just to do it— and not stop. Bingo switched careers, earned a doctorate, and has built an organization that just had a successful convening of people from around the Southeast (and beyond) to take on race equity. Bingo modeled the South Carolina Collaborative somewhat on the work of Susan Glisson, who founded and directed the William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation for its first decade or so. (The Winter Institute is going strong with offices in Jackson and a recent grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.) As fate would have it, within 10 days, Donna and I were having dinner in Jackson with Susan Glisson and her partner, Chuck Tucker. Their work since leaving the Winter Institute has taken them all over the country helping groups address racial healing and other disparities. Sitting with these old friends who are doing this work—as well as others in this space such as Von Gordon, Portia Espy, Jake McGraw and Dominic Deleo— reminds me that if we want progress in this state, we must intentionally pursue the solutions for Mississippi’s race issues— politics, economics, justice and equity. If you’d like to get your organization, business, church group or similar entity involved in structured dialogue on race, inequity or other disparities, email me and I’ll get you in touch with the right people. Which brings the two points together. This holiday season, while we enjoy friends and family and IPAs, remember that things only change when we show up and decide we’re going to change them. Going into 2020, the Jackson Free Press will be working on more “solutions journalism” initiatives, where we seek not just to report on the problems in metro Jackson, but also to suss out the solutions— and to involve our readers in the process. We hope you’ll come along for that ride, as well as blazing your own path to help change Jackson, and Mississippi, for the better. In the meantime, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. Bring on good cheer—preferably locally brewed! Todd Stauffer is the co-founder, president and publisher of the Jackson Free Press. He is also the mastermind behind JFP Digital Services (jfpdigitalservices.com). Email him at todd@jacksonfreepress.com.

contributors

Aliyah Veal

Caleb McCluskey

Culter Writer Aliyah Veal is a Jackson native with a bachelor’s degree in English from Spelman College and a master’s in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism in New York. She wrote the cover story on 4th Quarter Exchange.

Freelance writer Caleb McCluskey is from Lucedale, Miss., and is a recent graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi. He uses his degree in journalism mostly to take fancy pictures of dogs. He wrote the Jacksonian story.

Shop locally this season!

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Seyma Bayram

Drew Dempsey is a freelance photographer based in Jackson and the owner of Exposure Creative, LLC. Dempsey specializes in editorial, architectural and portrait photography. He took the cover photo.

Staff Reporter Seyma Bayram is from the Kurdish region of Turkey and grew up in The Netherlands and New York. She is a graduate of the Columbia Journalism School and the State University of New York at Binghamton. She wrote the talk on the Sun-n-Sand.

Torsheta Jackson

Anne B McKee

Freelance writer Torsheta Jackson is originally from Shuqualak, Miss. A wife and mother of four, she freelances and is a certified lactation counselor. She wrote about the Mississippi Boychoir.

Anne B McKee is a Mississippi history-folklorist who frequently works residences with schools throughout the state teaching Mississippi history using the arts of drama and storytelling. She wrote on the Hearth & Mantel Theatre Company’s current production.

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The Mississippi Heritage Trust is trying to save the historic Sun-N-Sand Motor Hotel from demolition. After acquiring the property in July, the State of Mississippi announced plans to demolish the structure and turn it into a parking lot for government employees. Imani Khayyam

A Colorful Past: Can the Sun-N-Sand Be Saved?

ot long into working the bar at the iconic Sun-N-Sand Motor Hotel in downtown Jackson, Rudolph “Cotton” Baronich thought he had seen it all. Legislators, athletes, celebrities, and businessmen were among the clients who frequented the Sun-N-Sand and the George Street Grocery, where he had previously tended bar. Then a petite, brunette woman wearing high heels and a “top-of-the-line” suit walked into the Sun-N-Sand one night around 1970. Baronich was spell-bound. “Who is that? My goodness,” he asked Sara Taylor, a patron and the bookkeeper at Patterson’s Drug Store on State Street. Taylor said the woman, Jean Shamburger, was her sister. Shamburger was a dancer, and she didn’t drink, but she had come to the bar that night to hear the popular in-house entertainer and actress Myrna Loy sing.

Baronich and Shamburger hit it off. It took Baronich, now 90, a year to find the right ring before he proposed to her. The couple were married from 1971 until Shamburger’s death in 2008. Meeting his wife is Baronich’s favorite memory from working at the Sun-N-Sand, but others jump out, like his close friendship with the grumpy but charismatic University of Alabama football coach Paul William “Bear” Bryant. A bibulous, bigshot federal magistrate judge from Mississippi was furious with Baronich for cutting him off one night, but quietly thanked him the next morning after emerging from his bed “rough-looking” and with a hangover. Then there were the men of all ages and backgrounds who regularly sought Baronich’s advice when their marriages were suffering, only to return weeks or months later to tell him that the advice worked.

“I knew how to handle (people) … I became a psychiatrist in the business,” Baronich said in an interview in his home in Madison, Miss., last week. “It was jumping,” Baronich continued as he reflected back on working at what was at one time Jackson’s hippest bar. “It was the elite place back in them days. All the legislators—if you had business at the Capitol, you stayed at the Sun-N-Sand with us.” ‘Cultural Identity of Our State’ The Sun-N-Sand, located on Lamar Street and steps away from the Mississippi Capitol, has sat vacant and fenced in since 2002, but its place in Jackson’s collective memory remains vivid for Baronich and others. The salmon-colored, mid-century modern structure is now slated for demolition after its new owner, the State of Mississippi, acquired it last July, along with the

the Wright & Ferguson Funeral Home on West Street, for $2.3 million. The State wants to tear down the building and build a parking lot on the site for state employees. But the Mississippi Heritage Trust has been fighting to halt that decision with backing of community members in Jackson and elsewhere in Mississippi, designating it in 2005 as one of Mississippi’s 10 Most Endangered Historic Places. The Trust’s goal is to initiate a conversation to consider other plans for the building, such as the potential for redevelopment, with input from the public, Mississippi Heritage Trust Executive Director Lolly Rash said in an interview. “It’s in the cultural identity of our state,” Rash said of the Sun-N-Sand. “It’s not only a Jackson building. People all over the state know this building, and they love more SUN-N-SAND, p 10

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

by Seyma Bayram

JXN // landmarks SUN-N-SAND, from p 9

it. And I know this because we have been talking to people about it.” When businessman and developer R.E. “Dumas” Milner opened the Sun-NSand in 1960, it was the capital city’s first motel in the downtown area. Soon, the establishment became a temporary home for state legislators and lobbyists who would hole up in the rooms, the bar or dining room to discuss ideas during legislative sessions at the nearby Mississippi Capitol. “Everything you ever needed to know about what’s going on, you could find out at the breakfast table,” retired Mississippi Rep. Steve Holland, D-Plantersville, told the Associated Press in 2009. He had lived there for his first 14 years in the Legislature. “Hell, if you didn’t know it, you could start a rumor at 5:30 in the morning. It’d be

and “secretive trysts” that took place there in another book, “My Cat, Spit McGee.” Spit hung out there with Morris there as he was writing “New York Days.” “In the shadowy bar with Patsy Cline and Hank Williams and Loretta Lynn on the jukebox, or in the dining room at breakfast, the pols more or less passed that day’s legislation, merely to be formalized later on the floors of the capitol,” Morris wrote. Integrated Early Located near the Farish Street Historic District, the motel conjures up important memories for Jackson’s black residents as well. As the historian Tiyi Makeda Morris notes, in 1965, the multiracial womenled civil-rights initiative “Wednesdays in Mississippi,” or WIMS, hosted integrated

son that employed black people and treated them fairly, he said. A Jewish man there by the name of Mr. Lewis hired Clark. “The Sun-N-Sand represented hope for me and the children, all the people I grew up around ... because there were black people in there given jobs,” Clark said in an interview. Black people did not simply occupy menial positions there, he said, but were given greater responsibilities, including as supervisors. Sometimes, management allowed them to use the building to host their own private events. “People were proud to say that they worked there,” Clark said. A lot of young black college students financed their education by working at the Sun-N-Sand, where they could earn decent money between salaries and tips, he added. Seyma Bayram

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Rudolph “Cotton” Baronich worked for many years as a bartender and mixologist at the storied Sun-N-Sand, frequented by legislators, athletes, writers, celebrities and businessmen. He also met his future wife there.

around the Capitol later that day.” And rumor has it, it was understood that much of what happened at the Sun-NSand stayed at the Sun-N-Sand. The motel figures prominently in Mississippi’s literary history. The novelist John Grisham wrote “A Time To Kill” while living in a room there when he served as a state legislator. Kathryn Stockett’s novel “The Help” mentions the motel, and writer Willie Morris, who wrote “New York Days” about his time as the editor of Harper’s Magazine in New York City while staying at the Sun-N-Sand, also referenced the “egregious political wheelings and dealings”

lunches at the Sun-N-Sand. National reporters camped there, covering the Civil Rights Movement as it unfolded in real time in Jackson. Retired teacher and athletic coach Fred “Jazz” Clark, who grew up near Millsaps College, got a job bussing and waiting tables at the Sun-N-Sand in 1962 while a freshman in college at Jackson State University. A Jackson native and freedom rider who had gone to prison in 1961 for his participation in the Civil Rights Movement, Clark struggled to find a job upon his release. The Sun-N-Sand was one of few non-black-owned businesses in Jack-

A ‘Time Capsule’ “Here we have a building that talks to so many issues about who we are as a state, and rather than even trying, we are going to make it a parking lot,” Lolly Rash said about the State of Mississippi’s plan to destroy such a cultural landmark. “It’s the default of the position when you haven’t done your homework.” A period of public comment for the Trustees for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History to consider the SunN-Sand Motor Hotel as a state landmark ended Dec. 5, but Rash said there is still opportunity to sway public opinion and

halt the Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration’s plan to demolish the structure. The demolition plan, Rash said, serves only the interests of the State of Mississippi, which views it as an opportunity to increase parking space for government employees without considering redevelopment potential or the motel’s significance to the local community and its place in Mississippi’s larger political, racial, literary, architectural and economic history. “Our position is that we haven’t looked at all our options, yet,” she said. The State of Mississippi has maintained that the building should be demolished, but Rash and the Mississippi Heritage Trust are pushing for an engineering study, a historic structures report and the opportunity for developers to weigh in on the conversation. “I am never going to take someone at face value who tells me that something can’t be saved if they’re the ones tearing it down,” Rash said, referring to its interior as an “incredible time capsule.” A recent Mississippi Landmark Significance Report states that the Sun-N-Sand has “high architectural integrity, retaining its early form, its sturdy concrete construction, and most original architectural details such as light fixtures … decorative ironwork and concrete tiles, and doors,” as Mississippi Department of Archives and History’s Chief Architectural Historian Jennifer V.O. Baughn wrote. The building is a rare example of International-style modernism in Jackson. Its iconic sign is a nod to the futuristic Googie design, a form originating in southern California in the 1950s. Googie was defined by its aesthetic of exaggeration, plastic and neon, and a “wide-eyed technological optimism,” as Smithsonian Magazine described it. Baughn wrote that businesses located along roadsides preferred the bright and angular Googie aesthetic as it stood out more than traditional advertising to patrons driving on the roads at high speeds. At one time, Mississippi had many examples of Googie buildings and signs, many of them along the Gulf Coast, but Hurricane Camille destroyed most in 1969. Baughn maintains that the Sun-N-Sand sign is “probably the state’s best surviving example of a Googie sign.” Developers can tap into historic tax and income credit incentives to transform the property, which is located in an opportunity zone and in Jackson’s African American business corridor. Senior housing and more SUN-N-SAND, p 12

JXN // elections @jxnfreepress

@jacksonfreepress

@jxnfreepress

White Woman Challenges Black Woman’s Win

hough Hester Jackson-McCray is disabled and has no car, she spent seven months this past year traveling from one door to the next, asking residents in her DeSoto County district for their vote in her bid for a Mississippi House of Representatives seat. She had run for the seat before. In 2015, Republican Ashley Henley beat her in the House District 40 election in

loss to Democrat Hester Jackson-McCray, who is African American. In her complaint, Henley cites technical errors, including DeSoto County election officials’ failure to staple a list of voter signatures to the voter receipt book and incorrect dates listed on some documents. Henley also accuses 11 voters of “voter fraud,” claiming they do not live in the district. courtesy Kelly Jacobs.

Declared Mississippi House District 40 winner Hester Jackson-McCray sits in the lobby outside the DeSoto County Election Commission in Hernando while incumbent Republican Rep. Ashley Henley examines ballots on Nov. 19. Jackson-McCray aide Kelly Jacobs told the Jackson Free Press that the Democratic campaign was not allowed inside while Henley inspected six boxes of votes.

a 66% to 27% landslide. Since then, Jackson-McCray has suffered an injury requiring surgery on her knees; so far, she has only been able to have an operation on one. Jackson-McCray had been a nurse for 31 years, but her employer laid her off following the injury. “She is just a person of perseverance,” said Kelly Jacobs, one of Jackson-McCray’s political advisers, told the Jackson Free Press. After the DeSoto County Election Commission finished counting votes in November, Jackson-McCray had made a stunning comeback, beating the incumbent Henley by just 14 points. Jackson-McCray’s win was all the more notable because she is the first black woman to win a House or Senate seat in DeSoto County.

“Hester ran an honest and fair election. She won fair and square,” Jacobs said. “… Her opponent does not say she did anything unfair, and yet they are trying to take this historic win from her.” Still, the House has seated candidates who initially appeared to lose in close races. In 2015, incumbent House District 79 Democrat Bo Eaton tied with Republican Mark Tullos. Eaton won after drawing straws. Tullos appealed the results to the Mississippi House, though, and in January 2016, the GOP-led House decided to seat Tullos instead, after deciding that five ballots election commissioners had counted should be thrown out because the voters had failed to update their home addresses with their local registrar.

‘I’m Gonna Stay’ Now, though, Henley, a white woman, is asking the Republican-controlled Mississippi House of Representatives to vacate the election’s results and seat her instead. “Y’all can keep hatin’, but I’m in this. I’m gonna stay. I’m gonna fight ‘til the very end so that the people of District 40 know the truth,” Henley, who did not respond to a request for comment from the Jackson Free Press, said in a video posted on her Facebook page. On Dec. 4, Henley filed a petition with the Mississippi House of Representatives’ clerk, contesting her 14-vote

‘All About Race’? Jacobs said she does not consider Henley’s challenge legitimate, but is nevertheless concerned that the House, where the Republican Party holds a supermajority, could overturn the results anyway. “I do not see the Republican Party as being a group that stands up for what is fair. So I’m worried that this is all about race,” said Jacobs, who is white. “The black woman beat the white woman. And we can’t have that. So we’ve got to overturn the election and give it to the white girl.” “I don’t see her having any argument for why she

should be declared the winner,” Jacobs added. Henley’s complaint alleges multiple technical errors in ballot counting, including two uncounted paper ballots with Henley’s name marked. She also accuses 11 people of “voter fraud,” claiming they voted despite not currently living in the district. Jacobs said Jackson-McCray will likely have to raise money to pay for representation in the challenge—and she will probably have to defend the DeSoto County Republican election commissioners and their poll workers’ ballot counting. In social-media posts, Henley points out that Mississippi judges are hearing election challenges in eight other elections, too. Henley is the only one who is asking the Mississippi House to hear a challenge, though, instead of taking her case before a local judge, Jacobs said. “Republicans will primarily be judging the hearing, and they will decide whether to declare House 40 vacant,” Jacobs said. In her Facebook video, Henley defended herself against accusations that she is a “racist” or a member of the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans. She said she has drawn those criticisms since she filed her petition. “The floodgates of hate are wide open, accusing me of being a one-percenter, a typical racist white Republican, trying to steal an election. People are gonna believe whatever they wanna believe, but the truth is what matters,” she says in the clip. “So here’s some truth for you.” Her video then shows a clip of the Lakeview Mobile Home Community sign, followed by a shot of a mobile home next to a tall tree. “I planted that tree when I was 8,” she says, before panning to a shot of a rundown old shed. “There is my second home, not the house, but the shed. I lived in that shed from the time I was 16 until I was 20,” Henley says. Her video then shows a shot of an apartment complex in DeSoto County with a sidewalk running across the bottom half of the frame. “This is where my grandmother died, right there on the corner,” Henley tells viewers. Finally, the video pans to a shot of a modest one-story home with a truck in its driveway. “This is my home. It’s nothin’ fancy, it’s old, it needs a little tender love and care—like most of us who live here. But it’s where I call home,” Henley says. “I love it. Just like I love all of District 40.” A Suburban Trend Despite Henley’s challenge, Democrats and progressive activists say McCray’s victory is a bright spot for the state. Former U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy, who ran for U.S. Senate against Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith in 2018 and is challenging her again in 2020, told the Jackson Free Press in November that he offered Jackson-McCray assistance, including voter data, during her campaign. more CHALLENGE, p 12

