Author: Joshua Cannon

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News The Fly-By

Memphis Family To Appear on Family Feud

Steve Harvey isn’t terrifying, says Cassie Smith Ellis. In fact, he’s pretty easygoing. Ellis and four of her Tennessee relatives (two of whom — Natalie and Ryan Jeans — are from Memphis) recently competed on the long-running televised game show Family Feud. The episode airs on February 19th at 2 p.m. on WHBQ, and Ellis was barred from giving away too many details. Ellis did, however, tell the Flyer that despite the pressure of having to think on her feet, the show was a rewarding experience. And she said Harvey, the broad-grinning comedian and host of the show, offered an array of “teachable” moments.

— Joshua Cannon

Cassie Ellis (far left) with the Ellis family

Flyer: How did the opportunity to be on the show come about?

Cassie Smith: [My cousin] heard there was an audition in Nashville. We were the first contestants of the day [at the audition]. Immediately after we got off of the stage from the mock Family Feud, they called us right back to meet the producers. They just wanted to know about our personalities and a little more about us.

How did you prepare for the auditions?

We watched a lot of Family Feud. We downloaded apps on our phones and played the games together. We just kept our minds wrapped around the whole concept of the show and thinking out of the box.

Did you guys talk about how you would use the prize money if you won?

We would all just split it up among the family and do what we need to do for our own families. If I were to win, depending on how much I win, I would probably pay off my house and put a little back for my son. He’s 7 years old, and his name is Jordan William.

What was your favorite aspect of being on the show?

We got to be a part of the studio audience as well. There is a guy who comes on before Steve Harvey to get everyone warmed up. Throughout the whole show, even while we were in the audience before it started, there was always singing and dancing. We were clapping or we were yelling and chanting something. It was a lot of fun. But meeting Steve Harvey was what topped it off.

Do you have a memorable experience from meeting Steve Harvey?

He’s very easygoing actually. He’s comedic and liked to joke with the audience a lot. It was like he was part of the family. He would give advice to the audience as a whole. He would have a teachable moment where he would tell about his life and things he had gone through.

What was the most challenging aspect of the show?

Thinking on your feet — if you have so many answers on the board and your family has gone through them, if you’re here, and all of your answers have been called out. It’s hard to think on the spot to get something a little different from what [was already] said.

Are there any other game shows you’d like to be on now that you’ve got Family Feud on your resume?

I’ve always wanted to be on Whammy. I’ve watched it since I was little.

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News News Blog

Memphis-Shelby County Encourage Residents to Go Green With Sustainability Challenge

The Memphis-Shelby County Office of Sustainability launched an initiative on Feb. 1 that will reward residents for going green.

We Sustain Shelby is a five-month campaign focused on reducing waste as well as cutting energy and water use in an effort to create a more sustainable community. 

The Memphis-Shelby County Office of Sustainability will issue two to four specific actions for residents to achieve each week. The actions will fall under one of five “going green” themes: energy, water, waste, nature, and health. Some of the actions require less effort, like recycling or eating at a Project Green Fork certified restaurant. But others are more challenging — such as weatherstripping your home. 

Memphis and Shelby County residents can independently tackle the initiative or form a team when they sign up. Participants will self-report their actions as they complete the weekly challenges. They will earn points for each accomplished action.

A grand prize will be announced and awarded in July after the campaign concludes on June 24. 

 

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Music Music Blog

Five Questions with Jon Waltz

CREDIT: Briana Wade

Briana Wade

Jon Waltz stands at the forefront of up-and-coming artists who are revitalizing the Memphis’ hip-hop scene. That community looks a lot different from the height of Three 6 Mafia’s career — when they put the city on the map with a catalogue of tracks that took them from clubs to the Oscars. With a new wave comes a new sound, and 20-year-old Waltz is making a name for himself. Jaden Smith recently premiered Waltz’ single Actress on his Beats 1 radio show. “The whole time I was like, ‘This is Will Smith’s offspring telling the world that I’m going to be a somebody in the near future,’” Waltz told The Flyer. If things stay the course, he just might.


