Tag: Memphis

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On the Fly: Week of 4/11/25

Stop twiddling your (green) thumbs and head to the Memphis Botanic Garden’s plant sale. (Photo: Courtesy Memphis Botanic Garden)

Plant Sales
This weekend is for the plants. Seriously, there are at least three plant sales happening this weekend, so get your green thumb out of your booty and get out there:

Lichterman Nature Center Native Plant Sale | Lichterman Nature Center, Friday-Saturday, April 11-12, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Spring Plant Sale Memphis Botanic Garden | Memphis Botanic Garden, Friday-Saturday, April 11-12, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Saturday, April 12, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Plant Sale: Dixon Garden Fair | Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Friday, April 11, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Saturday, April 12, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

Shelby Forest Spring Fest
Meeman Shelby Forest State Park
Saturday, April 12, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Take part in a Mardi Gras-themed festival with music, food, arts and crafts vendors, wildlife and cultural exhibits, and more. Admission is $5 (kids 4 and under get in free). Get your tickets here. 

Cooper-Young Porchfest
Cooper-Young Historic District
Saturday, April 12, noon-5 p.m.
Now is your chance to invade your neighbors’ privacy and get up on Cooper-Young’s lawns as an eclectic mix of bands will play on residents’ front porches at this fifth-annual all-volunteer event. A full schedule and map is available here. Porchfest also coincides with the Cooper-Young Community Yard Sale, which will be held 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. That map can be found here.  

The Mid-South Korean BBQ Festival
Grind City Brewing Company
Saturday, April 12, noon-6 p.m.
Grind City Brewing Company hosts a backyard cooking competition of traditional American barbecue and Korean barbecue. General admission tickets come with entry and samples (as supplies last) and cost $15 in advance and $20 at the door. Get your tickets here. 

Shop Black Fest
Bass Pro Drive + Riverside Drive
Saturday, April 12, 2-7 p.m.
Shop from Black-owned businesses. General admission is free. 

Metal Petals + Healing Roots Exhibition & Silent Auction Reception
Evergreen Presbyterian
Saturday, April 12, 6-8 p.m.
Arts from around Memphis and the country have transformed gun parts into jewelry, sculptures, and gardening tools as part of the Metal Museum and Evergreen Presbyterian’s Guns to Gardens sage surrender program. The exhibition will open with a reception and sale of the items, with larger items staying on display for the community for one month. Proceeds from the sale will go back into the Guns to Gardens safe surrender program and to the artist participants.

Star Trek Day
Neil’s Music Room
Sunday, April 13, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Trek over to Neil’s Music Room for the 10th anniversary celebration of Shelby County Star Trek Day, where you’ll enjoy Star Trek-themed food, contests, vendors, music, and more. Special guests will Zoom in for a Q&A: Jonathan Frakes, Armin Shimerman, Kitty Swink, and Juan Carlos Coto. More info here. 

Huey’s 55th Anniversary Block Party
Huey’s (Midtown)
Sunday, April 13, 1-8 p.m.
Huey’s is turning 55, a good age. I don’t know why we don’t say that past the age of, like, 4. That’s a good age; that’s when they start … well, I don’t know much about 4-year-olds. I’m not around them that much. Maybe being a 4-year-old isn’t a good age to be, but 55, that’s something. At least, for Huey’s. They’re hosting a whole free block party with live music on Overton Park Shell’s Shell on Wheels, a kids zone, community vendors, and local food and beer options. More info here. 

Black Arts & Wine Festival
Pink Palace Museum & Mansion
Sunday, April 13, 2-6 p.m.
Shop visual art by Black creatives and sample wines and liquors from Black brands. Tickets are $50.

See a full calendar of events here. Submit events here or by emailing calendar@memphisflyer.com.