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

// by ashton Pittman

JXN // city and state SUN-N-SAND, from p 10

Co u y es rt ra LLy Lo

live-work units for legislators, teachers, or law students from the nearby Mississippi College School of Law are among the redevelopment ideas that residents and developers have proposed so far. Regardless of the structure’s fate, the process must include input from the community, Rash said.

more … study of the area to see what development opportunities might actually lie there, but as of this moment, the stance is demolition is not the answer,” City spokes-

‘A Seat at the Table’ So far, the City of Jackson seems left out of the conversation. Rash pointed out that the State’s plan to transform the motel into a parking lot challenges the City of Jackson’s zoning laws. Surface parking is not allowed in that area without a Use Permit, Jackson Planning and Development Director Jordan R. Hillman confirmed. But in 1991 the Mississippi attorney general issued an opinion that excuses the State from meeting municipal zoning and building codes, she added. “Making sure that the City of Jackson has a seat at the table to talk about what happens in the downtown is really important,” Rash said. “That hasn’t happened, yet.” “The mayor does not feel as if demolition of the historic Sun-N-Sand site is necessarily the answer. (He) would like to see

The actress and singer Myrna Loy Stuart regularly performed at the Sun-N-Sand back in the day.

woman Candice Cole said. In a sense, the way that the State of Mississippi is handling the Sun-N-Sand is reminiscent of a history of State-level decision-making that invites little input from the City but wields significant influence on its economic, political and social life. In August, for example, a judge ruled that capital-city residents do not

Early on, Espy’s team examined legislative districts to find out which GOP-held districts were “flippable.” Jackson-McCray’s came up near the top of the list. That area of DeSoto County, which is mostly suburban, is going through rapid demographic shifts, as people from nearby Memphis, Tenn., move into the area. Nationwide, suburban areas have trended blue in recent years. “There’s a national trend and Mississippi is not immune from these trends. … If Mississippi is going purple, it’s going to be in the suburbs,” Espy said in an interview with the Jackson Free Press. Gaby Goldstein, the co-founder of a California-based organization called “Sister District” that helps Democrats in state legislative races across the country, agreed that the area is becoming more friendly terrain for Democrats as it increasingly suburbanizes. “Everybody should be looking at DeSoto County. DeSoto County looks like a place where Democrats should be investing a lot of time and energy,” she said in an interview last month. Democrats showed improvements in other DeSoto County races in November as well. In 2011, the last time a Democrat ran for DeSoto’s Senate District 2 seat, Republican Bill Stone won by 41 points. This year, Democrat Lee Jackson lost by half as much, with Republican David L. Parker beating him by 20 points.

‘Supporting People’ When Henley first won her seat in 2015, she did so with backing from Empower Mississippi, which supports Courtesy Ms House of representatives

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

CHALLENGE, from p 11

have a say in the governance of their municipal airport, after State legislators took over control of the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers Airport in 2016, despite the fact that other cities in America retain control of their municipal airports. The Jackson Municipal Airport Authority had filed a lawsuit against the State of Mississippi, claiming that the takeover of an airport from a majority-black government, in a majority-black city, was racially motivated, but Judge Patrick Higginbotham of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in the State’s favor. Chuck McIntosh, director of communications for the Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration, said State officials have walked through the Sun-N-Sand with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, another state agency. “They’re making the determination if it should be put on the historical register,” he told the Jackson Free Press on Dec. 10. McIntosh added that State of Mississippi property is not subject to the City of Jackson’s zoning regulations. Jackson State professor and former Jackson Planning and Development Director Mukesh Kumar noted that a quarter of downtown real estate is already devoted to

Republican Ashley Henley asked the Mississippi House of Representatives, which is majority Republican, to reverse her loss.

school privatization and advocates for shifting public-education funds to vouchers to pay for private-school tuition.

parking. “That is on the higher side,” he said in an interview, adding that there is a shortage of open public space and high rates of office vacancies in the city. The notion that downtown does not have enough parking is misguided, Kumar believes. “It’s because everybody wants parking right on their doorstep.” He said the downtown business district covers about 330 acres, which includes 87 acres parking lots and spaces. On its website, Downtown Jackson Partners boasts of “plentiful” parking downtown at more than 10,000 spaces. Rash argues that preserving the SunN-Sand could help build community. “What does Jackson need, what does it need the most? It doesn’t need a parking lot, so let’s look at the development (opportunities),” she said. “If in the end, if after we’ve exhausted our options, and we don’t find a good development solution, that’s when you talk about demolition. But you don’t start there,” she added. Follow City Reporter Seyma Bayram on Twitter @SeymaBayram0. Send tips to seyma@jacksonfreepress.com. Residents can write to the Mississippi Heritage Trust at preservation@mississippiheritagetrust.com or contact their state representatives and senators.

Jackson-McCray ran on a pro-public-education platform, which drew a contrast with Henley’s support for “school choice” policies. On Nov. 6, Henley posted a campaign mailer on Facebook that Jackson-McCray sent out during the election. “Let’s reject the radical Republican agenda and elect Democrat Hester Jackson-McCray for State Representative,” the mailer urged across its top. Jackson-McCray’s mailer promised three policies: “Fully funding our public school and raising teacher pay”; “Expanding Medicaid to provide affordable healthcare for working families”; and “Ending the corporate tax cuts to mostly out of state corporations and using those funds to repair our crumbling roads and bridges.” In her Facebook comment, Henley disparaged Jackson-McCray’s policy proposals, warning that, if her opponent won the election, “the agenda in the attached photo will direct the court of our district’s representative in the state legislature.” Jacobs said McCray’s daughter and six grandchildren live with her, and she helps take them to the local public school they attend. “We’re just so proud of her,” Jacobs added. “… Most people, when they are so poor they’re having to choose between having a house and having a car, they don’t run for office. But she had a platform for supporting people.” Follow Jackson Free Press state reporter Ashton Pittman on Twitter at @ashtonpittman. Send story tips to ashton@ jacksonfreepress.com.

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JXN // youth development

The Mississippi Boychoir prepares for its annual holiday concert, “Tidings of Comfort and Joy.” Joe ellis

Mississippi Boychoir Brings ‘Tidings of Comfort and Joy’ // by Torsheta Jackson

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

diverse group of young men have spent months preparing to bring holiday comfort and joy to the Jackson area, and it comes to fruition the afternoon of Dec. 14 at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church. Now in its 25th season, the Mississippi Boychoir’s annual holiday concert is titled “Tidings of Comfort and Joy” and includes both secular and religious holiday music. “The repertoire will feature a mix of classic and contemporary arrangements of old favorites,” says Lanise Aultman, who volunteers as the choir’s administrator. “We have a spiritual included and a hymn.” This year’s concert extends some longstanding traditions of boychoirs. Initially founded in 1995 by Margaret Thomas in Columbus, Miss., the Mississippi Boychoir continues a choral custom that began more than 1,500 years ago. In the spirit of the contemporary versions, the Mississippi Boychoir helps the young men develop vocal techniques and

learn a variety of musical styles while instilling self-discipline and high standards. Performances such as this one allow them to showcase their talents. “They’ve been preparing in earnest for a month or so, now,” Aultman says. The ensemble also prides itself on fostering cultural awareness through economic and racial diversity and inclusion. To that end, no singer is ever turned away for being unable to afford membership in the choir. “There is tuition to be a member of our choir. Of course, we have some members who cannot afford to pay,” Aultman says. About 40% of the boys this year asked for the tuition discount, she says. Currently, the choir has 27 members who range in age from 7 to 16 years old. Most live in the metro Jackson or Vicksburg area where the current two divisions are located. Previous divisions have been located in Columbus, Tupelo, Hattiesburg and on the Gulf Coast. Although the choir has spent the last

few months preparing for their holiday concert, that has not stopped them from appearing in numerous area shows. Most recently, the group performed during the Sugar Plum Fairy’s Tea Party at the Westin Hotel and the intermission of Ballet Mississippi’s “The Nutcracker.” The fall season also saw performances with the Warren Central Madrigals in their Singe Feaste Production and with the Mississippi Chorus Master Chorale in their Veteran’s Day concert. The group is actively preparing for one of its biggest opportunities to date. The boys have been invited to be the Prelude Choir at the Texas International Choral Festival in July 2020. The Mississippi Boychoir will be the only choir to perform its own musical set at the beginning of the Festival Concert held in Dallas. Afterward, they will then join the Festival Choir in its performance. “What’s special about it is that we will have our own 20 to 30 minutes set before

the mass choir set,” Aultman says. “No other choir will get that. It’s (also) unique because generally when we go to festivals, it’s an open invitation, but this was a specific invitation (to us).” Newly appointed Artistic Director Katherine Hoitt leads the choir this year. Hoitt served as the assistant director during the 2018-2019 season and took over as director in June 2019. Caryn Womack serves as the assistant director. The staff of the Boychoir is working to ensure that all its members have the opportunity to attend through Giving Tuesdays and other fundraisers. Attendees at the Dec. 14 holiday concert will also have the opportunity to help sponsor the trip. The choir is also currently holding auditions for the spring semester. The holiday concert “Tidings of Comfort and Joy” will be Dec. 14 at St. Philips Episcopal Church (5400 Old Canton Road) from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free.

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December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

JANUARY 18

JXN // progress

Grand Openings in Greater Jackson // by dustin cardon

he people of Jackson are an entrepreneurial sort, as evidenced by the multiple businesses that have held grand openings throughout this last quarter. Here is a list of some of the newer spots you may want to check out if you have not yet had the chance, as well as some local places to look forward to visiting in the new year.

The nonprofit works with young adults age 18 to 24 who are not currently working or in school. Refill offers a 10week training program, of which participants spend five weeks in classrooms on the building’s second floor developing workplace skills such as answering a phone, sending emails, how to present oneself, resume building, filling job courtesy Jeff Good

Refill Café Refill Café, a nonprofit workforce development cafe located inside the space that once housed Koinonia Coffee House in west Jackson, opened on Tuesday, Aug. 27. The cafe is open for lunch Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jeff Good, president of Mangia Bene Restaurant Group, teamed up with other restaurant owners and entrepreneurs in 2016 to create a workforce training cafe to help young people learn skills for the workplace. The Refill set up a new business in the space after Koinonia’s closure, based on models already in place in businesses such as Cafe Reconcile and Liberty’s Kitchen in New Orleans. Refill obtained a $235,000 loan from Hope Credit Union to purchase the building and a planning grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to develop the café. Good is now chairman of the Refill board of directors, and Carol Burger, the now-retired chief executive officer of United Way of the Capital Area, serves as vice chairwoman.

applications, personal health and wellbeing, professional dress and financial management, anger management and interview skills, Good says. Participants then spend the remaining five weeks in the cafe on the ground floor shadowing full-time employees for on-the-job training, including working in the kitchen, running the register, serving and busing tables and other tasks. The menu at Refill Café will include dishes such as kale Caesar salads, carved turkey sandwiches topped with cranberry dressing, daily “power bowls” of brown rice and quinoa topped with vegetables and a choice of protein, a variety of soups and sandwiches, a rotating selection of daily blue plate specials and more. For more information and details, visit refillcafejackson.com or find it on Facebook. Sophomore Spanish Club Sophomore Spanish Club, a ‘90sthemed Latin restaurant inside The District at Eastover, held its grand opening on Monday, Aug. 26. The restaurant oc-

courtesy uMMc

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Refill Café occupies the space that Koinonia Coffee House once held.

cupies the former Cantina Laredo, which visits, endocrine and hormonal treatclosed in February. ment, STD screenings and treatment, MH Ventures of Jackson, which also behavioral health and psychiatric services, operates Fine & Dandy in The District, medication management and more. The manages Sophomore Spanish Club, and center’s staff includes specialists in family Jesse Houston, executive chef at Fine & and internal medicine, pediatrics, psyDandy, serves as culinary director. chology and psychiatry. The interior of Sophomore Spanish UMMC’s Department of Psychiatry Club is filled with ’90s-related memora- and Human Behavior also staffs an LGbilia, and the decor and menu item titles BTQ specialty clinic that offers mental are both largely inspired by the show health services. That clinic, which opened “Saved by the Bell.” in 2015 at the Jackson Medical Mall, proThe restaurant features bright pink vides psychiatric care and psychotherapy. lighting and tall Mexican candles that The TEAM Clinic offers day-to-day have the faces of prominent actors and medical treatment and help with managtelevision characters from the ’90s on ing chronic conditions such as diabetes, them, such as Jennifer Aniston and Steve with referrals to specialists when needed, a Urkel. release from UMMC says. The clinic norThe menu includes items such as fri- mally sees patients by referral, but anyone to pie with chile con carne, fresh seafood can make an appointment. The Departand fajitas made on a charcoal grill, along ment of Psychiatry and Human Behavior with traditional items such as tamales and refers patients to the LGBTQ specialty enchiladas. Drinks include frozen mar- clinic, which will sometimes refer its pagaritas that customers can add flavors to, tients to the TEAM Clinic. such as prickly pear, and other specialty To schedule an appointment at the cocktails, such as the “Cactus Cat,” which TEAM Clinic, call 601-984-2644. Email is made up of honeysuckle, vodka, prickly TEAMclinic@umc.edu for info. The numpear, lemon, cucumber and orange. ber and email are for non-emergency use. Sophomore Spanish Club is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight, and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. The restaurant’s bar and Cactus Cat Lounge are also open from 10 p.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday. For more information, call 601-203-3333 or find the Sophomore Spanish TEAM Clinic nurse practitioner Jim Miller, left, takes Club on Facebook. the blood pressure of patient Wes McComas.

UMMC Opens LGBTQ Clinic at Jackson Medical Mall University of Mississippi Medical Center recently established the state’s first LGBTQ health clinic at the Jackson Medical Mall. The Trustworthy, Evidence-based, Affirming and Multidisciplinary Care Clinic sees patients by appointment the first Friday afternoon of every month. The TEAM Clinic offers wellness

Rocket Fizz Opens at The Outlets Shreveport, La., native Richard Morris brought Rocket Fizz, a Californiabased specialty soda and candy franchise, to Mississippi with the opening of a new store at the Outlets of Mississippi on Wednesday, Nov. 6. Rocket Fizz co-founders Robert Powells and Ryan Morgan opened their first store in Camarillo, Calif., in 2009.

Bristin Brenemen

Yuzu Ramen features a build-your-own ramen bowl special.

BeanFruit Coffee and Thunderhead Coffee Open Merged Store in Flowood Paul Bonds, owner of BeanFruit Coffee in Jackson, has partnered with Thunderhead Coffee owner Greg Jacob to merge their coffee shops into one location in Flowood, which opened on Friday, Nov. 15. The new location is an 8,000-squarefoot warehouse space on Flowood Drive that includes a factory roasting production area, a lab and coffee training facili-

ties and a walk-in coffee shop that will sell retail items and coffee equipment. Jacob also owns Coffee & Tea Works, a coffee equipment consulting, sales and service company, and Arte Gourmet, a wholesale distribution center for syrups, sauces and teas to coffee shops. For more information about each business, you can visit thun derhead.com and beanfruit.com. Yuzu Ramen and Ariella’s Pasta Bar at Cultivation Food Hall Jackson native Connor Mize, who previously worked as executive chef at Saltine Oyster Bar and sous chef at Estelle Wine Bar & Bistro, opened his own food stall, Yuzu Ramen, at Cultivation Food Hall in The District at Eastover on Monday, Nov. 25. Mize’s stall is located on the west side of the food hall next to Fete au Fete. The menu at Yuzu Ramen includes miso, pork, chicken, beef and vegan ramen bowls; pork or veggie dumplings; steamed pork, beef, chicken or veggie buns; a build-your-own ramen bowl special and more. Yuzu Ramen is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday. Alivia Ashburn-Townsend, owner of Ariella’s NY Delicatessen, has also reopened her restaurant, which temporarily closed earlier this year, as an Italian restaurant called Ariella’s Pasta Bar, which also opened on Monday, Nov. 25. The menu at the newly reopened Ariella’s now includes meatballs, marinated mushrooms, braised pork pasta, chicken alfredo, pasta salad and more. For more information, call 601-4875197 or visit cultivationfoodhall.com. Biz tips: dustin@jacksonfreepress.com.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

The store carries hundreds of varieties of specialty soda flavors from around the world, as well as old-fashioned candies, gag gifts and pop culture items. Morris first discovered Rocket Fizz in 2015, when Powells appeared on an episode of the television show “Undercover Boss.” Morris says he loved the concept of the store so much that he decided to become a franchisee and start working to open his own store. He opened his first store at the Louisiana Boardwalk Outlets in Bossier City in March 2016 and a second store in Arlington, Texas, in 2017. Before opening his first Rocket Fizz store, Morris had worked at Louisiana casinos for more than 17 years. He started out working as a dealer at the Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City, La., and became the casino manager there in 2011. Morris later became a casino manager of the Margaritaville Resort Casino in Bossier in 2013. The Rocket Fizz at the Outlets carries more than 420 different types of soda, including flavors from Rocket Fizz’ own brand. The store also carries its own brand of taffy in more than 85 flavors. For more information, call 769-5244870, visit rocketfizz.com or find the Outlets Rocket Fizz store on Facebook.