1. When you first started making music, what artists influenced you?

Drake, The Weeknd, Lil Wayne, and Kendrick Lamar influenced me the most when I was 16. 

2. What do you think of the Memphis’ rap community? It’s much different from the days of Three 6 Mafia. How would you say it’s changed?

I think the Memphis rap community is awesome right now, and there’s a lot of cool acts people will see surfacing soon. I think things have changed from the days of Three 6 Mafia because there’s a lot of kids who grew up like I did, who listened to that music, but were aware that the things they represent aren’t the things we represent. I think, especially since the internet culture has pushed kids to be themselves, what comes out of this community is the result of a lot of kids from a different socioeconomic background who grew up on artists like Kanye West and Kid Cudi, who preached self-expression.  

3. Jaden Smith recently premiered your song Actress on his Beats 1 Radio show. What was that

like?

It was pretty weird hearing him talk me up like that, but it was a cool experience. The whole time I was like, “This is Will Smith’s offspring telling the world that I’m going to be a somebody in the near future.” It’s pretty sick, and just more motivation to work toward making better music. 

4. Do you have anything in the works at the moment?

I’ve been working on a project for almost a year now that will probably come out within the next 3 months, I just have to make sure everything is polished correctly and as genuine as possible. 

5. What have you been listening to lately?

I’ve been listening to Archie Marshall a lot, Desiigner, Nessly, Chiara Hunter, Tobi Lou, Matt Champion and London O’Connor. 



Listen to Anna below:

Five Questions with Jon Waltz

Categories
News The Fly-By

A Look at 5 Mud Island Park Redevelopment Proposals

At least 20 different uses — from a zoo to a 400-foot fountain — have been proposed for Mud Island River Park since 1910. Various visions to improve daily attendance have failed to flourish. More than $300 million has been poured into the park, but it hemorrhages $2 million in annual operational costs.

That’s why Riverfront Development Corporation (RDC) is back to the drawing board. After posting a request for qualifications, the RDC received proposals last month from five potential redevelopers with ideas for the park, ranging from a skate park to an upgraded amphitheater to a 500-room resort and spa.

RDC issued the request to “make sure the individual parties were qualified in that they had done or been materially involved in projects of this magnitude in the past,” RDC President Benny Lendermon said. ML Professional Properties, RVC Outdoor Destinations, Bass Pro Shops, Memphis Equity Brand Management, and Mansion America, LLC, now have until Feb. 24th to explain how they plan to design, develop, finance, construct, maintain, operate, and manage their proposals.

Revitalizing the underutilized Mud Island River Park is no simple feat. Though RDC is in the preliminary stages of choosing a firm, a hotel could take years to build, while the amphitheater might only take months to refurbish, Lendermon said. How the makeover will be funded is uncertain, but footing the bill mostly with private dollars rather than pulling from the city budget is crucial for the master plan.

“We are looking at a public/private partnership to bring new capital to Mud Island to both invigorate it and to pay for deferred maintenance issues that the city does not really have the funds to pay for currently,” Lendermon said. “That is our hope. We will not know if any of these ideas accomplish that goal until we receive the final proposals and begin negotiations.”

Below are selected details from each of the redevelopment firm’s proposals:

ML Professional Properties:

• Add three new bridges, and split the lanes — one for bikers and joggers and one for walkers and sightseers. One would be designed like the Nashville entertainment and pedestrian bridge.

• Develop an area called the River’s Edge on the west bank and model it after the River Walk in San Antonio, Texas.

• Construct a water park at the end of the River Walk. Turn it into an ice skating rink during the winter.

• Convert the museum into a mixed-use area like the City Museum in St. Louis, Missouri.

• Build a U-shaped fishing pier at the west side of the island.

• Build a dog park.

• Build a skateboard park.

RVC Outdoor Destinations:

• Create a new main, north entrance, and incorporate Greenbelt Park.

• Consider renovation or demolition of the Harbor Landing building with a focus on corporate events and weddings. Take advantage of overnight lodging.

• Get guests on the water with boat and kayak rentals, as wells as guided fishing and eco-tours.