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“Madness,” “Unconstitutional,” “A New Low” — Reactions to the Senate’s Undocumented Student Bill

Credit: CDC via Unsplash
via Tennessee Senate Democrats

Backlash to the Tennessee Senate’s passage of a bill to allow school districts to ban undocumented students from schools began as the vote was recorded Thursday — and was from sources as varied as clergy, small business, and, of course, state Democrats. One group called it “madness.”

Bills for the move were filed in early February by Tennessee House Majority Leader Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland) and state Sen. Bo Watson (R-Hixson). 

The bill would challenge the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court Plyler v. Doe decision, which entitled all children to public education despite immigration status. That’s exactly what the bill’s sponsors said they want to do, citing the cost of public education. 

“The flood of illegal immigrants in our country has put an enormous drain on American tax dollars and resources. Our schools are the first to feel the impact,” Lamberth said in a statement to the Nashville Banner in February. “Tennessee communities should not have to suffer or pay when the federal government fails to secure our borders. Our obligation is to ensure a high-quality education for legal residents first.”

The Tennessee Small Business Alliance issued a statement Thursday condemning the bill, saying the group has “opposed the bill since its introduction” and called it “madness.” 

“This bill is bad for Tennessee’s economy, and we have warned the state legislature repeatedly that this bill is bad for business,” the group said in a statement. “If this bill becomes law, we’re going to immediately lose workers, and we’re shooting ourselves in the foot when it comes to workforce development. The sponsors of this bill, Sen. Bo Watson and Rep. William Lamberth, are playing with people’s livelihoods and threatening children.”

Faith leaders associated with the Southern Christian Coalition said the bill violates the teaching of Jesus. Group member Ellen R. Sandidge Gentry, a member of the same church Watson attends had taught words for the legislation 

‘As a conservative, and member of First Presbyterian Church, I’m unhappy that Sen. Bo Watson’s bill is associated with our church, Sandridge Gentry said in a statement. “My message for my fellow parishioner and state senator, Bo Watson is this: Coming after children who’ve done nothing wrong is a betrayal of Jesus’ teachings.

“Taking millions in sales and property taxes from undocumented families, then denying their children an education by claiming it’s “not paid for,” isn’t just bad policy — it’s unethical and unchristian.”

A group called Education for All Tennessee was created to work against the bill. It pointed to the bill’s narrow passage (19-13) as a sign that there is “weakening support for this cruel attack on children’s education.” 

“With razor-thin vote margins and growing bipartisan opposition, this bill can still be stopped,” the group said Thursday. “Tennessee families deserve better than a bill that targets kids and divides communities. 

“Every child deserves an education — no matter where they were born.”

State Democrats issued plenty of tough talk and even some tears in a news conference following the vote Thursday.  

Sen. London Lamar (D-Memphis) said the GOP are using children targeted by the bill as “political pawns.” She called the bill a “new low” for state Republicans, saying, “They didn’t send us up here to bully kids.” 

“Did you forget Jesus was an immigrant? Did you forget?” she asked. “Jesus stood with the least of these and it’s up to him to decide who is righteous and who’s not. But it on us to love everybody. It’s not for us to pick and choose who we love and who we support.” 

Sen. Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis) said she asked Watson in committee if he’d heard from any school districts that requested the legislation. 

“He said, ‘We’ve all had those conversations — maybe not on the record — with folks from our school districts,” Akbari said. “My response was that I represent the largest school district and I have not ever heard that request.”

A House committee is set to pick up the bill on Monday. A reporter asked Rep. John Ray Clemmons (D-Nashville) what he thought about the bill’s chances to pass on the House side.  

“All I can guarantee you in the House is we’re gonna fight like hell to protect the children of Tennessee,” Clemmons said. “People of every faith believe this is a bad idea. Everybody knows this is unconstitutional. 

“We’re going to fight like hell to protect every child, to provide an education in compliance with the state Constitution, as well as the interpretation of the Constitution by the Supreme Court of the United States.” 