JXN // expat

Chandler Griffin, Storyteller // by richard Coupe

“I

’ve done everything from teaching Dalits how to tell stories to running a workshop in Malaysia with kids who are deaf but want to tell their stories,” filmmaker Chandler Griffin says about his career to date. Dalits are members of a lower-caste group in India. “My work is based on always thinking how to make storytelling more accessible.” A fifth-generation Mississippian,

“I don’t see myself as a filmmaker or a photographer. What I am really good at is creating spaces for people to come together and learn something. One of the coolest examples was supporting an 84-year-old (Sylvia Jackson) to tell the story of a 100year-old (Phalange J. Word) in Greenville.” .Jackson interviewed and photographed Word for the story. “That’s absolutely brilliant,” Chandler

is a tuition-based model and is meant for people who are serious about filmmaking and photography. In 2013 they created Blue Magnolia Films, which allowed them to “work with people who have no desire to be filmmakers or photographers, but have every desire to tell their community story.” They raise the money for these workshops themselves. “How do you democratize the process? You don’t charge people,

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Austin Britt

Jackson native Chandler Griffin owns and operates Barefoot Workshops and Blue Magnolia Films, both of which teach participants the skills needed for filmmaking and photography so that they can tell their own stories.

Griffin, 44, was born and raised in Jackson. He attended Jackson Preparatory School, graduating in 1994. He then attended the Savannah College of Art & Design where he graduated in 1998 with bachelor’s degrees in photography and in video/film.

gushes enthusiastically. Chandler and his wife, Alison Fast, have two companies that teach documentary filmmaking and photography: Barefoot Workshops and Blue Magnolia Films. Barefoot Workshops, founded in 2004,

and we don’t nominate the storytellers. The communities or organizations we are working with nominate them,” Griffin says. Most of Blue Magnolia’s work has been in Mississippi. Griffin’s first realization of the power

of storytelling was in Zimbabwe in 2000. He was there to help create a documentary on how HIV/AIDS had affected the country amid the chaos of that time. “It is where I realized the importance of telling these kinds of stories using media and technologies for good. Trying to tell stories that really, really help people,” Griffin explains. Over the past 20 years, he has conducted more than 150 workshops (35 in the Mississippi Delta) in 24 countries, and lived in Los Angeles, New York and South Africa. But recently, almost all of his work has been in Mississippi. “I am annoyingly loyal to Mississippi,” he says. As an expat, he is very familiar with the response people have when he tells them that he is from Mississippi. They often tell him that he doesn’t seem like he is from Mississippi, for example. “What does that even mean?” he muses. Over the last couple of years, he and Fast have conducted workshops throughout Mississippi to teach people, organizations and communities how to tell their stories. He likes to warn: “Towns, you can’t sell outsiders on your town unless the town is sold on itself.” Many camera-making companies have sponsored their work, but the Blue Magnolia workshops have been “boiled down to what happens if you just use your smartphone,” Griffin says. “… Our 91year-old dropped the iPhone a handful of times, but she took unbelievable photos.” “There’s this idea, this kind of image, of who a photographer is and who is allowed to have ownership of these stories, and the reality is that we are in a place now with technology where everybody has a right to that process.” “I’m a Mississippian,” Griffin says, “Pretty much everything I’ve learned in the last 20 years has been funneled into these storytelling projects where communities and organizations take ownership of how the story is told. I want to be part of helping people see us and helping us see ourselves.” Griffin married Fast, now his business partner, in 2006 soon after they ran a media-based workshop in South Africa, and they now reside in Los Angeles, but currently spend much of their time in Mississippi. See: vimeo.com/barefootworkshops

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Mukesh Kumar December 11, 2019

Dr. Mukesh Kumar is an associate professor at Jackson State University who recently finished a two-year stint as the director of planning and development for the City of Jackson. He sat down with Todd Stauffer to discuss his time with the City and what the discipline of planning can (and can’t) do to improve the quality of life in a place like Jackson. Let’s Talk Jackson is sponsored by Mississippi Federal Credit Union (http://msfcu.us/); this episode also is brought to you by the Center for Art & Public Exchange at the Mississippi Museum of Art. More at http://museumcape.org/.

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December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

K L A T S ’ L ET N O S K C JA

BIZ // remodeling

Coming Soon: A Movie Theater Explosion // by Dustin cardon

hile some businesses are busy introducing themselves to the Jackson metropolitan community, others who have already established their presence are finding innovative ways push forward even further. As such, this list details renovations, relocations and more that local businesses have been making over the fall quarter. Ed’s Burger Joint/Capri Theater Mississippi restaurateur Robert St.

have the only movie screen in Jackson. The theater will have seating for 170 people and a 40-foot screen and will show both firstrun and classic movies, as well as host live music shows and more. St. John will also open a 10-lane bowling alley, Highball Lanes, beside the Capri, which will contain a cocktail bar and a restaurant that will serve the cuisine of Crescent City Grill. St. John also plans to open a tiki bar called The Pearl next to the bowling alley. Construction should finish in 2020.

terior facade and a resurfaced parking lot. B&B Theatres will include amenities such as the Marquee Bar, a fullservice bar with beer, wine or cocktails for guests age 21 or older. The theater will also have a lounge, a made-to-order food menu, auditoriums with electronic heated leather recliners and other features. Malco Grandview Madison Memphis-based Malco Theatres has renovated the Malco Grandview Cinema in Wier Boerner Allin Architecture

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Chef Robert St. John is opening Ed’s Burger Joint in Fondren close a remodeled Capri in 2020.

John, owner of the Purple Parrot and Crescent City Grill in Hattiesburg, will soon re-open the long-closed Capri Theater in Fondren alongside bringing another of his Hattiesburg restaurants, Ed’s Burger Joint, to the neighborhood. St. John plans to use a remodeled former service station that once housed Butterfly Yoga, which closed in 2017, as part of the new restaurant. Ed’s Burger joint will serve burgers, shakes, homemade frozen pops and more, and will have rooftop seating and a rooftop bar. Additionally, St. John will re-open and remodel the Capri, which has been closed since 1985. The renovations will include a new projection system, reclining seats and a full bar. When it re-opens, the Capri will

B&B Theatres at Northpark Northpark announced in May that it will open a new 14-screen movie theater by fall 2019. B&B Theatres, which has 50 locations nationwide, is partnering with Northpark to open its second location in Mississippi on 250 Ring Road in Ridgeland, which surrounds Northpark. The other B&B Theatres in Mississippi is at the Vicksburg Mall. For the new theater, Northpark and B&B Theatres will renovate the former Regal Cinema, which closed in January 2019. The renovations will include changes to the lobby, restrooms and concession area, as well as the installation of new screens, seating, carpeting, countertops and signage. The renovations will also include a new ex-

Madison to contain the first IMAX theater in Mississippi. A release from Malco states that the IMAX will open in time for the release of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” on Dec. 20, 2019. Malco has also made additional renovations to the Madison theater, including upgrading the concession area into the Malco Cinema Grill with an expanded food and drink menu; installing a new private-event space that includes virtualreality devices; and luxury recliner seats for all screening rooms. For more information, call 601-898-7819 or visit malco.com. Humana Ridgeland Medicare health-benefit company

Humana Inc. held a grand re-opening for its Ridgeland facility on Wednesday, Sept. 25. The remodeled Humana Ridgeland location has 1,400 additional square feet of space to house fitness, health and wellness classes, as well as a new coffee station. Humana health insurance agents will assist members and Jackson residents with health insurance questions at the site. Humana Ridgeland also offers free fitness classes, health and wellness seminars and education classes on specific diseases. Humana Ridgeland is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 601-605-5130 or visit Humana’s website. Stewpot Renames Food Pantry Stewpot Community Services held a grand opening and dedication ceremony for its newly relocated and expanded food pantry, named in honor of former Stewpot Executive Director Rev. Frank Spencer, on Wednesday, Nov. 6. Stewpot will offer tours of the pantry, its community kitchen and the St. Dominic Community Health Clinic located on the building’s first floor. The Stewpot food pantry originally opened more than 30 years ago in the basement of the renovated church that the organization operates out of, and reopened in its new location on Oct. 21. The new facility is wheelchair accessible and operates like a grocery store rather than a standard food pantry. Stewpot’s food pantry serves more than 5,000 people per year, half of which are senior citizens age 65 or over. Stewpot also provides guests with travel bags of items that don’t need heating, including canned food, dried fruit and other items. Stewpot’s community kitchen is free and open to all visitors for lunch service every day at noon. The food pantry is open in the morning, and service there ends when lunch service begins. The facility also houses the St. Dominic Community Health Clinic on its first floor, which serves adults age 18 or over who don’t have health insurance. The clinic serves more than 3,000 clients per year and offers primary care, flu shots, over the counter medication and more. The clinic is open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, call 601-353-2759 or visit stewpot.org. Watch jfpdaily.com for more biz news. Send tips to dustin@jacksonfreepress.com.

DO-GOODERS // community outreach

Pauline Rogers’ Long Road // by Jenna Gibson in prison, and Hatcher became her mentor. Rogers even lived with Hatcher for three years after she was released from prison, which went against all MDOC rules; she moved out when she got married to her husband, Frederick Rogers, who had been incarcerated for 16 years. “She saw people,” Rogers says of Hatcher. “She looked beyond the most heinous of crimes and mentored you with the best that she could. ... I was a prisoner, but I don’t know if I could’ve done what she did. … I’m still grateful for what she did for me and how she helped turn my life around.” Both realizing they had a call for prison reform and ministry based on their own life experiences, Pauline and Frederick Rogers created the RECH Foundation in 1987. It started when the Rogers opened up the third room in their home to a woman who needed transitional housing, and the foundation is now a 27-acre re-entry campus located in south Jackson. “We plan to get it structured to the point where it lives on beyond us. That the

work continues. Because it’s needed,” Rogers says now. They have a program called MORE, ACACIA CLARK

Pauline Rogers operates the RECH Foundation alongside her husband.

Mississippi Offender Reentry Establishment, that provides ex-offenders with training to assist them in making a successful transition back into society and the workforce. The program teaches life skills, men-

toring, workforce development and more. In Mississippi, Rogers would like to see improvement regarding things like prison conditions, voter disenfranchisement and restoring the rights of ex-offenders. “Every day I wake up and it’s a constant proving of yourself. And when you constantly prove yourself, what you’ve learned is to take it and pour it into somebody else. That’s what it is for me. Strengthen your brother, your sister,” Rogers says. Rogers also insists that improving criminal justice would help to improve the community as a whole The RECH Foundation will have its annual gift giveaway to children of prisoners on Dec. 15 at 1 p.m. at New Horizon Church in Jackson. On Dec. 14 at 9 a.m., it will be packaging the gifts for the event. Volunteers are welcome for both days. Learn more about Pauline Rogers and the RECH Foundation at the organization’s website, rechfoundation.org.

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December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

auline Rogers watched her mother kill her father in an act of selfdefense when she was a little girl. Originally from Vancleave, Miss., Rogers was born and raised in a family where she was one of 11 siblings, and she grew up doing petty crimes like shoplifting, and eventually found herself in prison. Now, she works as the president and CEO of the Reaching and Educating for Community Hope Foundation, a nonprofit that provides transitional housing and support services to those affected by crime and incarceration. “My mother believed in hard work, and that hard work paid off. And that was instilled in me, that work ethic. When I got to prison, I was in culture shock. When I got there, I saw people like me, and I thought, ‘I need to do something about this.’ That was my mindset,” Rogers says. While she was in prison, she met Chaplain Wendy Hatcher, a British woman who was the first hired female chaplain of the state. Rogers began working for her

BITES & DRINKS // candy

Homemade Soft Caramels // by Amy Schumann

hese homemade caramels may take a little extra time and concentration, but by the time you sample the end result, you know that your attention and vigilance throughout the process was worthwhile. Homemade caramels make for a great gift or party favor during any holiday, and an added benefit is that the whole house will have a sweet scent wafting through the air that can outmatch nearly any candle you may come across.

Ingredients: 4 cups sugar 2 cups light corn syrup 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk 1 ½ cup milk 1 cup whipping cream 1 cup butter, unsalted 2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1 2

Thoroughly butter a 13x9 or 15x10 pan, depending on desired thickness of the candy. In a 6- or 7-quart Dutch oven, carefully stir together sugar, corn syrup, sweetened condensed milk, milk, whipping cream and butter.

Place over medium heat and use a wooden spoon for stirring. A wooden spoon is important for making sweets such as these, so do your best to acquire one before attempting this recipe if you do not own one already. Stir occasionally until it comes to a boil, being careful not to get the sugar on the sides of the pan. Once a boil is reached, clip on a candy thermometer and cook, stirring constantly, until the candy reaches the “soft ball” stage at 240°F. Once it reaches 240°F, remove from heat immediately, stir in the vanilla, and then pour (without scraping) into the prepared pan.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Allow candy to stand to cool overnight or approximately 10 hours. Remove from pan onto a wooden cutting board. Cut into one-inch squares. Cut waxed paper into squares approximately 6x6 inches. Then wrap each caramel square in a square of waxed paper, twisting on each end to preserve the candy’s freshness. Makes approximately 100 pieces of caramel.

4 courses. 4 people. On-the-go convenience.

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December 11 - 24, 2019 â&#x20AC;¢ boomjackson.com

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AT THE TH 4 QUARTER EXCHANGE December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

// by Aliyah Veal

ACKSON––Rapper Unknwn wore shades, a black hoodie, jeans and an Army jacket, and her mystique matched her name perfectly. The crowd inside Offbeat in midtown formed a stage around her at the 4th Quarter Exchange, a musical event bringing artists and consumers face-to-face through performances and networking. It was Unknwn’s debut as a rapper, so the nerves were there. But as she performed song after song, her confidence flourished to pull off an impressive first performance. Afterward, Unknwn said she was skeptical of whether she did a good job or not, despite the love from the crowd and praise from her peers. “I was psyching myself out and getting out of breath and stuff. I think I did OK for my first show,” she said. Rapper Dolla Black, the creator of the Exchange, invited her on as a headliner for the event as she’s been record-

ing a lot of music, unknown to the public, she said. Other headliners included rappers Vitamin Cea, Yung Jewelz and Remidee, as well as singer Gentrae’ Rodgerz. It was ladies’ night, which Unknwn said was super dope. “It made me feel like I guess I belong,” she said. “It’s OK to be here and performing because the caliber of artists is so dope. So me being on it and being first is like you got a little something. You might be good enough.” Even though Unknwn said she wants to stay away from the fame, she sees the event as a great way to gain attention as a new artist. “I think it’s dope because even though we get the same people coming to the Exchange, we still get new people coming, so they get to be exposed to us,” she said. Being Intentional The Exchange came about after Rapper Dolla Black’s

friend and rapper Alfred Banks, a performer for the first Quarter Exchange, contacted him about doing a show together. Dolla was in charge of putting the show together, something he had never done before, he told the Jackson Free Press. However, through the process, he got the idea to put on an event of this caliber every quarter of the year. “What if I was able to do a show more often and be able to give a platform to other artists as well? That’s really what it derived from,” the rapper said. “The inspiration that has kept me going is seeing how much the generation that’s here now doesn’t have as far as performance opportunities compared to what I had when I decided I really wanted to do music.” Back when Black first started doing music, there were six venues where independent artists could perform, he said, but today he doesn’t see as many open mics for new artists to form their base.