Bass Pro Shops:

• Bass Pro Shops did not submit a formal proposal to the RDC by the Jan. 15th deadline. However, they requested in a letter “to still be considered a qualified development partner and have the opportunity to submit a more defined plan in the future.”

• Should they not be chosen as the master developer, Dunham asked to have “a representative on the RDC team and have ongoing involvement in the design and development process.”

Memphis Equity Brand Management:

• Build a 500-room resort hotel and spa, “which might carry the Marriott flag.”

• Construct a monorail that will stop near the hotel lobby.

• Create a parking garage to accommodate 500 spaces for the hotel and 500 spaces for visitors to the River Park.

Mansion America, LLC:

• Update the visual aesthetics of the Mud Island Amphitheater.

• Re-establish a handicap walk ramp to the seating area.

• Establish an in-house ticketing system.

• Establish an entertainment calendar including musicians, comedians, touring variety and theatrical shows, and a televised annual music event.

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Music Music Blog

Yeezy Season Approaching: Malco to Live-Stream Kanye West’s Album Release Show

Unfortunate Kanye West fans the world over won’t be attending his Madison Square Garden Yeezy Season 3 and yet-again-untitled album release show, but that doesn’t mean they have to miss it.

West will stream the show in theaters across the globe. Memphians can buy tickets and link up at Malco Paradiso next Thursday, Feb. 11 at 3:15 p.m. 

Tickets are $25, but for $35 fans can also snag a digital download of the album. Other bundles range from $75 to $581. Depending on your wallet, you can bag a T-Shirt, hoodie or jean jacket. 

The album formerly known as Waves, formerly known as Swish, and formerly known as So Help Me God comes on the heels of two fire singles, Real Friends and No More Parties in L.A.

The writer’s block is over, MCs cancel your plans.

Listen to No More Parties in L.A. below:

Yeezy Season Approaching: Malco to Live-Stream Kanye West’s Album Release Show

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Music Music Features

Garrett Galtelli: Memphis’ Mega Man

Garrett Galtelli’s drum and bass project Z340 appeared overnight with a 10-track album uploaded online, but that doesn’t mean the project was rushed. Galtelli, who plays bass in local screamo outfit Neev — and has floated in and out of other local bands — told the Flyer something has always been “lingering in my head that needed to be set free.” Hiding away in his Midtown apartment for the better half of 2015 resulted in a Björk-and-Flying Lotus-influenced electronic record rooted in his childhood interests: jazz music, computer programming, and the Mega Man X (MMX) series. We sat down with Galtelli to decipher the coded song titles and Mega Man references that frame his latest contribution to the Memphis music scene.

–Joshua Cannon

Memphis Flyer: What sparked the idea for this project?

Garrett Galtelli: To be honest, I’ve had this idea since high school. It started when I first heard the background music on old MMX games. I loved the astral sound and wanted to create it and share it with others. I’ve always had a passion for drums and bass and house music. I love fast-paced beats, ambient melodies, and deep bass, so I figured I’d throw it all together. It’s not exactly the music I enjoy but mainly the sounds in particular. I always loved material by artists like LTJ Bukem, E-Z Rollers, Makoto, Photek, Flying Lotus, Gold Panda, Telefon Tel Aviv, and especially Björk.

How long did you work on it, and why did you keep it to yourself?

I decided to keep it to myself until I was finished because my family and friends and mutual acquaintances knew me as a strings musician my entire life. I’ve been in several bands, but there was still something else lingering in my head that needed to be set free. Everybody knew me as a band musician. A year later, I finished the 10th track for the album and decided it was time to drop it without caring about judgment.

In what ways did your influences bleed through these songs?

There’s this one song by Björk called “Crystalline.” At the beginning, it’s very ambient and subtle, but what really gave me chills, goose bumps, and the thrill ride I was looking for in my own music was the unexpected ending to that song where she just explodes into the most incredible D-and-B break-beat I think I’ve ever heard in my entire life. I think that sound has bled through into some of the tracks on the album for sure.

Some jazz influence bleeds through these songs, too. What age were you introduced to the genre, and how does it shape your music?