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CannaBeat News News Blog News Feature

Tennessee House Approves THCA Ban

Photo: Add Weed on Unsplash

Smokeable cannabis flower, especially the THC it creates when lit, took a critical step toward a ban in Tennessee after a long debate in Nashville Thursday that showed a rare divide among Republican lawmakers. 

Tennessee House members passed an amendment Thursday that would remove THCA from legal cannabis products in the state. THCA is also banned in a Senate version of the bill now traveling through the committee process. That bill, of course, could change before it passes, leaving a glimmer of hope for cannabis companies across the state that have said THCA products are among their most popular. 

The GOP divide on the issue emerged on the House floor Thursday morning. One group just didn’t like the product — the green, leafy bud now displayed on store shelves — nor the intoxicating effects it can produce. The other group of GOP lawmakers said removing the products will harm Tennessee businesses and won’t keep other intoxicating hemp products from shelves. 

Members of the non-THCA group said they felt duped by hemp advocates in Tennessee. 

“Six years ago I carried the bill that allowed us to grow hemp in this state and have many of these products,” said Representative Chris Todd (R-Madison County). “But I will tell you at that time, the [Tennessee Growers Coalition], well, I will say there were folks that deceived me and deceived our leaders and many others in this body.” 

He said the amended legislation brings the total THC level back down to .3 percent as planned originally. The amount is the federal limit, he said. As for those cannabis companies in Tennessee, “they gambled on a product that is federally illegal.”   

House Majority Leader Representative William Lamberth (R-Portland) has worked on cannabis issues in Tennessee for years. He agreed with Todd saying, “I wish we could go back in time and not have all these substances out there, but that’s not an option at this point.”

 “We were all told when we voted for hemp that it’s the nonintoxicating cousin to marijuana,” Lamberth said. “You don’t have to worry about anybody getting high. Well, that horse has left the barn. 

“What this bill does is ban THCA, that when you light it, it turns into marijuana. But that’s one product. There’s hundreds of other products out there [that will get people high].” 

The ban does put at risk Tennessee cannabis companies that have said that smokeable flower sales can sometimes total 60 percent of their total revenue. Representative Kevin Vaughan (R-Memphis) spoke loudest among the GOP to keep THCA legal in Tennessee. 

“ I have a hard time that this body has told [businesses] that this is a new commercial venture in our state, and then, two years later, we’re going to turn the lights off,” Vaughn said. “Understand that even if we take [THCA out], these stores will still be in the business of selling intoxicants.”

Representative Sabi Kumar (R-Springfield) argued that the legislature gets “carried away by the commercial advantages” of cannabis in Tennessee. He argued lives are torn apart by marijuana addiction and that was part of the reason he voted to ban THCA.

“Marijuana is playing havoc on our society,” Kumar said. “We talk about anxiety. We talk about mental health. We talk about schizophrenia and various psychological maladies. 

“Yes, we blame the internet for it, but, my friends, I submit to you that marijuana and its prevalent use is playing a role in this malady that is affecting our society for that reason.” 

The fiscal note, an expert review of the economic impact of proposed legislation, estimated the size of Tennessee’s overall cannabis market is about $120.4 million. The figure is based on a U.S. market for hemp-derived cannabis products projected at $5 billion in 2026. 

Tennessee tax collections on those products would have been $13.6 million, assuming that THCA were included. Those taxes would have been collected on what state financial experts expected to be cannabis product sales of $226.7 million over the next year. All of those numbers will change if THCA remains illegal.

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We Recommend We Recommend

Black Arts and Wine Festival Returns to the Pink Palace

Photo: Courtesy Cynthia Daniels

Returning for the third time at the Pink Palace Museum & Mansion, the Black Arts and Wine Festival, hosted by Cynthia Daniels & Co., aims to provide guests with a unique, upscale experience that honors Black culture. “It’s truly important to celebrate Black culture. I noticed during the pandemic [that] there was this emergence of a lot of Black-owned brands coming out with their own wines and spirits,” says Cynthia Daniels, event strategist and organizer of the Black Arts and Wine Festival. “So, I thought, why not put all of those things together for people to truly experience something they [have] never seen before in Memphis?”