DREW DEMPSEY

ﬁrst performs for the Rapper Unknwn a , ge an arter Exch time at the 4th Qu d an ts brings artis music event that o-face through -t consumers face d networking. performances an

artist,” Remidee said in a recent interview. The rapper said the Exchange helps bring together different types of art and artists with different styles and promotes networking. Remidee, who is signed to Smokehouse Entertainment in Jackson, said she released her first project, “Applying Pressure,” in 2017 and plans to release a new project in 2020. Drew Dempsey

Jewelz performs Local rapper Yung change. at 4th Quarter Ex

ange orms at The Exch Vitamin Cea perf ers. along fellow rapp for the first time

True to Dolla’s intentions for the event, Remidee said the energy from the crowd was different from what she is used to because they interact with the artists. “You don’t get that at all your events,” she said. Although Remidee says most of her support comes from Jackson, she still wants to be a positive representation for her hometown. “I choose the name Remidee because I feel like I’m going to be the first female rapper to make it out of my city. I’ll be the remedy of bringing some light on my area with the music,” she said. ‘Energy’ It was the first time rapper Vitamin Cea performed at the Exchange, and she found the experience and energy from the crowd surreal. “I can tell it’s some people out there that don’t even know each other, but people are communicating, and so that changes the atmosphere of the type of energy that you get when you go out there,” she said. The crowd rapped along as Vitamin Cea rapped “Lessons” off her 2017 album “JoyFULL Noise.” The rapper dedicated the song to her grandmother, Gloria, who recently passed away and who she felt was with her as she performed the song. “It’s like heavy, but at the same time knowing that she’s good, like she’s where she needs to be,” Vitamin Cea said. “I feel that peace. If it was anything else, I would feel sad and down.” Her grandmother was a boss, someone who spoke her mind, she said. “Even just observing her as a child and seeing how confident she was, that helped me to realize that it was OK to 100% be myself and be bold in it. So I feel like that’s her legacy for me,” the rapper said. more EXCHANGE, see page 26

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

‘The Remedy’ After a brief music break, Greenville rapper Remidee, whose hard, aggressive rap style is reminiscent of Lil Kim and Trina, rocked the mic. In her all-pink outfit, she bounced and two-stepped while rapping her new single, “Work It Out.” Remidee has been rapping for three years now after transitioning from promoting and managing artists. Dolla Black invited her to perform, and she is honored that her talent was recognized, she said. “Once I saw I was on the headline with Vitamin Cea, I was like ‘wow’ because she is known, and she is a good

Drew Dempsey

“I wanted to give a creative platform where the artist will be able to sharpen their tools and get a consistent supporting base of consumers, not just artists,” Dolla said. The 4th Quarter Exchange is the last of 2019, and Dolla said he was intentional in making it an all-female event, as the ones before, excluding the first event in February, were all male. “I wanted to be intentional in making sure that it can’t be said that this platform doesn’t support female artists,” he said. “I wanted to be intentional in giving them their own Exchange so that way they can have the opportunity to indulge in the culture as well.” The rapper calls the event a “social networking experience between consumers and artists.” “It’s the artists’ job from the time you walk through the door at the Exchange to make sure you’re rubbing everybody elbows, you’re taking pictures with people, getting people’s Instagram,” Dolla said. The consumers, whom he calls superstars, have a job as well—to pay attention to the artists by purchasing or downloading their music and following the artists on various social-media platforms. “You came to be exposed to new creatives, so that’s why I labeled it the Exchange. It’s truly an Exchange between artists and the consumer,” Dolla said.

Drew Dempsey

EXCHANGE, from page 25

one ee performs as id im R er pp ra Local dies’ Night adliners at La of the four he Exchange. at 4th Quarter

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Vitamin Cea said sharing the stage with so many talented black women is historic, she said, adding that she is grateful to be apart of it. “Thing is, people act as if things like this don’t happen here, when in reality, you just have to know, you have to be listening,” she said. “We even have to do better at pushing it because we be thinking people know, and people have no idea that type of energy that we bring to one place.”

‘Growth From All Angles’ Dolla said he hopes that the Exchange is adding to the artists’ value as people like Unknwn and Vitamin Cea should be recognized and heard beyond Jackson. “It’s my way of attempting to have a collective group of people show our artists that they’re worth the price of admission and more,” he said. “If we can collectively grow to show that day in and day out, I think that we would have a lot more artists to transcend and get to the next level.” As far as the event’s impact on the arts scene in Jackson, Dolla said he has heard that the Exchange is a breath of fresh air and needed. “I can only appreciate the fact that I’m here to experience it, as well as assist with putting it on,” he said. “So far, throughout the year, a lot of people have been introduced to new artists from Jackson (and) outside of Jackson.” In the future, Dolla Black said he wants to host more events and partner with other brands and artists to help them put on concerts. “I just see growth. That’ll be the best answer. It can really be growth from all angles,” he said. Dolla Black said the next Exchange event is tentatively scheduled for the first quarter of 2020. To keep up with the event, people can like the Exchange Jxn Facebook page and follow @ExchangeJxn on Instagram. They can also visit the website, exchangejxn.com, for updates on the event.

‘Like A Switch’ Yung Jewelz, a rapper and host of the event, took a different approach than her peers, starting her performance among the crowd, while rapper Bigg Josh rapped his verse from their song together “Bigg Jewelz (Lsmr)” The energy and confidence Jewelz displayed was transformative, making the crowd just as hype as she was. “It’s like a switch. I swear it is,” she said later. “It’s what I love to do, so I turn into a whole nother person. Then I feed off the crowd. With that, it just makes me hype even more to know that I’m performing and people want to hear me and watch me.” Yung Jewelz performed at the first Quarter Exchange, where she was the only female performer. She said she was honored to headline an all-woman-led show. “It’s getting to the point where when you think of females, my name comes up now, and so that’s always a blessing to be mentioned,” Jewelz said. “Every female that performed tonight in their own style, their own way, (are) really about to run sh*t. We really already are, but it’s really about to be crazy,” she said. The Exchange makes people aware of what is going on, musically, in Jackson, she said, and without it some people may not have been noticed or performed this year. “It introduces people to other artists and introduces other artists to other artists. It’s just a connection,” Jewelz said. “It’s a great networking opportunity for everybody. You can go and interview somebody right now, if you wanted, that didn’t perform, but they’re an artist and they’re in here.” ‘Empowerment’ Kosciusko, Miss., native and singer-songwriter Gentrae’ Rogerz was the last act of the night. The singer said she was nervous because she hadn’t performed since April. Her godbrother, Jo’De Boy, talked to Dolla Black about her, and

Dolla then invited her to perform at the Exchange. The fact that the show was all women really piqued her interest, the performer said. “That was one of the things I was really intrigued about because I’ve never been in an all-female show. I love it. Empowerment,” she said. Rogers said she has been doing music since she was 4 years old, and it seems to run in her blood. All the women in her family can sing, and her grandfather, Jimmy Lewis, was a blues singer and songwriter. “I really started writing when I was in elementary school, and that’s when I knew this was my passion. This was my first love,” she said. After four years in San Diego, Calif., Rogers moved to Columbus, Ga., where she started to connect and network with people who have taught her how to engage the crowd and sell her music. As the only singer performing, she saw it as an advantage and an attention-grabber, she said. All eyes were on her and her backup dancer as she sang her “Get It Together,” a fusion of trap and R&B. She wore a colorful ensemble of a navy-blue jacket; a peach ruffled, off-the-shoulder blouse; and neon yellow shorts. Her shoes were metallic platforms, and her hair a fiery red. “They were paying attention. When I looked out, I could see people watching,” Rogers said. “I watched the reaction from the rappers, everybody is turnt up. But when it’s a singer, they’re listening.” The singer is working on a project due out February 2020 and hopes to move closer to Atlanta. She has met a lot of people by networking at the Exchange and through this, she sees the arts scene in Jackson growing. “We have so many talented people. so see all the talented women tonight, that was huge,” Rogers said. Follow Culture Writer Aliyah Veal on Twitter at   @AliyahJFP. Send story tips to aliyah@jacksonfreepress.com.

ARTS // theater

New Stage Theatre

‘The Lady With Bruce Willis Eyes’ COURTESY HEARTH AND MANTEL THEATRE

by Charles Dickens adapted by Michael Wilson

A GHOST STORY OF CHRISTMAS

directed by Peppy Biddy

EBENEZER SCROOGE

December 3-22, 2019 Sponsored by

Lydia Lippincott plays Hollie in the theater’s newest production.

pincott, Laina Kenyon, James Kenyon, Frannie Maas and Mac Mitchell. “We all have full-time jobs, (but) we love our Theatre Company and are passionate about it,” Lin says. Going forward, the organization aims to apply for grants, meet regularly, plan stage productions, read submitted plays, hire a full-time staff, rent or purchase a space for productions and also provide educational opportunities for students. “The Lady with Bruce Willis Eyes” is the troupe’s third main-stage season. Previous productions featured “If I had Wings” and improv-shows, such as “Deep South Pops,” which was performed at the Olde Towne Depot in Clinton The official improv group is called “Dismantle,” used as an opportunity to teach local playwrights how a play comes together. The troupe teaches the submission process and holds readings and tryouts. The next play is planned for spring 2020 and will be a comedy with a playtime between one hour to an hour and 15 minutes, Lin says. Any local playwrights who would like to submit work may contact the Hearth and Mantle Theatre Company via their website, hearthandmanteltheatre.com. “The Lady With Bruce Willis Eyes” will be held at the Arts Center of Mississippi (201 E. Pascagoula St.) from Dec. 11-13, starting at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 general admission and $10 for students, and they may be purchased online or at the door.

TICKETS: 601-948-3533 or newstagetheatre.com A CHRISTMAS CAROL – A GHOST STORY OF CHRISTMAS is presented by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc., New York.

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Enroll Now for Spring 2020! Classes begin Jan. 13 In compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX, Education Amendments of 1972 of the Higher Education Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and other applicable Federal and State Acts, Hinds Community College offers equal education and employment opportunities and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, disability or veteran status in its educational programs and activities. The following have been designated to handle inquiries regarding these policies: EEOC Compliance: Sherry Franklin, Vice President for Utica Campus and Administrative Services, Box 1003, Utica, MS 39175; Phone: 601.885.7002 or Email: EEOC@hindscc.edu. Title IX: Randall Harris, Vice President for Advancement and Student Services, Title IX Coordinator, Box 1100 Raymond MS 39154; Phone: 601.857.3889 or Email: Titleix@hindscc.edu.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

// by Anne B McKee

he opening nights of the Hearth & Mantel Theatre Company’s production of “The Lady With Bruce Willis Eyes” brought in a larger crowd than the troupe anticipated. “We were thrilled with the audience reception,” director Michaela Lin says. “They chuckled at the right places and there were tears where we expected.” The solo performance show, Lin says, is about a dancer and how “she would get out of bed in the morning, get in her car, go to work, then go to the bar and return home for bed. She is in a rut.” The play has already been performed twice, on Dec. 4 and Dec. 5, but theater fans have three more opportunities to view the show: Dec. 11-13 starting at 7:30 p.m. at the Arts Center of Mississippi. “(Hearth & Mantel Theatre Company) first started with our shows produced in local homes. We are excited to have the opportunity to present on the stage of the Arts Center of Mississippi,” Lin says. The production is made possible through a partnership with the Millsaps College Theatre Department and the Greater Jackson Arts Council. “The play begins with a speech from the main character. She kind of goes through her life as a dancer with the speech and the audience is sucked into her story,” Lin says. “The main character, Hollie, portrayed by Lydia Lippincott, talks about her life story, and about three moments, each traumatic in their own way, which define her story as a dancer.” “I don’t need to tell anymore about the plot,” Lin says. “But there are surprises which are acted out with great emotion.” Award-winning playwright, Mac Mitchell, wrote the original production. “He was inspired to write the play because of a poem he wrote when in college,” Lin says. “He was interested in the life of a dancer and how it can affect people. He wanted to tell their stories.” Mitchell also collaborated with a dancer, Noelle Robinson, which added to the depth of the play. “Mitchell is a member of our original team. We first met summer of 2017. Our first meeting was with James and Laina Kenyon. We had come together with the dream to begin a theater company in Jackson,” Lin says. The company applied for 501(c)(3) status in 2018. Founding members include Michael Tobin, Michaela Lin, Lydia Lip-

A tmas Stma Chriarol C

Presents

MELODIES // holiday concerts courtesy Matthew west

Matthew West: Singing, Crying, Connecting // by Nate Schumann

Contemporary Christian music artist Matthew West headlines for the 2019 K-Love Christmas Tour.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

riginally from the suburbs of Chicago, four-time Grammy winner Matthew West, 42, grew up playing baseball but possessing a talent for music that those around him encouraged him to pursue. When he drew no sports-related scholarships after graduating from Downers Grove North High School in 1995, West decided to study music at Millikin University in Illinois. While in college, he began writing songs, which ignited his passion for the field. After graduating in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in music, West moved to Nashville and began his career behind the scenes as a songwriter. West spent the next three years pursuing a record deal, but the labels repeatedly turned him down. “I think that rejection really helped prove how really motivated I was to make this dream a reality,” he says. After signing with Universal South Studios in 2002, West released his first album, and the track “More” made its way to No. 1 on R&R’s Christian Adult Contemporary chart and remained there for a record-breaking nine weeks. From

there, West says, his career took off. He still writes songs for other artists as well—songwriting is what sent him on this trajectory, he says. Over the years, West has written songs for both country and Christian artists, including Casting Crowns, Rascal Flatts, Scotty McCreery and more. His songs are known for possessing storytelling elements. “Songs are really stories put to music. They come from different vantage points, different narrations, different characters. We write about different chapters of our lives. I’ve always been drawn to the power of story, ever since I was a kid growing up in my dad’s church,” he says, alluding to the testimonies that many churchgoers often share. West says he is drawn to people who aren’t afraid to talk about the not-soperfect parts of their lives. “That’s something now that I want to create in the music that I write,” he says. “The hope is that as people hear my music that they will connect with the story and apply it to their own stories.” By thinking of their own lives as stories, segmented into chapters, people

may start to reflect and wonder why we must have some of those chapters at all, West explains. “We all have chapters in our stories that we wish we didn’t have. Part of living out a successful story with our lives is figuring out what to do with those chapters, and I hope my music can serve a purpose in that,” he says. West has worked with Christian radio stations for various tours and the like on numerous occasions, hosting the K-Love Fan Awards for five years. “Radio stations are the lifeblood of artists’ careers, like mine,” West says. “It’s a unique partnership that I have with (K-Love), and I was thankful that they invited me to headline this Christmas tour this year.” West says he enjoys the way his music brings him together with those in the audience. “I think the word that would describe what I enjoy most is the word ‘connect,’” he says. “To connect with an audience is really something special— something special takes place at those concerts, through the singing, the storytelling. We’re laughing. We’re cry-

ing. We’re having this neat moment.” At Christmas time, it’s really special to West. “Trying to bring that crowd into a place where we’re pausing and really getting in touch with what Christmas is about. I love to connect with the crowd,” he says. In addition to performing and songwriting, West is also an author, writing devotional books as well as his latest work, “Hello, My Name Is,” titled after his hit song of the same name. “It’s a book about discovering your true identity and letting go of false identities that may be holding you back from achieving your fullest potential in life,” West says of his work. West is set to release a new album, “Brand New,” on Feb. 14, 2020, and he is planning a spring tour later in the year. He is performing on the K-Love Christmas Tour alongside fellow contemporary Christian artists Matt Maher, I Am They and Hannah Kerr. The 2019 K-Love Christmas Tour will hold a show on Dec. 12 at Pinelake Church (6071 Highway 25, Brandon), starting at 7 p.m. Tickets range from $16.20 to $38 and can be purchased through Eventbrite.