I first started learning jazz music and jazz theory when I was in the seventh grade. I got my first bass guitar in sixth grade, and I had a very wonderful teacher at my school who was very patient and made the learning process feel more “one-on-one.” Even in a fully loaded classroom, he was able to teach us individually at times. I loved stuff like Miles Davis and of course John Coltrane, as well as Dave Brubeck and several others. I was probably almost 11 years old or 12 years old at the time it started, and I just went on from there.

Do you have any desire to add vocals to the tracks?

The 10th track is actually the only song on the album I did vocals on. They’re taken from a nursery rhyme that was sung to put me to sleep when I was younger, and I never forgot it. With this project, I’m more passionate about the sound than I am the message. I would rather there not be a message and just have pure ear-pleasure. I don’t feel like every song needs a message behind it. As long as your ears enjoy it, nothing else really matters. Sometimes words can be misconstrued, and I didn’t want that to happen, so I thought it might be best to just keep my mouth shut and my hands open.

You also play in a band named Neev. How is writing music for this project different than your solo stuff?

It’s on the complete opposite spectrum. Totally different genres. The music is different because in Neev I collaborate with four other brains instead of just one, and each of them has their own level of creativity. When you put all of that together, there’s a huge sense of reward after you have a final product.

What’s the story behind the song titles? For the non-coders, what do they translate to in English?

Back in the days when coding was a big part of my life, I had to communicate to other users using a different language made up of characters instead of letters. We called this language “1337” text or “l-l@x04” text or honestly whatever you want to call it. It was made up of Unicode and other symbols from your typical PC character map.

And the Mega Man references?

Basically all of the track titles are related to the Mega Man X series since that was one of my favorite games back when I was younger. The artist image I used [for the cover], however, is of another character from the series named Zero. He’s my favorite and quite possibly the strongest character in the series. He will always be my favorite video game character of all time, hence why I go by the name “Z340” with this project.

Categories
Music Music Blog

A Conversation with David Bazan

Seattle-bred songwriter David Bazan returns to Memphis this Thursday on his latest cross-country living room tour. Much of Bazan’s discography couples what he calls a mix of “autobiography and fiction.” The son of an evangelical pastor, he began tackling difficult questions in his songwriting, such as Christianity as he was raised to understand it, since the inception of his band Pedro The Lion in 1995. 2009’s Curse Your Branches was penned as Bazan’s breakup record with God. Bazan Monthly, his latest project, disciplined Bazan into releasing two tracks every month. The final result ended a three-year songwriting dry spell and led to some self-realizations. “It just showed me that I really can make music that I like anytime,” Bazan says. “Somehow I had doubted that for a long time.” The Flyer spoke with Bazan about the Monthly project ­— and how he narrowed down half of the songs to re-record for his next full length, which is due out May 13.

1) Your discography feels autobiographical in a sense. With writing two songs a month, did that continue? Did you notice a theme, or “discovery process,” in your songwriting throughout both volumes?

Not all of my songs are autobiographical, even if a lot of them that feel that way. But there are plenty that are. My guess is it’s half and half. The more I’m writing, the more I’m kind of leaning into that mix of autobiography and fiction. It’s super fun and interesting to have certain bits of songs inspired by real events and then be able to jump off from there to any direction that makes a cool song or verse or chorus.


2) Since these songs weren’t written together in a traditional sense, where did ideas for lyrics stem from on this project?
Well, especially in a time-crunch situation, lyrics are, for me anyways, the hardest thing to come up with. I’ll pick one song and talk about it to give you an idea of how it went. On the song “Over my Eyes,” which on the new full length will be called “Both Hands,” I was just writing lyrics. I had a song structure and a melody and I was just filling in lyrics that made me not bummed. I didn’t feel like, “Oh, I’ve got something great to say. I was just kind of flailing around and plugging in lyrics that I hoped didn’t suck. Because of the time constraints that’s about all I had time to do. As it turns out, I didn’t know at the time what I was writing about necessarily. Maybe I had a hunch, but it could have been two or three different things. And then once the song came out and I couldn’t really change it anymore, it turned out I loved it. It turned out to be about this one really important relationship in my life, and a lot of that I really didn’t know going in.


3) How does it feel sitting with these songs as opposed to sitting with a more traditionally recorded album?