Guests will be able to sample over 20 different Black-owned wines produced by various celebrities like rapper E-40, R&B singer Mary J. Blige, and actress Issa Rae, known for her role on Insecure. There will also be a few bottles of wine available from the winery, Brown Estate, the first Black-owned winery in Napa Valley. Plus, local chefs will serve different styles of cuisines. “We have Shroomlicious who is a vegan chef. [Then] we have CDT Catering and More. And we [have] Jerk on the Run,” says Daniels. 

“We have vendors that are traveling from Atlanta, Nashville, and local people in Memphis that will be selling handmade goods,” adds Daniels. And there will be artwork for sale from over 30 local Memphis artists.  Tickets for the festival are on sale now for $50. The Black Arts and Wine Festival, will be this Sunday, April 13th, from 2 to 6 p.m. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit cdcoevents.ticketleap.com/bawf25.

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News News Blog News Feature

Mayors: Storm Impact Varied Widely Along the Mississippi River

The Wolf River at Germantown Parkway on Sunday. Credit: Ian Ripple on X
Credit: Ward Archer

Last week’s storm affected Mississippi River towns differently, ranging from a mass rescue in West Memphis to “nothing happened at all” in Caruthersville, Missouri. The total damage, however, could cost $90 billion, according to one weather company. 

The relentless bouts of severe weather began with tornado warnings on Wednesday, April 2nd. Lines of high wind threatened the Mid-South Thursday through Saturday. The storm finally moved on Sunday but not before dumping nearly 12 inches of rain in Memphis. 

The storm fronts were wide, of course, and did not affect towns the same way. Mayors of towns up and down the Mississippi River gave highlights of their challenges and lucky misses during a news conference Monday by the Mississippi River Mayors Cities and Towns Initiative.   

Memphis Mayor Paul Young said “the last few days have been a challenge.” He said the city had “historic levels of rainfall,” which created more than 600 tickets to the city’s 311 system. Also, wind and rain felled 109 trees that blocked roads, Young said. Traffic lights at intersections went out, too, and the massive amounts of water were a challenge for the city’s drainage system, he said. 

“Thankfully, our teams worked really hard and they were very responsive and very prepared for the storms that took place,” Young said. 

Across the river in West Memphis, teams in boats rescued nearly 100 people caught in the floodwaters created by nearly 13 inches of rain. 

However, up the river in Alton, Illinois, Mayor David Goins said, “we’re doing fine.” 

“I believe we dodged a bullet because most of the rain was south of us,” Goins said, noting Alton got between 3 inches to 5 inches of rain. 

In Cape Girardeau, Missouri, though, limbs and trees were down all over town, said Mayor Stacy Kinder. Downtown buildings suffered roof and facade damage and blown-out windows. Flash flooding backed up sewage and water into basements in homes across town. In a typical few days, the city’s waste water treatment plant treats about 26 million gallons of water, Mayor Kinder said. Between April 2nd and 6th, the system treated 91 million gallons of water, she said.  

Caruthersville, Missouri, Mayor Sue Grantham said “we got really lucky. The dear Lord was with us; we don’t have any flooding around us except at the river,” Grantham said. “Nothing happened at all. I did see one small car in a ditch. But by the time I got back around, it was gone.”  

Experts at AccuWeather, a weather media company, projected Monday morning that the storm caused an estimated $80 billion to $90 billion in total damage and economic loss.

Credit: AccuWeather

”We’re heartbroken by the loss of life and destruction from this once-in-a-generation storm,” said AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter. “ Houses and businesses were destroyed by tornadoes. Homes and vehicles were swept away by fast-moving floodwaters. Bridges and roadways were washed out or destroyed in some areas. Travel, commerce and business operations were significantly disrupted. It will take years for some of the hardest-hit communities to recover.”