Winter Events Guide 2019-2020 for more. Looking for something great to do in Jackson? Visit JFPEVENTS.COM

COMMUNITY Jackson Scavenger Hunt: Pretty Mississippi Dec. 11-April 1, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., at Let’s Roam Scavenger Hunts (400 Mississippi St.). Let’s Roam hosts scavenger hunts for the Jackson area. Participants race against the clock as they take photos of the items on the list. Call for more details. $11 scavenger hunt ticket; call 833-2027626; email kelly@letsroam.com; letsroam.com. Events at Mississippi Museum of Natural Science (2148 Riverside Drive) • Dragonfly Gift Shoppe Holiday Open House Dec. 12, 1-3 p.m. The museum holds a holiday-themed market event in its gift shop. Museum admission is not required to visit the gift shop. Free admission, item prices vary; call 601-576-6000; mdwfp.com. • 4th Annual Science Makers March 6, 9 a.m.noon. The museum hosts an event celebrating women and people from other minorities who make significant contributions to science. Attendees learn about careers with STEM professionals and by engaging in hands-on science activities. $6 adult, $4 child, kids ages 3 and under free, members free; call 601-576-6000; email nicole@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp.com. • Fossil Road Show March 7, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. The annual event invites participants to

bring their fossil discoveries to get expert opinions on their ages and origins. Includes hands-on activities, “fossil digs” and a scavenger hunt. Attendees encouraged to explore the museum’s fossil collection and collector displays. $6 adult, $4 child, kids ages 3 and under free, members free; call 601-5766000; email nicole@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp. com. • Spring Break Teacher Workshops March 9-13, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. The museum’s conservation educators provide training in internationally recognized environmental education programs for teachers. These workshops are excellent for teachers of every subject and grade level, including informal educators such as scout leaders, camp leaders and youth leaders. Each day offers a different workshop with CEU credits available. Admission TBA; call 601-576-6000; email andrea.falcetto@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp.com. All Ages Pokémon League Dec. 14, Dec. 21, Dec. 28, Jan. 4, Jan. 11, Jan. 18, Jan. 25, Feb. 1, Feb. 8, Feb. 15, Feb. 22, Feb. 29, March, 7, March 14, March 21, March 28, noon-4 p.m., at Van’s Comics, Cards and Games (731 S. Pear Orchard Road, Suite 1, Ridgeland). Participants gather each Saturday to play the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Free admission; call 601-898-9950; find it on Facebook.

61st Gem, Mineral, Fossil and Jewelry Show Feb. 22-23, 9 a.m.-6 p.m., at Mississippi Trademart Center (1200 Mississippi St.). The event features more than 25 dealers of gems, fossils, minerals, jewelry, lapidary tools, beads and more. Attendees may browse and purchase goods present. Includes exhibits and educational opportunities from colleges and state organizations, displays by MGMS mem-

KIDS Disney Junior Holiday Party On Tour! Dec. 12, 6 p.m., at Thalia Mara Hall (255 E. Pascagoula St.). Children and their families sing and dance along to the “Disney Junior” songs and other holiday classic tunes as presented by various Disney characters. $15-$149.50 ticket, free for

WEDNESDAY 12/11 “The Mississippi Governor’s Mansion” Book Signing is from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Lemuria Bookstore (4465 I-55 N.). Gov. Phil Bryant signs first-edition copies of the book. $35 signed copy; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com. ASHTON PITTMAN

bers of their own collections or lapidary work, and demonstrations of lapidary art such as flint knapping, cabochon cutting and jewelry making. Also includes hourly door prizes and a grand prize drawing. $6 adult, $3 student/ child, children ages 5 and under free; call 601-344-8171; email rock2lanes@gmail.com; missgems.org.

children under 1 year old; call 601-960-1537; thaliamarahall.net. Events at Mississippi Museum of Natural Science (2148 Riverside Drive) • Snow Much Fun Dec. 13-14, 6-8:30 p.m. The museum hosts the holiday event where children conduct winter-related science experi-

HOLIDAY Canton XMas Lights Tour Dec. 13, 4:45-9:30 p.m., at Highland Village (4500 Interstate 55 N. Frontage Road, Suite 281). More Than a Tourist holds a holiday-themed guided tour through Canton, Miss. Features roundtrip transportation on the

Santa Visits Mississippi Children’s Museum Dec. 14, Dec. 21, noon-2 p.m., Dec. 22, 2-4 p.m., at Mississippi Children’s Museum (2145 Museum Blvd.). Children may take photos with Santa Claus at the museum. Admission TBA; call 601-981-5469; mschildrensmuseum.org.

Canton Christmas Festival Dec. 11-23, 5-9 p.m., at Canton Tourism (147 N. Union St.). The event features a viewing of the city of Canton’s Christmas lights, a Christmas Village and includes food and sales from the Canton shops. The event also includes the annual Sip ‘n Cider, horse and buggy rides and story time with Mrs. Claus. Free admission; call 601-859-1307; email jana@cantontourism.com; find it on Facebook. Events at Hal & Mal’s (200 Commerce St.) • Annual Christmas Party & Dirty Santa Beer Swap Dec. 12, 6-9 p.m. The JXN Barley Angels present the ladies-only annual event that includes, games, food and beer provided by Capital City Beverage. Attendees participating in the Dirty Santa Beer Swap should bring a four- or six-pack of “bombers” or “growlers” of their favorite beers. The beers can be the same or different brands and styles. Free admission; call 601-9480888; find it on Facebook. • 15th Annual Tacky Christmas Party Dec. 21, 8 p.m. Phoenix Club of Jackson hosts an annual Christmas party event that benefits the Boys & Girls Club of Central Mississippi. The event features DJ Mario, and the VIP Lounge offers free refreshments while supplies last. Attendees are encouraged to wear their tackiest Christmas sweater. $25 advanced, $30 at-door, $100 couple VIP; call 601-948-0888; find it on Facebook.

Mississippi Party Bus, snacks and drinks on the bus (including adult beverages), dinner at Rich Grain Distillery, a “Tour & Tasting” and a horse-and-buggy ride on the Square. The group meets in front of Aplos for complementary beverages provided by Highland Village. Payment can be made through PayPal or Venmo. $85 registration; email mtattravel@gmail.com.

SUNDAY 12/22

PIXABAY

HV Santa Experience is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Highland Village (4500 Interstate 55 N. Frontage Road, Suite 281 ). Highland Village holds picture-taking opportunities with Santa. Customers receive a link they can use to access their photos to use as they wish. Additional dates: Dec. 14-15, Dec. 21. $39.95 link to photos; call 601-982-5861; email highlandvillage@wsdevelopment.com; highlandvillagejxn.com.

Noon Year’s Eve Dec. 31, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., at Mississippi Children’s Museum (2145 Museum Blvd.). The children’s museum hosts a “Noon Year’s Eve” celebratory event, wherein the program treats 12-noon as 12-midnight for the purposes of ringing in the New Year. Included in general admission or museum membership. $10 general admission, MCM members free; call 601-981-5469; email erin@mcm.ms. Going Extinct: New Year’s Eve Glow Party Dec. 31, 6-8 p.m., at Mississippi Museum of Natural Science (2148 Riverside Drive). The museum holds a New Year’s celebration that sees off 2019 as well as the “Dinosaurs Around the World” exhibit. Attendees receive glow bracelets for the black light dance party. The event includes a live nocturnal animal show, a glow stick hiking trail, a photo-op with the Jurassic Park jeep, refreshments, games, prizes and more. T&J Concessions food truck and Anderson Square (painting faces with glow-in-the-dark paints) on-site. Tickets sold in advance only. $8 museum members, $10 nonmembers, food truck prices vary; call 601-576-6000; email andrea.falcetto@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp.com.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

Junie B. in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells! Dec. 11-13, 9 a.m.noon, at Belhaven University - Center for the Arts (835 Riverside Drive). The puppetry show retells the story of a holidaythemed “Junie B. Jones” book. $8 general admission, free for teachers; call 601-977-9840; email peter@mspuppetry.com; mspuppetry.com.

S L AT E

the best in sports over the next two weeks by Bryan Flynn, follow at jfpsports.com, @jfpsports

While Alcorn State was winning another SWAC title, the University of Mississippi announced it has hired Lane Kiffin. Rebel fans better hope there are more FAU moments than University of Tennessee moments. THURSDAY, DEC. 12

NFL (7-10:30pm Fox): New York Jets v. Baltimore Ravens. FRIDAY, DEC. 13

College football (6-9:30pm ESPN): Northern Iowa University v. James Madison University. SATURDAY, DEC. 14

Men’s college basketball (10:30am12pm ESPNU): Mississippi State University v. Kansas State University. SUNDAY, DEC. 15

NFL (3-6:30pm Fox): Los Angeles Rams v. Dallas Cowboys. MONDAY, DEC. 16

NFL (7-10:30pm ESPN): Indianapolis Colts v. New Orleans Saints. TUESDAY, DEC. 17

Men’s college basketball (7:30-10pm FS1): University of Oklahoma v. Creighton University. WEDNESDAY, DEC. 18

Men’s college basketball (7-9:30pm SECN): Radford University v. MSU THURSDAY, DEC. 19

Women’s college basketball (6-8:30pm SECN): University of South Florida v. Mississippi State. FRIDAY, DEC. 20

Women’s college basketball (7-9:30pm SECN): University of Louisiana Lafayette v. UM SATURDAY, DEC. 21

College football (11am-2:30pm ABC): Alcorn State University v. North Carolina A&T University. December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

SUNDAY, DEC. 22

NFL (12-3:30pm Fox): New Orleans Saints v. Tennessee Titans. MONDAY, DEC. 23

NFL (7-10:30pm ESPN): Green Bay Packers v. Minnesota Vikings. TUESDAY, DEC. 24

College football (7-10:30pm ESPN): University of Hawaii v. BYU. WEDNESDAY, DEC. 25

NBA (7-9:30pm ESPN): Los Angeles Clippers v. Los Angeles Lakers.

Winter Events Guide 2019-2020 ments, play in scheduled “snowfalls,” take pictures with Santa, make winter woodland crafts and attend the “Snow-Ball” where children can dance the night away. Advanced: $9 adult, $5 child; at-door: $10 adult, $6 child; call 601-576-6000; email nicole.smith@mmns. ms.gov; mdwfp.com. • Winter Preschool Camp Dec. 16, 9 a.m.noon. The museum holds a day camp for children ages 3-5. Campers hike and explore the outdoors, meet live animals and create crafts while learning about snow, ice and animal hibernation. Snack provided. Parents may send children with additional snacks, but all snacks from home must be completely nut-free. All participants must be fully potty trained. Early drop-off begins 8:30 a.m. Late pickup results in a penalty of $10 for every 10 minutes after noon. Limited to 15. $100 members, $120 nonmembers; email denise. mason@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp.com. • S.T.E.M, Leaves & Trees Feb. 7, 10 a.m.noon. The museum hosts an Arbor Daythemed event for families featuring interactive crafts, games and displays focused on Mississippi trees and their past and present roles. $6 adult, $4 child, kids ages 3 and under free, members free; call 601-576-6000; email nicole.smith@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp.com. • Pollinator Day March 11, 10 a.m.-noon. The second-annual event where exhibitors teach attendees how to conserve and celebrate Mississippi’s pollinator populations through family-friendly, hands-on activities. Free native wildflower seeds available while supplies last. $6 adult, $4 child, kids ages 3 and under free, members free; call 601-576-6000; email nicole.smith@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp.com. Meet Esteban, the Green Crayon Dec. 14, 10 a.m.-noon, at Lemuria Bookstore (4465 I-55 N.). Children may have their photos taken with Esteban, the Green Crayon, who is the main character of the children’s book “The Crayon’s Christmas,” sold at the event. $19.99 book; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com. Events at Mississippi Children’s Museum (2145 Museum Blvd.) • Winter Fun Day Camp Dec. 23, 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. The museum hosts an educational day camp for children ages 5-10. Attendees read “Snowmen at Night,” paint landscapes, learn about winter-planted vegetables, decorate gingerbread houses and engage in other artistic and STEM-related activities. $50 members, $55 nonmembers; call 601-981-5469; email erin@mcm.ms; mschildrensmuseum.org. • Arts and Crafts Day Camp Dec. 30, 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. The museum hosts the arts and crafts focused day camp for children ages 5-10. Attendees learn about European artist Wassily Kandinsky, read “The Noisy Paint Box,” cut circles, finger paint, hand-tie colorful yarn circles and more. Admission TBA; call 601981-5469; mschildrensmuseum.org. • Spy Day Camp Jan. 2, 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. The museum holds a spy-themed day camp for children ages 5-10. Attendees create their own spy identification cards, undercover journals and secret recorders. They also read “Spy Guy,” learn to dust for fingerprints and practice evasive movements. Admission TBA; call 601-981-5469; mschildrensmuseum.org. • Superhero Day Camp Jan. 3, 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. The museum holds a superhero-themed day camp for children ages 5-10. Attendees

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design superhero costumes, read “Even Superheroes Have Bad Days,” learn how to use “secret” technology and more. Admission TBA; mschildrensmuseum.org. Learning Tree Book Club Jan. 4, Feb. 1, March 7, 2-3:30 p.m., at Jackson Medical Mall Thad Cochran Center (350 W. Woodrow Wilson Ave.). The children’s book club gets together to read and talk about books on the first Saturday of each month. Books provided. Free admission; call 601-372-0229; find it on Facebook.

FOOD & DRINK Breakfast with Santa at UMMC Dec. 14, 8-10 a.m., at University of Mississippi Medical Center (2500 N. State St.). In the Phil Bryant Medical Education Building. Participants eat breakfast at the fundraising event that features Santa Claus. Proceeds benefit the Alliance, a volunteer organization that promotes goodwill and fellowship through support of unmet patient needs, the campus chapel and art acquisitions. $10 adult, $5 student; email UMMC-Alliance@umc.edu; secureforms.umc.edu.

SUNDAY 12/15 Food Is Peace: Vegan and Pescatarian Gathering is from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Soul Wired Cafe (111 Millsaps Ave.). Soul Wired Cafe hosts a pop-up style fellowship in celebration of vegan and pescatarian street food every weekend.

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Additional date: Dec. 14, Dec. 2122, Dec. 28-29, Jan. 4-5, Jan. 1112, Jan. 18-19, Jan. 25-26, Feb. 1-2, Feb. 8-9, Feb. 15-16, Feb. 22-23, Feb. 29, March 1, March 7-8, March 14-15, March 21-22, March 28-29. Free admission; call 601-790-0864; find it on Facebook.

Cultivation Food Hall Holiday Dinner Theater Dec. 19, 7-9 p.m., at Cultivation Food Hall (1250 Eastover Drive). The musical murder mystery dinner theater engages participants in sing-a-longs featuring Jack Russell and the Terriers Motown band and includes prizes awarded to the table that solves the murder mystery. Seating is at 6:30 p.m. and the show starts at 7 p.m. Reservations required. $50 general admission; call 601-487-5196; fringeddinnertheatre.com.

New Year’s Day Viennese Opera Brunch Jan. 1, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., at Westin Hotel (407 S. Congress St.). Mississippi Opera hosts a brunch event featuring Vietnamese cuisine and classical musical selections by Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven and Johann Strauss, Jr. (“The Waltz King”), as well as fun opera arias and musical theatre selections. $59 per person; call 601-960-2300; email info@msopera.org; msopera.org.

SPORTS & WELLNESS Events at Salsa Mississippi Club & Studio (605 Duling Ave.) • Hip Hop Cardio Dec. 14, 10-10:45 a.m. A hip hop/R&B cardio workout hosted by dancer, Tempestt Gilmore that focuses on toning the arms, abs, glutes and legs. $5 general admission; call 601-213-6355; email dancetempg@gmail.com; find it on Facebook. • Latin Dance Party Dec. 14, Dec. 21,Dec. 28, Jan. 4, Jan. 11, Jan. 18, Jan. 25, Feb. 1, Feb. 8, Feb. 15, Feb. 22, Feb. 29, March 7, March 14, March 21, March 28, 10 p.m. Salsa Mississippi Club & Studio hosts a Latin dance party every Saturday that includes a free dance lesson. $5 student/military, $10 general admission; call 601-213-6355; find it on Facebook.

