Hello, dear readers. You’ve probably seen my name within these pages by now, mostly in this space or in the back in Last Word or a byline to the occasional music or food feature. Today, you’re seeing it for the first time with me as this paper’s editor-in-chief. And I’d like to formally introduce myself.
I picked up my first copy of the Memphis Flyer more than 20 years ago as a fledgling writer — and an outspoken, screw-the-system teenager — on the newspaper staff at my northern Mississippi high school. Once a week, I’d drive to my favorite local music store, Disc-O-Tech (shout-out to Tomcatt who’s still keeping it going in Southaven!), and grab a copy. It gave me easy access to the big city that then felt worlds apart but lay just across the state line. In many ways, the paper’s voice — edgy, bold, and unapologetic — matched that of mine, even then, as a determined kid with much to learn.
It was nearly 15 years ago that I drove to the Memphis Flyer offices for the first time, then housed on Tennessee Street Downtown, with a slip of paper in my hand and a dream in my heart. On the paper were handwritten directions, given to me over the phone by senior editor Michael Finger, who I’d be interviewing with for an internship position. In my final year as a journalism major at the University of Memphis, I was nervous but excited at the prospect of seeing behind the scenes, learning from the company’s talented staff of writers and editors — and being a part of making the magic happen.
A bonus — for me, as a Mississippi Delta native who’d always yearned for big-city life — through an editorial internship, there were endless opportunities to learn more about Memphis from on the ground, by talking to community movers and shakers, artists, activists, entertainers, and leaders. And I’d come to do just that.
The first story I wrote for the Flyer was back in 2008, on Anthony Lee’s Modern Hieroglyphs art project along South Main at Central Station. I’d later cover controversies surrounding expansion at the Memphis Zoo, a host of events around town for the paper’s Steppin’ Out section, and — one of the strangest for a young reporter — the on-site auction of property left behind at the former Platinum Plus strip club. I learned more with every story, about myself as a writer, about how to ask the right questions, about what made Memphis uniquely Memphis. And I found my journalistic footing.
Once my internship was up, I stuck around, hoping to keep that foot in the door. Through the years, I worked in various departments within Contemporary Media, wherever they’d take me — selling advertising space, writing advertorial content and editorial features for Memphis magazine, taking the helm as the editor of Memphis Parent. And, in 2019, I circled back to where it all started, on the Flyer staff, this time as managing editor. It has been a hell of a ride.
I have profound respect for all of the people who keep the Flyer and its sister publications rolling, who’ve weathered stormy waters as digital media took its hold, who persevered through precarious times, including navigating an unprecedented pandemic. Our entire crew — reporters, editors, designers, sales executives, distribution and production facilitators, and management — are to be lauded for what they do day in and day out. It truly takes teamwork to make the dream work.
Through it all, the Flyer has been a beacon, representing the spirit and grit of the city and its people, covering the curious and quirky, the light and the dark — and maintaining its focus of giving a voice to the voiceless, telling the hard stories, doing the deep digging, and providing that work to the public, for free.
During my time here, I’ve gotten to know Memphis at its core — its humans, its hardships and successes, its scuffs and scrapes, its beauty. The stories I’ve helped tell, that came to life on the pages of these publications, are the stories of our city. There are many more to be told, and I look forward to — along with our outstanding (and ridiculously cool) team — sharing them with you all.
We wouldn’t be able to continue the Flyer’s 33-year legacy without you, and we’re grateful to have you on this journey alongside us. Thank you for reading.