Memphis Mayor Young said his team is watching the Mississippi River now, though. The river is expected to peak here on April 14 at about 37 feet. 

“For us, flood level is about 34 feet,” he said. “We do think we have enough things in place to manage [flooding] at that level, however. It is something that we’re going to be paying attention to.”

David Welsh, a senior hydrologist with the National Weather Service, said he anticipates a “long, broad crest” on the Mississippi that could last for up to two weeks. However, no rain fall is yet predicted for the next week, which might give the river a little bit of time to start coming down.   

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Severe Weather, Excessive Rainfall Continue Through Sunday

Credit: National Weather Service Memphis

We may be done with severe weather but it’s not done with us, apparently. 

An early-Friday-morning briefing from the National Weather Service at Memphis (NWS) says “a dangerous weather pattern will continue through the weekend. Catastrophic flooding, along with severe storms, will impact the Mid-South.”

Credit: National Weather Service Memphis

This storm system has already caused five deaths in West Tennessee. It has dumped around 4 to 6 inches of rain on Memphis already. 

Credit: National Weather Service Memphis

“Generational flooding” is expected in the area as the storm delivers more rain on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. This could deliver up to 10 inches of rain to areas along and north of I-40 through the weekend. If “generational flooding” was not enough to concern you, the NWS Memphis also predicts the storm could yield “catastrophic flooding.”

Credit: National Weather Service Memphis

However, Memphis fares better in the NWS outlook for Friday than other areas. The agency predicts moderate chances of severe weather, damaging winds, tornados, large hail, and excessive rainfall compared to other areas. 

Saturday, though, brings an increased risk for all of those here, especially excessive rainfall. 

Credit: National Weather Service Memphis

Even when the storm system moves on, its effects will remain in the Shelby County watershed. The briefing predicts an above moderate flood risk for the Wolf River. But it predicts an “above major flood” for the Loosahatchie River, which runs through Frayser and more. 

Credit: National Weather Service Memphis

Water levels in the Mississippi River began rising Thursday and are expected to continue until April 15th. River levels had sunk to around five feet early Thursday morning. By Friday morning, levels climbed to nearly 13 feet. The NWS predicts river levels will rise continually, peaking at around 36 feet by mid-April. 

Credit: National Weather Service Memphis

Gov. Lee Surveys West Tennessee storm damage

Credit: State of Tennessee

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee surveyed storm damage in McNairy County Thursday evening after severe storms ripped through part of West and Middle Tennessee. 

Lee immediately issued an Emergency Declaration, which was quickly approved by the Trump Adminstration. 

Crews in several Tennessee counties continued to survey storm damage Friday and search sites for evidence of tornadoes. 

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News News Blog News Feature

At Least 5 killed In Severe Storms in West Tennessee; Tornado Assessments Begin

Body camera footage shows Tennessee troopers, McNairy County deputies, Selmer Police officers and firefighters searching the debris of a home for trapped or hurt survivors after severe storms battered West Tennessee in the early morning hours of April 3, 2025. (Photo: Tennessee Highway Patrol)

A chain of severe storms and a possible tornado killed at least five people across West Tennessee early Thursday.

The storms left a path of major damage in Fayette, Hardeman and McNairy counties, according to the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA). An EF-3 tornado struck the town of Selmer, Tennessee, according to preliminary surveys from crews deployed by the National Weather Service Memphis.

Residents of West and Middle Tennessee received multiple severe storm, tornado and flood warnings throughout Wednesday night into the early morning hours Thursday. 

The National Weather Service issued more than 70 severe thunderstorm warnings, more than 50 tornado warnings and 21 flash flood warnings in the last 24 hours, TEMA reported Thursday afternoon.

NWS received reports of observed tornadoes and damage for seven of those tornado-warned storms.

State officials warn that “generational flooding” — flooding so severe it happens once a generation or once a lifetime  — continues to pose a threat to multiple counties in Middle and West Tennessee as multiple rounds of heavy rain are forecast to stretch into Sunday. 