STAGE & SCREEN “The Lady With Bruce Willis Eyes” Dec. 11-13, 7:30-9:30 p.m., at Arts Center of Mississippi (201 E. Pascagoula St.). Heart & Mantel Theatre presents the solo show written by Mississippi playwright Mac Mitchell. The play depicts the story of an acclaimed professional ballet dancer who has cast off her emotional connection to her family and instead devoted her entire being to her dance career. When she is forced to retire early due to injuries, Hollie must regain her dignity and repair her relationships. Audience members are invited to stay after the show for complementary coffee and conversation. Recommended for people ages 13 and up. Made possible in part through a partnership with the Millsaps College Theatre Department and the Greater Jackson Arts Council. $15 general, $10 student; email info@hearthandmanteltheatre.com; hearthandmanteltheatre.com. Events at New Stage Theatre (1100 Carlisle St.) • “A Christmas Carol” Dec. 11-14, 7:30 p.m., Dec. 15, 2 p.m., Dec. 17-20, 7:30 p.m., Dec. 21, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Dec. 22, 2 p.m. The theater presents a production of the stage play written by Michael Wilson that was adapted from Charles Dickens’ original work detailing the story of Ebenezer Scrooge as he reawakens his holiday spirit. $35 adult, $30 child, student, senior, military; call 601-948-3533; newstagetheatre.com. • “Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical” Jan. 28-31, Feb. 1, 7:30 p.m., Feb. 2, 2 p.m., Feb. 3-8, 7:30 p.m., Feb. 9, 2 p.m. The theater presents a production of “Matilda,” a novel by Roald Dahl relaying the story of a young girl who uses her courage and imagination to push beyond her poor circumstances. $30 general admission; newstagetheatre.com. • “Pipeline” March 10-14, 7:30 p.m., March 15, 2 p.m., March 17, 7:30 p.m. The theater presents a production of “Pipeline” by Obie Award-winning playwright Dominique Morisseau. The play addresses the state of the

American educational system. Nya, an innercity public high school teacher, is committed to her students but wants to give her son better opportunities. After a confrontation at the son’s private school, Nya must make some tough choices as a parent. $30 general admission; call 601-948-3533; newstagetheatre.com.

involved, allowing them the chance for a new life and a holiday to remember. Reservations encouraged. $12.50 online, $15 at-door; call 601-825-1293; email beth.alexander27@ yahoo.com; blackrosetheatre.org. • “The Rockin’ Tale of Snow White” Feb. 20-22, 7:30 p.m., Feb. 23, 2 p.m., Feb. 27-29,

TUESDAY 12/17 Auditions for “The Rockin’ Tale of Snow White” begin 6 p.m. at Black Rose Theatre Company (103 Black St., Brandon). Black Rose Theatre Company holds auditions for its upcoming production of “The Rockin’ Tale of Snow White.” Doors open to accept audition sheets at 6 p.m. Auditions begin promptly at 6:30 PIXABAY p.m. Auditions are open to children ages 7-18. Students 10 and under will only be considered for ensemble roles. These students do not need to prepare an audition piece. Students ages 7-10 will do a short cold read from the script and will be taught a very simple, short dance and a few bars from a song. Auditions for students age 11-18 will include a prepared solo (no longer than one minute), a short dance taught during the audition and a cold read from the script. Snow White’s tale is retold to include comedy, and the musical score includes elements from hip-hop, rock-’n’-roll, doo-wop and other genres. The play will be performed between Feb. 20 and March 1. Additional date: Dec. 16. Free to audition; call 601-825-1293; email beth.alexander27@yahoo. com; blackrosetheatre.org.

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Events at Thalia Mara Hall (255 E. Pascagoula St.) • Ron White Jan. 16, 7:30 p.m. The twice Grammy-nominated comedian performs. Two VIP options available: “100 Proof” and “200 Proof.” 100 Proof tickets include premium seating and an autographed note from White. 200 Proof tickets include premium seating, an autographed note, a VIP access pass personally signed by White, a photo with White, a Q&A and exclusive merchandise. $39.50-$65 general admission, $140 100 Proof VIP, $214 200 Proof VIP; call 601-960-1537; thaliamarahall.net. • Cats Feb. 13-14, 8 p.m. The musical tells the story of one night when a tribe of cats gathers for its annual ball to rejoice and decide which cat will be reborn. Features the original score by Andrew Lloyd Webber, original scenic and costume design by John Napier, all-new lighting design by Natasha Katz, all-new sound design by Mick Potter and new choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler. $60-$125 tickets; call 601-960-1537; thaliamarahall.net. • “Beautiful: the Carole King Musical” (Touring) March 11, 7:30 p.m. The musical recounts the life of Carol King, born Carol Klein, a girl from Brooklyn who fights her way into the record business as a songwriter and artist. $55-$125; call 601-960-1537; thaliamarahall.net.

CONCERTS & FESTIVALS Kountry Wayne LIVE Dec. 12-15, 7-11 p.m., at Chuckles Comedy House Jackson (6379 Ridgewood Court Drive). The comedian performs. Includes food and drink. $32.50 general admission, $55 VIP tickets; call 901-421-5905; find it on Facebook. Events at Black Rose Theatre Company (103 Black St., Brandon) • “Rented Christmas” Dec. 12-14, 7:30 p.m., Dec. 15, 2 p.m. Black Rose Theatre Company presents a production of ‘Rented Christmas.’ The show tells the story of John Dale, a man who has not celebrated the holiday season in years but decides to ‘rent’ all the things needed for a picture-perfect holiday. He asks a local business owner to ‘rent’ him everything from a tree to Christmas carolers to a wife and five children. The story takes a warm turn when children from the local orphanage become

7:30 p.m. March 1, 2 p.m. Black Rose Theatre Company presents performances of the stage play. The tale of Snow White is retold to include comedic moments, new characters and a musical score that includes hip-hop, rock ‘n’ roll, doo-wop and other genres. Reservations encouraged. $12.50 online, $15 at-door; call 601-825-1293; email beth.alexander27@ yahoo.com; blackrosetheatre.org. Girls Night Out: The Show Dec. 13, 8-11 p.m., at Cowboy’s Saloon Downtown Jackson (208 W. Capitol St.). The show targeted for women features male dancers. $20 advanced, $28 door, $40 VIP; call 601-944-0402; find it on Facebook. The Rocky Horror Burlesque Show Dec. 31, 8 p.m., at Duling Hall (622 Duling Ave.). Black Hat Shows and Ardenland present the musical in celebration of New Year’s. $30 general, $50 VIP; call 601-292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com.

K-LOVE Christmas Dec. 12, 7-10 p.m., at Pinelake Church - Reservoir Campus (6071 Highway 25, Brandon). The family friendly Christmas concert features Matthew West, Matt Maher, I Am They and Hannah Kerr. $51-$107; call 601-829-4540; find it on Facebook. Events at Duling Hall (622 Duling Ave.) • The Vegabonds Dec. 12, 8 p.m. The rock quintet performs as the group prepares for its upcoming album “V.” Magnolia Bayou also performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. Minors under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to enter. Seating is first-come, first-serve. Persons under 21 must pay a $5 upcharge. $10 advanced, $12 at-door; call 601-292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Mustache the Band Dec. 20, 9 p.m. The country cover band performs. Doors open at 7 p.m. Seating first-come, first-serve. $15

advanced, $20 day-of; call 601-292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • The Vamps Dec. 21, 8 p.m. The Jacksonnative band performs a combination of the jazz, deep funk, blues, Latin and New Orleansstyled genres. Doors open at 6 p.m. $10 advanced, $15 at-door; call 601-292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • The Disco Stranglers Jan. 3, 8 p.m. The Eagles tribute band specializing in the performance of the entire Hotel California album from start to finish performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. $20 general admission; call 601-2927121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Marbin Jan. 13, 7:30 p.m. The Chicago-based, progressive, jazz-rock band performs. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. $10 general admission; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Mr. Showmanship: An Evening with Liberace Jan. 20, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Mississippi Opera hosts the concert as a salute to Wladziu Valentino Liberace, a prominent virtuoso pianist of the 20th century. David Maiocco performs, dressed in a flashy fashion similar to how Liberace once did. Part of the Cabaret @ Duling Hall series. Sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi. Funded in parts by the Mississippi Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts. $25 advanced, $30 at-door; call 601-960-2300; email bookkeeper@imaginarycompany.com; msopera.org. • James McMurtry Jan. 24, 8 p.m. The singersongwriter performs. Bonnie Whitmore also performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. $15 advanced, $20 day-of; call 601-292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Amanda Shires Feb. 7, 8 p.m. The rock ‘n’ roll singer-songwriter and violinist performs. L.A. Edwards and Steve Forbert also performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. $20 advanced, $25 atdoor; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • My Funny Valentine, Starring Ora Reed Feb. 10, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Mississippi-native jazz artist Ora Reed performs a showcase of vocal and keyboard selections such as “When I Fall in Love,” “Tenderly” and “Why Did I Choose You?” The internationally performing artist is an inductee of the Mississippi Musicians’ Hall of Fame. Part of the Cabaret @ Duling Hall series. Sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi. Funded in parts by Mississippi Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts. $25 advanced, $30 at-door; email info@msopera.org; msopera.org.

BE THE CHANGE 16th Past Master’s Ball Dec. 14, 8-11 p.m., at Mississippi Civil Rights Museum (222 North St., Suite 2205). The Wiley Spence Lodge 704 holds its annual ball celebrating former leaders of the organization and awards a scholarship to a deserving high school senior. Includes dinner, live entertainment by DJ Finesse, a cash bar and a private viewing of the museum. Tickets may be purchased through Wyld Bill Bailey, Zack Carr, Robert Bell or Kevin Dudley through Facebook. $35 general admission, $240 table of 8; call 601-576-6800; find it on Facebook. The Jackson Tougaloo Alumni Chapter Scholarship Dance Dec. 26, 7-11:30 p.m., at Hilton Hotel - Jackson (1001 County Line Road). The Jackson Tougaloo Alumni Chapter hosts its annual Thelma Sanders Scholarship Dance. Proceeds support scholarships for students to further their education at Tougaloo

College. The event recognizes Dr. Shannon Pittman Moore, the Alma Lowry Hill Chair of the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, for her contributions to Tougaloo and to the field of medicine. $40 registration; call 601-573-3900; email jtac1869@gmail.com. JDRF Hope Gala Jan. 18, 6-11 p.m., at The Westin (407 S. Congress St.). JDRF hosts the gala to raise funds for Type 1 Diabetes research. The event features a cocktail reception, a seated inner, silent auctions and live auctions. Followed by an afterparty with drinks, dancing, snacks, dueling piano performances and more. $200 gala and after-party, $45 after-party only; call 601-981-1184; email mississippi@jdrf.org; jdrf.org. 6th Annual Dyslexia Symposium Feb. 7, 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., at Brandon Civic Center (1000 Municipal Drive, Brandon).

Mississippi Dyslexia Centers hosts its 6th-annual Dyslexia Symposium. The event invites teachers, administrators, parents and anyone interested in learning about dyslexia and related disorders. Award-winning author, entrepreneur and activist Jonathan Mooney serves as the keynote speaker. Mississippi Educator and ALTA CEU’s available. $50 per person before Jan. 10; $60 per person afterward; call 601-982-7827; email arunnels@newsummitschool.com; bidpal.net. 3rd Annual Spread Goodness Day March 13, all day, at Old Trace Park (Ridgeland). Returning for its third installment, the event aims to encourage individuals, businesses and organizations to spread goodness to show how these kind acts when multiplied can lead to positive change. Free admission; email spreadgoodnessday@gmail.com; spreadgoodnessday.com.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

Winter Events Guide 2019-2020

Winter Events Guide 2019-2020 • Todd Snider Feb. 12, 7:30 p.m. The music artist known for playing every instrument on his most recent album performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. $30 advanced, $35 at-door; call 601292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Lost Dog Street Band Feb. 14, 8 p.m. The Americana trio performs. Casper Allen also performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. $12 advanced, $15 at-door; call 601-292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com.

THURSDAY 12/19 Fondren Fitness Fun Run is from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Fondren Fitness (2807 Old Canton Road). Runners meet up every third Thursday outside of Fondren Fitness to run three miles around the neighborhood. The run ends at a different

PIXABAY

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

local business each month. Additional dates: Jan. 16, Feb. 20. Free admission; call 601-540-0338; find it on Facebook.

• Shovels & Rope Feb. 21, 8 p.m. The musical duo of Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst performs. VIP tickets come with a pre-show performance, a meet-and-greet, a photo-op with the duo, a Q&A with the artists, an autographed limited edition poster, an official “By Blood” laminate and early access to the merchandise tables. Doors open at 6 p.m. $30 advanced, $35 at-door, $99 VIP; call 601-2927121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Reckless Kelly Feb. 27, 8 p.m. The countryrock band performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. $30 advanced, $35 at-door; call 601-2927121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Anderson East & Foy Vance March 1, 8 p.m. The two music artists perform in a competitively stylized show as part of their joint “12 Rounds” tour. Aaron Raitiere also performs. Doors open at 6 p.m. $35 advanced, $40 atdoor; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Lucero March 3, 7:30-11 p.m. The Memphisbased rock band performs. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. $20 advanced, $25 at-door; call 601292-7121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. • Take Five – Celebrating Dave Brubeck Centennial March 16, 7:30-9:30 p.m. The Sam Bruton Quartet performs a tribute to jazz composer Dave Brubeck. The quartet consists of Sam Bruton on piano, Larry Panella on saxophone, David Pellow on bass and Peter Wehner on percussion. Part of the Cabaret @ Duling Hall series. Sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi. Funded in

parts by the Mississippi Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts. $25 advanced, $30 at-door; call 601-960-2300; email info@msopera.org; msopera.org. Martin’s Front Room Series Dec. 12, 9 p.m.midnight, at Martin’s Downtown (214 S. State St.). May Queen, Lisbon Deaths and Don Quixote’s Horse perform live. $7 ticket; call 601354-9712; find it on Facebook. Fine & Dandy 2nd Birthday Bash Dec. 14, 6-9 p.m., at Fine & Dandy (100 District Blvd.). The event celebrates the restaurant’s two-year anniversary and features live music from the Subway Lounge House Band (King Edward, Keith Collins, Rick Lewis, Abdul Rasheed and Fred Robinson) on the District Green stage. Also includes door prizes, “blues dogs” (smoked sausage, grilled onions, mustard and chili), and buckets of ice for sale for $15 that can be filled with six canned beers to take out onto the District Green. Free admission, food prices vary; call 601-202-5050; find it on Facebook. The Jackson Gypsies Celebrate Cucho’s Birthday Dec. 14, 7-9 p.m., at Hal & Mal’s (200 Commerce St.). The Jackson Gypsies celebrate the birthday of the band’s percussionist, Cucho Gonzalez. Attendees are encouraged to join the celebration by bringing their voices and acoustic guitars. Free admission; call 601-948-0888; find it on Facebook. Queens of the Capital Dec. 14, 9 p.m., at ISH (5105 Interstate 55 N.). Jackson-local soul singers Karen Brown, Love Notez and Anissa Hampton perform. $10 general admission; call 769-257-5204; email ishgrillandbar@gmail.com; find it on Facebook. Choirs at the Old Capitol: St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral Dec. 15, 3-4 p.m., at Old Capitol Museum (100 S. State St.). Choir members from St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral perform traditional songs of the season in the rotunda of the museum. Refreshments and hot chocolate served. Free admission; call 601-576-6920; email info@oldcapitolmuseum.com; mdah.ms.gov. A Utica Christmas Celebration Dec. 15, 5-8 p.m., at Bobby G. Cooper Fine Arts Center (Hinds Community College Utica Campus; 34175 Highway 18 W., Utica). The Utica Community Mass Choir presents a Christmas-inspired musical celebration featuring songs under the gospel, R&B and soul genres. The group also helps local community members in need during the holiday season. Free admission; call 601-6725595; email rlind38599@aol.com. Events at Mississippi Coliseum (1207 Mississippi St.) • 2019 Soulabration Dec. 28, 7 p.m. Various soul artists perform, including Grammynominated Calvin Richardson, King of Swing Tucka son’s own Reese & Bigalow perform. $45-$75 tickets; call 678-322-8098; find it on Facebook. Synergy Night Dec. 28, Jan. 25, Feb. 22, 9-11:30 p.m., at The Med Fish and Grill (1200 E. County Line Road, Ridgeland). Maranda Joiner hosts the open mic night. Participants sing, read poetry and more. Includes giveaways, food and drinks. $10 general admission, $5 open mic participants; email maranda@ marandajoiner.com; find it on Facebook. Thalia Mara Hall (201 E. Pascagoula St.) • Bravo III - A Night in Vienna Jan. 11, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Leading soprano Erin Wall,

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acclaimed for her musicality and versatility, gives voice to this blockbuster evening of Vienna’s best, from the beautiful and introspective appeal of Strauss’ “Four Last Songs,” to the deeply-moving lure of Mahler’s 4th Symphony. The box office will reopen at Thalia Mara Hall one hour prior to the concert’s start. $27-$74 adult, $5 student/children ages 4-18; call 601-960-1565; email rroberts@ msorchestra.com; msorchestra.com. • Liverpool Legends Jan. 18, 7:30 p.m. The Beatles tribute band, comprised of four musicians/actors personally selected Louise Harrison, sister of the late George Harrison, performs. $40-$60 general admission; call 601-960-1537; thaliamarahall.net. • Pops II - STAR WARS Feb. 1, 7:30-9:30 p.m. The Mississippi Symphony Orchestra presents a performance of John Williams’ Star Wars scores, from Episodes I through VIII, plus Rogue One. The box office will reopen at Thalia Mara Hall one hour prior to the start of the concert. $27-$74 adult, $5 students/ children ages 4-18); call 601-960-1565; email rroberts@msorchestra.com; msorchestra.com. • The Glenn Miller Orchestra Feb. 10, 7 p.m. More than 18 musicians and singers bring the sounds of Glenn Miller’s orchestra, founded more than 80 years ago, to the stage. The tunes fall under the jazz and swing genres of the 1930s and 1940s. $47-$68 tickets; call 601-960-1537; thaliamarahall.net. • Bravo IV - Best and Brightest Feb. 22, 7:309:30 p.m. Beethoven’s 5th piano concerto, revolutionary in its day and popularly known as “The Emperor,” is a virtuoso showcase for international pianist and acclaimed Beethoven interpreter, Anton Nel. Dvorak’s inviting 8th Symphony ends the evening on a sparkling bright note. The box office will reopen one hour prior to the concert’s start. $27-74 adult, $5 student/children ages 4-18; call 601-9601565; email rroberts@msorchestra.com; msorchestra.com. Chamber II - Mozart by Candlelight Jan. 25, 7:30-9:30 p.m., at Belhaven University - Center for the Arts (835 Riverside Drive). Mississippi Symphony Orchestra holds its annual program set to warm a winter evening with hundreds of

Walker, a young conductor whose Jackson and Mississippi Symphony Orchestra roots branched into an international career, guestconducts the evening’s closing piece: Schubert’s famous “Unfinished Symphony.” The concert features more on the lineup, including classical guitarist Giovanni De Chiaro performing a concerto written for him. The box office will reopen one hour prior to the concert’s start. $23 adult, $5 student/children ages 4-18; call 601960-1565; email rroberts@msorchestra.com; msorchestra.com.