Pretty similar. My subconscious is the thing that is weaving all of the things on a record together. Because the deadlines would come every month, I was writing all these tunes in a five-month period, which is, in some cases, even a shorter period than writing an album. Sometimes you write a record over a couple years. Because these songs were written in such close proximity of one another, they really hang together thematically in a way I couldn’t have planned in the same way. The links between the songs are really nuanced and not heavy handed, but in that sense they do feel like they belong together. Each monthly volume is more album-like than I could have anticipated.

4) How did your Monthly project prepare you for your next full-length?

It just showed me that I really can make music that I like anytime. Somehow I had doubted that for a long time. I felt like I didn’t have access to what I needed to make the music I wanted. I mean that internally, not that I didn’t have the tools. I have tools coming out of my ass, it’s just that the internal software wasn’t set up right somehow. Those deadlines pushed a lot of stuff out of me that I really like. I guess what it taught me moving forward is that if I’ve gotta set up a deadline to make the thing happen, then do that, but the point is to make shit. Don’t give into self-doubt. It’s ever-present, but don’t let it dictate how your process is going to go. Just make shit.

5) What are the details on your next record?

The record is done, and, as it turns out, it’s a collection of the monthly stuff that we have modified and cleaned up and changed and tweaked. We’ve chosen 10 of the 20 monthly songs and put them on a record. I wanted a wider audience to hear this stuff that I’m so proud of. The distribution model we were using was cool, but it didn’t really have the same reach that a full-length does. That’s saying something because full-lengths don’t have the same reach that they used to. It’ll come out May 13, and I’ll be supporting it all year after that. Then my plan is just to put out a record every year.

6) You said the themes came together in a way you couldn’t have planned. But did you notice anything when you sat down and put 10 songs next to each other that you hadn’t noticed when you were releasing them month-to-month?

I did. They were pulled from both Volume One and Volume Two, which both feel differently to me. Our initial criteria for choosing a song was just … tone. Lyrics were not really a consideration. The lyrics all hung together enough to where that just wasn’t our first criteria. Once we did choose the songs, I started looking at the lyrics, and I thought, “Okay, what’s here, and how do these flow together?” Coincidentally, it worked great. What I noticed was, a lot of songs obsessed with relationships, particularly, I guess, my marriage to my wife and the way that touring and the occasional turmoil of trying to do this crazy job for a living affects things. It’s just about

vulnerability and longing and it all hangs together in a way that I’m pretty moved by.

7) You abandoned Spotify, referring to it as “Straight up class warfare.” How has splitting from streaming-services allowed you to develop a closer relationship with your fans?

The landscape of that stuff is a little more complicated than some of the sound bites I’ve uttered. Spotify is a horrible way to support artists. It’s an amazing way to discover music. Once you discover music that you love, you then have to take another step to support it. Participating in Spotify in no way supports the production of music or supports the future of artists making music. As a consumer, I’ve really begun to appreciate Spotify as a discovery tool, which really doesn’t change my perspective that if someone only listens to Spotify, it’s a pretty clear lack of commitment to supporting music. Since I’ve started subscribing to Spotify, I’ve bought way more music because I’m discovering more music than I ever have. I love a percentage of it, so I’m buying more records on iTunes in the last couple of months than I ever have. To your question, the house shows are a really great place to have slightly more complex discussions about stuff like that than a venue. People are just tuned in a little bit more. There are fewer distractions. It’s easier to have a nuanced discussion something like Spotify or streaming in general. You’re able to have a really sane back and forth about it. Honestly, my kind of coming around to Spotify as a consumer and loving it as a discovery tool came from hearing what people at the shows were saying. It’s not just the information going one way where I’m just schooling people about what reality is in the music business, but it’s also hearing the perspective of everyday music consumers. We’re all broke, and we’re all trying to connect with music. It’s super important to us. I love it. It’s one of the very best things in my life.


8) What artist or band have you been listening to lately that you’d recommend?