LITERARY SIGNINGS Events at Lemuria Bookstore (4465 Interstate 55) • “Rebels in Repose” Book Signing Dec. 12, 5 p.m. Allie Povall signs copies of her book. Reading begins 5:30 p.m. $24.99 signed copy; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com. • “MaeMae’s Grandmother Book” Signing Dec. 14, noon-1 p.m. Marilyn Tinnin signs copies of her book. $20 signed copy; call 601366-7619; lemuriabooks.com. • “Wyatt Waters 2020 Calendar” Signing Dec. 14, 3-5 p.m. Recognized watercolorist Wyatt Waters signs copies of his 2020 calendar, which showcases his artwork. $20 signed copy; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com. • “Po’ Monkey’s: Portrait of a Juke Joint” Book Signing Dec. 21, 11 a.m. Photographer Will Jacks signs copies of his book, which showcases his photographs focusing on Po’ Monkeys, the last rural juke joint in Mississippi. $35 signed copy; lemuriabooks.com. • “Crooked Snake: The Life and Crimes of Albert Lepard” Book Signing Dec. 21, 11:30 a.m. Lovejoy Boteler signs copies of his book. $25 signed copy; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com. • “Whirlwind” Book Signing Dec. 21, noon. Charlie Spillers signs copies of his book, now in hardcover. $26 signed copy; call 601-3667619; lemuriabooks.com. • “A Cosmology of Monsters” Book Signing Dec. 21, 1 p.m. Shaun Hamill signs copies of his book. $26.95 signed copy; call 601-3667619; lemuriabooks.com.

SATURDAY 12/21 Reindeer Munchies Workshop is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at The Stompin Grounds (310 Airport Road, Pearl). The open workshop focuses on making snacks for families to put out in the yard for the reindeer to enjoy on Christmas Eve night. Supplies are included for attendees to create their own unique PIXABAY munchies recipe. $5 general admission; call 601-487-8081; find it on Facebook.

candles and orchestral artistry. Includes performances by Principal Horn and Mimi Linehan. The box office will reopen one hour prior to the concert. $23 adult, $5 student/children ages 4-18; call 601-960-1565; email rroberts@msorchestra.com; msorchestra.com. Chamber III - Spring Delight March 7, 7:309:30 p.m., at Millsaps College - Ford Academic Complex (1701 N. State St.). William Garfield

• “The Temple of Warm Harmony” Book Signing Dec. 21, 2 p.m. Frank LaRue Owen signs copies of his book of poetry. $16.95 signed copy; lemuriabooks.com. • “Born in Syn” Book Signing Dec. 21, 2 p.m. Beth Kander signs copies of her book. $18.95; lemuriabooks.com. • “Return to Redemption Ridge” Book Signing Dec. 21, 4 p.m. Lottie Brent Boggan signs

Winter Events Guide 2019-2020 Christone “Kingfish” Ingram begins 7:30 p.m. at Duling Hall (622 Duling Ave.). The 20-yearold bluesman from the Mississippi Delta performs. Doors open at

“The Robot Zoo” Exhibit Debut Jan. 18, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., at Mississippi Museum of Natural Science (2148 Riverside Drive). The museum debuts its new exhibit, “The Robot Zoo,” which features robotic animals that represent the builds of their real-life counterparts in an informational manner, helping explain how the animals move the way they do. $6 adult, $4 child, kids ages 3 and under free, members free; call 601576-6000; email nicole.smith@mmns.ms.gov; mdwfp.com. COURTESY KINGFISH

5:30 p.m. Minors under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to enter. Seating is firstcome, first-serve. Persons under 21 must pay a $5 upcharge. $20 advanced, $25 at-door; call 601-2927121; dulinghall.ticketfly.com. copies of her book. Reading at 4:30 p.m. $19 signed copy; lemuriabooks.com.

CREATIVE CLASSES Blythe Doll Customization Panel Dec. 12, Jan. 12, Feb. 12, March 12, 8-9 a.m., at Blythe Doll House (3630 Saint Clair St.). The monthly creativity workshop allows attendees to learn how to customize Blythe dolls, which are known for their wide eyes and capacity for personalization. The group shares information with each other and guests regarding topics such as sewing doll clothes, photographing your unique doll and more. Free admission; call 662-598-8115; email info@thisisblythe.com; thisisblythe.com.

ARTS & EXHIBITS Clocked Out! The Artists of Pearl River Glass Studio Dec. 11-13, Dec. 16-19, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., at Pearl River Glass Studio (142 Millsaps Ave.). The studio presents an exhibition of artworks, including paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture, jewelry and glasswork by studio artists and Millsaps students. PRGS glasswork available in the organization’s retail shop. The reception on Dec. 7 features performances by studio artists in poetry, bonsai and songs. Free admission; call 601-353-2497; email vmeek@pearlriverglass. com; find it on Facebook. Events at Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St.)

PROFESSIONAL & BIZ Lunch & Learn: Year-End Financial Tune Up Dec. 11, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., at Grantham Poole PLLC (1062 Highland Colony Parkway, Suite 201, Ridgeland). A team of CPAs and financial professionals from the firm Grantham Poole answers questions in the informative session, part of the larger Lunch & Learn series. They touch upon topics such as changes to IRS Form 990, new nonprofit tax issues, QuickBooks tidbits, setting up a budget and preparing for an audit. Lunch included. $25 MANP members, $40 nonmembers; call 601968-0061, ext. 15; email jeffery.duplessis@ alliancems.org; www3.thedatabank.com.

@XperienceJXN

tickets available at

MS COLISEUM BOX OFFICE // TICKETMASTER.COM BETTINA'S SOUL FOOD KITCHEN 108 W. CENTER ST CANTON 601-937-6889 CUTTING EDGE BARBER SHOP 908 HWY 35N. KOSCUISKO 662-289-5374 PARKER CELLULAR 307 CHURCH ST. PORT GIBSON 601-437-3130 SLYVESTER'S BBQ 9434 MS-18, RAYMOND 601-346-8000 HARRIS SHOE REPAIR 421 HOWARD ST, GREENWOOD 662-453-5431 WILSON'S ELECTRONICS 841 S. DR. MLK JR BLVD, GRENADA, MS 662-226-0745 VINTAGE BARBIE 222 N. BIERDEMAN RD, PEARL, MS 601-214-0039

FOR TABLE RESERVATIONS OR MORE INFO: CALL/TEXT 678-322-8098

Re-Defining Black Manhood Symposium Dec. 15, 3:30-5 p.m., at Afrikan Art Gallery (800 N. Farish St.). Facilitated by Asinia Lukata Chikuyu. The symposiums provide opportunities for inter-generational engagement among New Afrikan Males ages 8-80 to better prepare them for life. Free admission. Monthly Home Remodelers Networking Luncheon Jan. 13, Feb. 10, 11 a.m.-noon, at Hilton Garden Inn (235 W. Capitol St.). The monthly networking luncheon features various guest speakers presenting on topics relating to home remodeling. Sponsored by The Water Softener Gurus. Food and drinks covered in cost. Limited space. $40 registration (includes lunch); call 419-673-2273; email amygt654r@gmail.com; watersoftenergurus.com.

Check jfpevents.com for updates and more listings, or to add your own events online. You can also email event details to events@ jacksonfreepress.com to be added to the calendar. The deadline is noon the Wednesday prior to the week of publication.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

MONDAY 12/23

• Power APAC Performance Dec. 20, 11:30 a.m. The Power APAC Dance Department performs an original routine in the galleries of Nick Cave: Feat, inspired by the work on view. Exhibition ticket required. $15 general, $13 seniors, $10 student; call 601-960-1515; msmuseumart.org. • Cape Art & Coffee Jan. 4, 10-11:30 a.m. The Museum’s Center for Art and Public Exchange (CAPE) leads this opportunity to slow down with fellow art lovers in a casual morning learning space. Coffee is served. This month, Rukia Lumumba discusses her work as a community activist dealing with the school-to-prison pipeline and healing the relationship between communities of color and law enforcement. Free admission; call 601-960-1515; msmuseumart.org.

courtesy Sweet Tooth Jones

12/11 - 12/24 Wednesday 12/11 1908 Provisions - Chuck Bryan 6:30 p.m. Alumni House - Doug Hurd 7 p.m. Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - New Bourbon Street Jazz Band 7 p.m. Kathryn’s - Gator Trio 6:30 p.m. Martin’s - Open Mic 9 p.m. Offbeat - FAM Tour 6 p.m., $10 Pelican Cove - Gena Steele 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Sonny & Co. 7:30 p.m. Table 100 - Andy Henderson 6 p.m.

Thursday 12/12 Bonny Blair’s Live, Brandon - Tacky Christmas Party w/ Charade 7 p.m. Cerami’s - Ron Sennett 6 p.m. Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Drago’s- Johnny Crocker 6 p.m. Duling Hall - The Vegabonds 8 p.m. Fenian’s - Live Music 9 p.m. F. Jones Corner - Chris Minter & the KJ Funkmasters 11 p.m. $5 Genna Benna, Brandon - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Flowood - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Madison - Live Music 7 p.m. Iron Horse Grill - Brian Jones 6 p.m.

See more music at jfp.ms/musiclistings. To be included in print, email listings to music@jacksonfreepress.com.

Sweet Tooth Jones

Vicksburg - FORTAG 8 p.m. Bar 3911 - DJ Taboo 8 p.m.-2 a.m. Bonny Blair’s Live, Brandon - Ronnie McGee 9 p.m. Char - Ronnie Brown 6 p.m. Drago’s - Tod Thompson & Bob Pieczyk 6 p.m. F. Jones Corner - The Blues Man 10 p.m. $5; Smoke Stack Lightening midnight $10 Genna Benna, Brandon - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Flowood - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Madison - Live Music 7 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - Ally & Jazz Katz in Dining Room; Beebee’s, Bark and Witchcake in Red Room 7 p.m. Iron Horse Grill - Blind Dog Otis 9 p.m. Kathryn’s - The Sole Shakers 7 p.m. Martin’s - Luckenbach (Willie Nelson Tribute) 9 p.m. Pelican Cove - Stace & Cassie 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Sonny Duo 5:30 p.m.; Hairicane 8 p.m. $5; Charade 10 p.m. Table 100 - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Saturday 12/14 Ameristar Bottleneck Blues Bar, Vicksburg - FORTAG 8 p.m. courtesy Gena Steele

Genna Benna, Brandon - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Flowood - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Madison - Live Music 7 p.m. Kathryn’s - The Lucky Hand Blues Band 7 p.m. Martin’s - North Mississippi Allstars w/Southern Avenue 10 p.m. Pelican Cove - Bad Example 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Acoustic Crossroads 3:30 p.m.; Hairicane 8 p.m. $5; Josh Journeay 10 p.m. Table 100 - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Sunday 12/15 Char - Big Easy Three 11 a.m.; Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Kathryn’s - SOULSTEW 6 p.m. Pelican Cove - Robin Blakeney 12-4 p.m.; Keys vs. Strings 5 p.m. Shucker’s - Greenfish 3:30 p.m. Table 100 - Raphael Semmes Trio 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; Dan Michael Colbert 6-9 p.m. Wellington’s - Andy Hardwick 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Monday 12/16 Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - CMBS presents Blue Monday 7 p.m. $5 Kathryn’s - Scott Stricklin 6:30 p.m. Table 100 - Andrew Pates 6 p.m.

Tuesday 12/17 Bonny Blair’s Live, Brandon - Open Jam 7 p.m. Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Drago’s - Hunter Gibson 6 p.m. Fenian’s - Open Mic 9 p.m. Kathryn’s - The Road Hogs 6:30 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - Dinner, Drinks and Jazz: Raphael Semmes & Friends 9 p.m. Table 100 - Chalmers Davis 6 p.m.

Wednesday 12/18

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Gena Steele

Kathryn’s - Bill Temperance & Jeff 6:30 p.m. Pelican Cove - Larry Brewer & Doug Hurd 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Road Hogs 7:30 p.m. Table 100 - Andrew Pates 6 p.m.

Friday 12/13 1908 Provisions - Chuck Bryan 6:30 p.m. Alumni House - Larry Brewer 7 p.m. Ameristar Bottleneck Blues Bar,

Bar 3911 - Drag Performance & Dance Party feat. DJ Taboo 8 p.m.-3 a.m. free before 10 p.m. Bonny Blair’s Live, Brandon - Proximity 9 p.m. Char - John Clark 6 p.m. CS’s - Karaoke 8 p.m. Cultivation Food Hall - Scott Albert Johnson 6 p.m. F. Jones Corner - Big Money Mel & Small Change Wayne 10 p.m. $5; “Big Sexy” Annisa Hampton midnight $10

Alumni House - Gena & David Steele 7 p.m. Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - New Bourbon Street Jazz Band 7 p.m. Kathryn’s - Larry Brewer & Doug Hurd 6:30 p.m. Martin’s - Open Mic 9 p.m. Pelican Cove - Shaun Patterson 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Sonny & Co. 7:30 p.m. Table 100 - Andy Henderson 6 p.m.

Thursday 12/19 1908 Provisions - - Bill Ellison 6:30 p.m.

Bonny Blair’s Live, Brandon - Stace & Cassie 8 p.m. Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Cultivation Food Hall - Stevie Cain 6 p.m. Drago’s - Chris Gill 6 p.m. Fenian’s - Live Music 9 p.m. F. Jones Corner - Chris Minter & the KJ Funkmasters 11 p.m. $5 Genna Benna, Brandon - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Flowood - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Madison - Live Music 7 p.m. Kathryn’s - DoubleshotZ 6:30 p.m. Pelican Cove - Jason Turner 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Acoustic Crossroads 7:30 p.m. Table 100 - Andrew Pates 6 p.m.

Friday 12/20 1908 Provisions - Hunter Gibson 6:30 p.m. Alumni House- Larry Brewer 7 p.m. Ameristar Bottleneck Blues Bar, Vicksburg - Nu Corp 8 p.m. Bar 3911 - DJ Taboo 8 p.m.-2 a.m. Bonny Blair’s, Brandon - Bad Charlotte 9 p.m. Char - Ronnie Brown 6 p.m. Drago’s - Greenfish 6 p.m. Duling Hall - Mustache the Band 7 p.m. F. Jones Corner - The Blues Man 10 p.m. $5; Dexter Allen midnight $10 Genna Benna, Brandon - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Flowood - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Madison - Live Music 7 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - Ally & Jazz Katz in Dining Room; Beebee’s, Bark and Witchcake in Red Room 7 p.m. Iron Horse Grill - Deeb’s Blues 9 p.m. Kathryn’s - Jay Wadsworth & the Round Up Band 7 p.m. Martin’s - The Weeks (Night 1) 10 p.m. Pelican Cove - Proximity 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Barry Leach 5:30 p.m.; Jason Miller Band 8 p.m. $5; Charade 10 p.m. Table 100 - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Saturday 12/21 Ameristar Bottleneck Blues Bar, Vicksburg - Nu Corp 8 p.m. Bar 3911 - Drag Performance & Dance Party feat. DJ Taboo 8 p.m.-3 a.m. free before 10 p.m. Bonny Blair’s Live, Brandon - Sweet

Tooth Jones 9 p.m. Char - John Clark 6 p.m. CS’s - Karaoke 8 p.m. Cultivation Food Hall - Scott Albert Johnson 6 p.m. Duling Hall - The Vamps 6 p.m. F. Jones Corner - Big Money Mel & Small Change Wayne 10 p.m. $5; Dexter Allen midnight $10 Genna Benna, Brandon - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Flowood - Live Music 7 p.m. Georgia Blue, Madison - Live Music 7 p.m. Kathryn’s - Acoustic Crossroads 7 p.m. Martin’s - The Weeks (Night 2) 10 p.m. Pelican Cove - Charade Unplugged 6 p.m. Shucker’s - Big Al & The Heavyweights 3:30 p.m.; Jason Miller Band 8 p.m. $5; Charade 10 p.m. Table 100 - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Sunday 12/22 Char - Big Easy Three 11 a.m.; Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Kathryn’s - The XtremeZ Band 6 p.m. Pelican Cove - Larrry Brewer & Doug Hurd 12-4 p.m.; Phil Yarborough 5 p.m. Shucker’s - Musicians Party 3:30 p.m. Table 100 - Raphael Semmes Trio 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; Dan Michael Colbert 6-9 p.m. Wellington’s - Andy Hardwick 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Monday 12/23 Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - CMBS presents Blue Monday 7 p.m. $5 Kathryn’s - Joseph LaSalla 6:30 p.m. Table 100 - Andrew Pates 6 p.m.

Tuesday 12/24 1908 Provisions - Vince Barranco 6 p.m. Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m. Fenian’s - Open Mic 9 p.m. Kathryn’s - Fade2Blue 6:30 p.m. Hal & Mal’s - Dinner, Drinks and Jazz: Raphael Semmes & Friends 9 p.m. Table 100 - Chalmers Davis 6 p.m.

Know more? Send additional music information to music@jacksonfreepress.com

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2

Offsite & Onsite CATERING AVAILABLE

Music/Events

Wednesday 12/11

Restaurant Open

Thursday 12/12

Happy Hour Mon-Fri 4-7pm! $5 Margaritas, $5 Mezcalitas, $3 Patron Shots $1 off all beer

Dining Room - 6:00pm - Free

Priced To Move

Wednesday

Friday 12/13

Priced To Move 13

Monday 12/16

23 24

February

$2 off Shrimp and Fish Tacos

Central MS Blues Society presents:

Blue Monday Dining Room - 7 - 11pm $3 Members $5 Non-Members

Friday

Tuesday 12/17

Dinner Drinks & Jazz with Raphael Semmes and Friends Dining Room - 6pm

Endless Mimosas $15 $6 Bloody Mary’s & Micheladas

8 COMPLETE SHOW LISTINGS & TICKETS

www.dulinghall.com

HAPPY HOUR 2820 N State St (601) 487-6082 greenghosttacos.com

Saturday 12/14 Dining Room - 7pm - Free

Thursday

Sat-Sun

Big Room - Noon-10pm

Jackson Gypsies

$2 off Quesadillas

Ladies Day! 1/2 priced Salads and Bowls Happy Hour Starts at 4 p.m. for Ladies

Bill, Jeff and Temperance Dining Room - 7:00pm - Free

Tuesday

Taco Tuesay $2 Tacos All Day (Excludes shrimp and fish tacos)

Big Room - 5-10pm

January

Monday

Scrub Day 20% Off Your Meal with Scrubs or a Hospital Badge * Dine in only.

D’Lo Trio

AT DULING

TWO HOURS BEFORE EVERY SHOW $1 OFF FOOD & DRINKS CRAFT COCKTAILS • SMALL BITES • GOOD TIMES

Wednesday 12/18

New Bourbon Street Jazz Band Dining Room - 6:00pm - Free

Thursday 12/19

Thomas Jackson Dining Room - 6:00pm - Free

Friday 12/20

Waterworks Curve Dining Room - 7pm - Free

Saturday 12/21

PHOENIX CLUB HOSTS

15th Aunual Tacky Christmas Big Room - 8:00pm

Sunday 12/22

SAINTS VS. TITANS Sunday Potluck

12pm |Big Room | BYOF (Bring your own food)

Monday 12/23

Central MS Blues Society presents:

Blue Monday Dining Room - 7 - 11pm $3 Members $5 Non-Members

Tuesday 12/24

Dinner Drinks & Jazz with Raphael Semmes and Friends Dining Room - 6pm

Upcoming

KRYSTAL BALL 12/31/19 12/25- Cats Purring 12/27- Cary Hudson in Dining room 12/28- Timmy Avalon Duo

We’re now on Waitr!

12/29- Saints vs. Panthers 12/30- CMBS presents Blues Monday

visit halandmals.com for a full menu and concert schedule 601.948.0888

200 s. Commerce St.

December 11 - 24, 2019 • boomjackson.com

DECEMBER

DAILY BLUE PLACE SPECIALS

54 Wolf’s intended victims, in a story 55 Currency exchange fee 56 Female sheep 58 Carne ___ 61 Like some doughnuts 65 Earn the crown 66 Active volcano in Sicily 67 Regular breakfast choice? 68 “Your point being...?” 69 Assents 70 Fully satisfy 71 “Woohoo!”

BY MATT JONES

Down

“Most Generous”-- great things that share initials. Across

1 Nevertheless 4 Bosc center 8 Augments 14 Gold, to CortÈs 15 “Let me sleep ___” 16 Round ﬁgure? 17 “Elementary” star Lucy 18 Fictitious nursery rhyme writer 20 ___’s razor (logical principle) 22 Tappan ___ Bridge (span demolished in January 2019) 23 Mice, to owls

24 Snug as ___ ... 26 Haphazard 29 Lit 32 Handled farm tool 33 They’re unnamed until the end, on some game shows 37 Reddit Q&A feature 38 Bored response 39 “Fight Club” chemical 42 Thanks, to Tom·s 47 Preﬁx for liberal or conservative 48 Aptly titled 1999 debut album (and genre) for Eiffel 65 49 Mandibles

Smoked Turkey (10-12lbs)

$59.75 December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

that we can cook the turkey!

1491 Canton Mart Rd. Jackson • 601-956-7079

Last Week’s Answers

For answers to this puzzle, call: 1-900226-2800, 99 cents per minute. Must be 18+. Or to bill to your credit card, call: 1-800 655-6548. Reference puzzle #921.

Editor’s Note: Psycho Sudoku by Matt Jones has been discontinued.

1 “Seize the day” acronym 2 Clapton or Idle 3 Cereal mascot since 1963 4 Get to work? 5 “Starpeace” musician Yoko 6 Nabisco brand 7 Air beyond the clouds 8 Condensed, as a pocket dict. 9 NYC’s ___ Hammarskjˆld Plaza 10 Bit of rain 11 Brick-and-mortar operation 12 Stuns, in a way 13 Follows directions 19 Ultra-wide shoe width 21 Kind of 25 Gina of “Cocktail” and “Showgirls” 27 Make happy 28 Pugilist’s stats 29 “You may say ___ dreamer” 30 Place with memberships 31 “Electra Woman and ___ Girl” (‘70s series) 34 Stop-and-___ (some landings) 35 Push for 36 Escapes 40 NBA legend ___ Ming 41 Ability that may be just lucky guessing

Be thankful

43 Opens, as a lock 44 Senior suit 45 King Minos’ daughter who aided Theseus 46 Gear parts 49 Full of fruit, like some doughnuts 50 Swirly marble 51 Towelettes 52 Moray, e.g. 53 Q-Tip ends 57 Pound of poetry books 59 Actress Meyer 60 “Toy Story” boy 62 Laredo-to-Galveston dir.

Male AB Donors Urgently Needed! Returning Male AB Donors will be compensated up to $85 for a complete donation starting on their 2nd visit.

In order to donate, you need: Valid picture ID Social Security Card Be between 18-70 years old Be in good health

Interstate Blood Bank. 3505 Terry Road Suite 204, Jackson Call us at 601.718.0986 for more information. Walk-ins are welcome. New donors will be compensated $50 for a full donation.

BE A HERO. IT’S IN YOUR BLOOD. COME AND DONATE WITH US.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):

How did humans figure out that a luxurious fabric could be made from the cocoons of insect larvae? Ancient Chinese sage Confucius told the following story. One day in 2460 B.C., 14-year-old Chinese princess Xi Ling Shi was sitting under a mulberry tree sipping tea. A silk worm’s cocoon fell off a branch and landed in her drink. She was curious, not bothered. She unrolled the delicate structure and got the idea of using the threads to weave a fabric. The rest is history. I foresee a silk-worm’s-cocoon-falling-in-your-cup-oftea type of event in your future, Sagittarius. Be alert for it.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):

I would never try to talk you into downplaying or denying your suffering. I would never try to convince you that the pain you have experienced is mild or tolerable or eminently manageable. Who among us has the wisdom to judge the severity or intractability of anyone else’s afflictions? Not I. But in the coming months, I will ask you to consider the possibility that you have the power—perhaps more than you realize—to diminish your primal aches and angst. I will encourage you to dream of healing yourself in ways that you have previously imagined to be impossible.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):

“You owe it to us all to get on with what you’re good at,” wrote Piscean poet W. H. Auden. In other words, you have a responsibility to develop your potential and figure out how to offer your best gifts. It’s not just a selfish act for you to fulfill your promise; it’s a generous act of service to your fellow humans. So how are you doing with that assignment, Pisces? According to my analysis, you should be right in the middle of raising your efforts to a higher octave; you should be discovering the key to activating the next phase of your success—which also happens to be the next phase of your ability to bestow blessings on others.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):

Creativity expert Roger von Oech tells us, “Everyone has a ‘risk muscle.’ You keep it in shape by trying new things. If you don’t, it atrophies. Make a point of using it at least once a day.” Here’s what I’ll add to his advice. If your risk muscle is flabby right now, the coming weeks will be an excellent time to whip it into better shape. Start with small, modest risks, and gradually work your way up to bigger and braver ones. And what should you do if your risk muscle is already well-toned? Dream and scheme about embarking on a major, long-term venture that is the robust embodiment of a smart gamble.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):

Many people engage in laughably feeble attempts to appear witty by being cynical—as if by exuding sardonic irony and sneering pessimism they could prove their mettle as brilliant observers of modern culture. An example is this lame wisecrack from humorist David Sedaris: “If you’re looking for sympathy you’ll find it between s--- and syphilis in the dictionary.” I bring this to your attention in the hope of coax-

CANCER (June 21-July 22):

“You can shop online and find whatever you’re looking for,” writes pundit Paul Krugman, “but bookstores are where you find what you weren’t looking for.” That’s a good principle to apply in every area of your life. It’s always smart to know exactly what you need and want, but sometimes—like now—it’s important that you put yourself in position to encounter what you need and want but don’t realize that you need and want.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):

Bachianas Brasileiras is a nine-part piece of music that blends Brazilian folk music with the compositional style of Johann Sebastian Bach. The poet Anne Sexton relied on it, letting it re-play ceaselessly during her long writing sessions. My painter friend Robin sometimes follows a similar method with Leonard Cohen’s album Ten New Songs, allowing it to cycle for hours as she works on her latest masterpiece. In accordance with astrological omens, I invite you to select a new theme song or collection of theme songs to inspire your intense efforts in behalf of your labors of love in the coming weeks. It’s a favorable time to explore the generative power of joyous, lyrical obsession.

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VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):

“I’ve spent my life butting my head against other people’s lack of imagination,” mourned Virgo musician Nick Cave, who’s renowned for his original approach to his craft. I’m bringing this to your attention because I suspect you will be endowed with an extra fertile imagination in the coming weeks. And I would hate for you to waste time and energy trying to make full use of it in the presence of influences that would resist and discourage you. Therefore, I’ll cheer you on as you seek out people and situations that enhance your freedom to express your imagination in its expansive glory.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):

A scholar counted up how often the Bible delivers the command “Fear not!” and “Don’t be afraid!” and similar advice. The number was 145. I don’t think that approach to regulating behavior works very well. To be constantly thinking about what you’re not supposed to do and say and think about tends to strengthen and reinforce what you’re not supposed to do and say and think about. I prefer author Elizabeth Gilbert’s strategy. She writes, “I don’t try to kill off my fear. I make all that space for it. Heaps of space. I allow my fear to live and breathe and stretch out its legs comfortably. It seems to me the less I fight my fear, the less it fights back.” That’s the method I recommend for you, Libra—especially in the coming weeks.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):

Isaac Newton (1642–1726) was one of history’s most influential scientists and a key contributor to physics, astronomy, mathematics, and optics. His mastery of the nuances of human relationships was less developed, however. He had one close friendship with a Swiss mathematician, though he broke it off abruptly after four years. And his biographers agree that he never had sex with another person. What I find most curious, however, is the fact that he refused to even meet the brilliant French philosopher Voltaire, who reached out to him and asked to get together. I trust you won’t do anything like that in the coming weeks, Scorpio. In fact, I urge you to be extra receptive to making new acquaintances, accepting invitations, and expanding your circle of influence.

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E RE N

O RO M

“Nobody knows really what they’re doing,” says Aries comedian Conan O’Brien. “And there are two ways to go with that information,” he continues. “One is to be afraid, and the other is to be liberated, and I choose to be liberated by it.” I hope you’ll be inspired by O’Brien’s example in the coming weeks, Aries. I suspect that if you shed your worries about the uncertainty you feel, you’ll trigger an influx of genius. Declaring your relaxed independence from the temptation to be a know-it-all will bless you with expansive new perspectives and freedom to move.

ing you to avoid indulging in gratuitous pessimism during the coming weeks. For the sake of your good health, it’s important for you to be as open-minded and generous-spirited as possible. And besides that, pessimism will be unwarranted.

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“It is the soul’s duty to be loyal to its own desires,” wrote Capricorn author Rebecca West. “It must abandon itself to its master passion.” That’s a high standard to live up to! But then you Capricorns have substantial potential to do just that: become the champions of devoting practical commitment to righteous causes. With that in mind, I’ll ask you: How are you doing in your work to embody the ideal that Rebecca West articulated? Is your soul loyal to its deepest desires? Has it abandoned itself to its master passion? Take inventory—and make any corrections, if necessary.

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SHOPPING // holiday gifts

Ho-Ho-Holiday Gifts

// by Nate Schumann

he holiday season is more than upon us, so if you are looking for some items to pick up for friends or family—or even to decorate your home or office—this holiday gift guide may serve you well. Give it a gander and browse the numerous goods found at local businesses in the Jackson area. Shopping local is the way to give. Christmas Candles $23.95-$79.95 Apple Annie’s:

Juli Juneau Holiday Ornaments $34 The Museum Store

Christmas Stockings $14.95-$16.95 Apple Annie’s: Pecan Pie in a Jar $16.95 Apple Annie’s: Custom potted cacti $18-$45 Prickly Hippie

Best Friends Sign $8 N.U.T.S.

Basilica Di San Marco Advent Calendar $28 The Museum Store

Hand Painted Flasks $35 Prickly Hippie

December 11 - 24, 2019 • jfp.ms

Christmas Stories from Mississippi Book $30 The Museum Store

Framed Art $7.49 N.U.T.S.

Christmas Cards $3 N.U.T.S.

Vintage Christmas Sweaters $4-$8 Uptownwithrr

Where 2 Shop Apple Annies (106 Autumn Ridge Place, Suite 6, Brandon; 601-9929925; 1896 Main St., Suite D, Madison; 601-853-8911; shopappleannies. com; Mississippi Museum of Art Store (380 S. Lamar St., 601-9601515, msmuseumart.org); NUTS (114 Millsaps Ave.; 601-355-7458; goodsamaritancenter.org); Prickly Hippie (500 Highway 51, Suite F, Ridgeland; 601-910-6730; pricklyhippie.com); Uptownwithrr (534 Mitchell Ave.; 601-287-4949)

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In this holiday season, we’re thankful for all of the people who have generously supported the work of the Jackson Free Press by becoming JFP VIP subscribers. Thanks to these great folks:

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