I’ve been listening to Viet Cong. I’ve been listening to a band called Spray Paint, this record called Dopers.The new Pusha-T record (King Push – Darkest Before Dawn: The Prelude) is really good. Like really good. I haven’t bought the Pusha T record because I’ve only listened to it once, but I’m pretty sure I’m going to because after three or four more times I’ll know for sure. I’m listening to that on Spotify. I discovered Spray Paint from a friend. I discovered Viet Cong on Spotify. Now I bought two Spray Paint records and two Viet Cong records. That’s all happened in the last two weeks, and I really like them. It’s just such a great system for discovering and then buying music and owning shit that you love — but not getting stuck with records that you’re just not that into. We all did that for so long with CD’s.

Purchase tickets to the show here. Listen to Bazan play “Options” from Pedro The Lion’s 2002 album Control below:

A Conversation with David Bazan

Categories
News The Fly-By

Transportation Forum Finds Citizens Want More Pedestrian-Friendly City

Crumbling sidewalks, underfunded public transit, and disconnected bike lanes were at the top of the list for Memphians who attended a public forum at the Benjamin L. Hooks Library last week to discuss the transportation needs of the city.

“We need to keep the role of the government in mind,” said Dennis Lynch, the transportation chair for the Tennessee chapter of the Sierra Club, which hosted the discussion. “If the things we’re doing aren’t for the people, they aren’t the right things. We need to push for the things we think we need.”

Attendees brainstormed various ideas to alleviate what many believe is a situation in dire need of a solution. Among the proposals: buses that run on time and to more locations on a frequent schedule; sidewalks and streets that are safe for all citizens; more availability to rent tandem bicycles; for Congressman Steve Cohen to support the local allocation of federal funds and allow more local power over how those funds are spent; and to install more parking meters to encourage people to use public transit as a way to save money.

Lynch said the input would be taken to Mayor Jim Strickland, the Memphis City Council, the Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA), and the Metropolitan Planning Organization.

Broken, uneven sidewalks and missing curb ramps leave those like Steve Collins, who is disabled and relies on his wheelchair and public transportation, at a disadvantage.

Collins’ route is contained to Poplar, where he’s pinpointed at least 19 “problem spots.” At Poplar and White Station, Collins said there are four corners and only two curb cuts, which forces him to travel into the street.

The issue of damaged sidewalks is not so black and white. In Memphis, property owners are responsible for sidewalk repair. A 1967 city law states that owners of properties abutting any public street are “required to provide and maintain adjacent to his or her property a sidewalk.” The city has made efforts to assist low-income residents, but the problem is still open-ended for Memphians like Collins.

“We have met with the city about this, and they tell us that it is the state’s problem because [Poplar] is a state highway,” Collins said. “The state says it is a city problem because it is Poplar Avenue. My question is this: If I die at that intersection, where does my widow send the bill for the funeral?”

Kyle Wagenschutz, bicycle and pedestrian program manager for the city of Memphis, said obstacles within funding resources, or the lack thereof, can leave “some things waiting in the wings.” Bike lanes, for instance, are routinely added as streets are repaved. However, the city will soon begin construction on a grant-funded project to update more roads with bike lanes.

“These are all roads that are not being repaved but that new bike lanes are going to be installed without repaving,” Wagenschutz said. “All of those were chosen based on the idea of connecting the missing pieces and missing segments of the network.”

Developing dedicated sources to fund MATA is key, said Suzanne Carlson, Innovate Memphis’ transportation and mobility project manager.

“There’s a lack of funding to go around,” Carlson said. “Right now, [MATA] goes to city council and [receives] federal funds. Some are guaranteed, and some are competitive that they might not get every year.”

Though they have continually received budget cuts over the last few years, MATA President Ron Garrison said they are “in the process of rebuilding MATA.” After the 2010 census numbers were released, MATA lost upwards of $1.6 million dollars in federal funding as well as some state funding. But this fiscal year, they have a “tiny bit of money” left over, Garrison said. Additionally, Garrison said MATA is implementing new ideas such as partnering with Uber and TransLoc.

“Over the next two years, you’re going to see tremendous improvements,” Garrison said. “Over the next five years, we can make MATA a great transit system again. We’re fixing on-time performance, changing the culture, and correctly funding our facilities, buses, and transit stops so that our customers have a very positive experience.”

Categories
News News Feature

A Conversation with Bill Maher

Nearly a month out of the door and Bill Maher’s 2016 is in full swing. The politically incorrect comedian just kicked off the 14th season of HBO’s Real Time and is gearing up for a string of stand-up performances that will land at the Orpheum this Saturday, January 23rd. While Maher’s been off air, he’s had time to digest the 2016 election cycle and “rip up my old act,” he told the Flyer. “Two years ago, Donald Trump wasn’t going to be the president, and now he very well may be.”

Bill Maher

Flyer: When was the last time you visited Memphis?

Bill Maher: The last time I was in Memphis may have been way back in the ’90s. I feel like I understand the South better than these commentators on TV who talk about it, because they never go there. I hear a lot of conservatives complain. They say, “Oh, you liberals, you discount the flyover states.” Not me. I seek them out because they are a more enthusiastic crowd. Memphis is a town with a church on every corner, which is good for me.

What is the biggest difference between performing stand-up and hosting Real Time? Is there anything you like more or less about the two?

The people who come to the stand-up show are the real fans. They have to be — they have to pay. The people who come to the studio audience, they’re fans. But they are much more politically correct. And sometimes that pisses me off. I hate political correctness, obviously. I did a show called Politically Incorrect. I’m a liberal, and I love my liberal brethren, but they can just really be fucking annoying about not being able to take a joke.

Can I have an example?

I think Donald Trump is completely wrong about banning Muslims. I think he’s a demagogue. But I’m also really the only liberal who, I think, says we have to be clear-eyed about the fact that it is Islamic terrorism and it is coming from their religion. So, if I say a joke like, “Islam is a religion of peace. There’s a piece of you over there, there’s a piece of you over there,” you know what, you better fucking laugh at that. Every group gets made fun of for something, and it doesn’t ever mean that all of them do it. If I say a joke like, “And then the French surrendered,” everybody laughs, even though the French really only surrendered that one time. If I make a joke about super models throwing up, well, all of them don’t throw up everything they eat. If I make a joke about Asians being bad drivers, well yeah, a lot of them are, but not all of them. And so I’m sorry, but terrorism is mostly Islamic, and they have to own that. Nobody is a protected species. Liberals have to learn to take a joke about everybody. I don’t think there’s any greater cause for a liberal these days than shepherding liberals back to a more sensible liberalism. That includes learning to laugh.

I read that you think Ted Cruz is “scarier” than Trump.

If I go by what Ted Cruz says, he doesn’t believe in climate change. Neither does Donald Trump, by the way. But I don’t think Ted Cruz would change his mind on that because I think Ted Cruz is bought and controlled by the Tea Party. I do think I could turn Donald Trump around on climate change. I have a secret plan, which is to have Leonardo DiCaprio have dinner with him. Because Trump is huge star fucker, I think he’ll listen to DiCaprio. Ted Cruz, I think, is just owned by the Koch brothers and people like that. There are a lot of things about Donald Trump that are scary, but he’s so above ideology. He’s so beyond politics at this point. He very often takes a position that is a fairly liberal position. He comes out against hedge fund managers. He criticizes going into Iraq. Lots of things where you go, “Wow, that’s not a very conservative position.”

You essentially endorsed Bernie Sanders when he visited Real Time. Do you think he has a real chance at the presidency?

When [Real Time] last left the race at Thanksgiving, I think the viewpoint among liberals was “Yeah, we love Bernie, but he can’t really win.” He’s like the guy you go out with who gives you a lot of orgasms, but he doesn’t have a job. You’re not going to really marry him. But now, it looks like he really could. If he wins those first two primaries, that’s a lot of momentum. There are a lot of states in this country, like Tennessee, where somebody like Bernie Sanders is a nonstarter. Not that I think Hillary Clinton is going to win Tennessee, but Obama flipped a lot of states. I don’t know if any of those places would even consider Bernie Sanders. You have to put that in the mix.

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Music Music Features

An Evening at Elvis’ House

CREDIT: Justin Fox Burks

“We go in through the kitchen because that’s how Elvis used to do it,” John Bass, director of the Mike Curb Institute for Music at Rhodes College, says as he swings open a screen door and steps into 1034 Audubon Drive. “It feels like 1956 when you walk in. He went from being an interesting, regional musician to becoming Elvis while living here.”

Walking through the house, which Presley bought with royalties earned from “Heartbreak Hotel,” is a step back through time to his final months of normalcy. 1956 was a big year for the 21-year-old musician. A number of his songs — “Hound Dog,” “Don’t Be Cruel,” and “Love Me Tender” — would top the charts. He’d also make his debut appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. But for 13 months, before the Presleys moved to Graceland, Elvis and his parents called Audubon Drive home. Wood paneling lines most of the walls, save a few, which are covered in busy wallpapers — hummingbirds hovering above plants, music notes circling guitars and drums. Framed photos of the Presleys can be seen at every turn. A baby-blue couch sits on top of bright red, shag carpet that flows into a wide, open den Presley himself built onto the house. Acoustic tiles, the same used at Sun Studio, soundproof and cushion the room for a warm sound.

Bass knows the house well. In 2006, Mike and Linda Curb of Curb Records purchased and restored it, and the Curb Institute eventually repurposed the space for a student-led concert web series. “Evening at Elvis” kicked off in November 2013 with Memphis locals Star & Micey.

“We realized students at Rhodes had a lot of interest in music-focused things, but Rhodes doesn’t have a music business program. The idea became, ‘Well, what if we did house concerts that were filmed? What if we put them online? We could share what we were doing.'”

The den seats about 75 people, and the event is invitation only. Bill Frisell, Rosanne Cash, and Bobby Rush have played in the room.

“There was major apprehension [before the first show],” Bass says. “But once the music started — and this still happens — it’s such a deep and profound experience. The room has this deep vibe in it. You’re in this tight, little space, and once the music starts, everybody is captivated by it. I hesitate to call it a magical experience, but it almost is, and it just feels so right every time.”

Bass’ mission digs deeper. He wants both to bring in musicians who connect meaningfully with Memphis’ musical reach and to expose his students to the artists still around to tell their stories and pass the torch.

“We’re not interested in creating museums, but using history to inform the present,” Bass says. “Elvis will probably come up, but we’re talking about Memphis and what it means. It’s a powerful experience seeing a young person talk to someone like Charles Lloyd and know they have a connection to them that they’ve never had before.”

This year, Bass hopes to partner with other Memphis-based organizations to bolster the institute’s reach. Rhodes will collaborate with Stax Records for a performance featuring Terry Manning in March.

“The project is cool, but this resource is important to us to do something positive for the community,” Bass says. “Can we effect positive social change with it? I’ve got students working on that question now.”

As the series grows, so does the responsibility. Bass teaches a class named “Music and Community in Memphis,” in which he splits 15 students into groups: audio and visual recording, public relations and marketing, research and writing, and education and community engagement. Students work closely with real-world professionals to hone their skills.

Ashley Dill, a 20-year-old student who works as the associate event manager for the series, says the class shares a vision that parallels what Elvis saw in Memphis as rock-and-roll was on the upswing.

“Memphis was such a huge part of who he was,” Dill said. “He saw something special in Memphis that I also see.”

Of the few musicians who have played at Audubon, Dill and Bass both said Frisell made them see “how connected it all is.”

“Frisell’s songs just kind of flow from one to the next,” Bass says. “Textures just come out. We’re sitting there — an ethereal, moody wash of sound happening — and all of a sudden “That’s All Right, Mama” comes through. The hair on the back of my neck stood up. [A photo of] Elvis is in this glass case on the wall, and Frisell is playing the first hit he recorded at Sun. And we’re sitting in his living room.”

Though decades have passed, Bass sees a connection between his students and a young, impassioned Presley during his unprecedented rise to stardom.

“He was just a young guy trying to do cool stuff and buck the system,” Bass says. “We’re trying to use the house in the same way. If you just read about him, you might not have the same connection as you would standing there looking at photo of him on the wall saying, “Wow, when he was my age, he was right here trying to do cool things.'”

For more information on the Mike Curb Institute for Music, visit www.rhodes.edu.