Rain totals could reach at least 10 inches in areas of West Tennessee north of Interstate 40 by the end of the weekend, according to National Weather Service Memphis. The northwest corner of the state could see up to 15 total inches of rain.

Gov. Bill Lee requested an Emergency Declaration for Tennessee and TEMA Director Patrick Sheehan issued a State of Emergency Wednesday evening in anticipation of the severe storms and flooding. 

Lee’s request includes federal assistance for debris removal, emergency protective measures and direct federal assistance.

President Donald Trump approved Lee’s request around 11 a.m. Thursday, making FEMA assistance available to all 95 Tennessee counties. Under the declaration, FEMA can provide equipment and resources to support emergency response, and direct federal assistance under the public assistance program will be provided at 75 percent federal funding, according to the agency.

The state remains under a level 3 State of Emergency status, which allows state resources to support local requests for assistance following severe weather while continuing to provide support for ongoing Tropical Storm Helene recovery efforts in East Tennessee.

Five deaths, multiple injuries reported

At least five people have been reported dead, state and local officials confirmed.

The Tennessee Department of Health confirmed one death each in McNairy County, Obion County and Carroll County.

A 48-year-old man was pronounced dead in Fayette County around 2 a.m. Thursday after the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call reporting a tornado had overturned a modular home, according to the Fayette County Emergency Management Agency.

Four other family members were transported to a nearby hospital, two in critical condition and two in stable condition. The man’s 16-year-old daughter later died at the hospital, the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office confirmed.

Tornado damage assessments begin

NWS Memphis does not yet have an exact number of confirmed tornadoes from Thursday morning’s severe weather event.

Teams are assessing tornado damage in Selmer, Tennessee and Lake City, Arkansas to confirm and classify the strength of tornadoes, according to NWS Memphis.

Selmer saw an EF-3 tornado with peak winds estimated at 160 miles per hour, according to preliminary survey results released by NWS Memphis Thursday afternoon. The agency suspended further surveys of the area out of concern for surveyors’ safety in ongoing storms.

In Arkansas, the preliminary survey shows Lake City also saw an EF-3 tornado with top winds around 150 miles per hour.

Ratings could change after surveys are complete, NWS Memphis stated.

The agency received additional reports of tornados in the region from spotters and radar but crews have not yet been able to survey damage or confirm.

Tennessee Highway Patrol deployed a strike team to McNairy County to support local officials, according to TEMA.

“My heart breaks for our city and county at this time,” Selmer Mayor Sherry Inman stated in a social media post expressing gratitude for those who have offered assistance or prayers. “Please continue to pray for all the families and homes that have been lost.”

State officials report power outages, roads blocked by water or debris

About 9,700 power outage reports remained active statewide as of 11:30 a.m. Thursday, according to TEMA. This is down from more than 15,400 outages reported as of 4 a.m.

Communications systems are experiencing problems in McNairy County and TEMA is working with local officials to remedy the situation.

Customers served by the Grand Junction Water Department in Hardeman County do not have water. The Henderson Water Department in Chester County is under a boil water advisory.

Multiple roads throughout Middle and West Tennessee have been impacted by downed trees and power lines and flooding, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT). Crews are working to clean up debris. 

Excessive rainfall to come

Excessive rainfall continued Thursday with the “bullseye” of enhanced risk storms encompassing most of West Tennessee from Memphis to Clarksville along Interstate 40. Widespread flash floods were expected, according to NWS Memphis.

Most areas of Middle and West Tennessee have seen between 3-5 inches of rain over the last 18 hours, with some areas nearing 7 inches, according to TEMA. Another 3-4 inches was forecast for Thursday evening, and 5-7 inches are projected on Saturday.

Severe weather forecasts also include continued tornado, large hail and damaging wind threats in addition to flood risks.

This is a developing story.

Tennessee Lookout is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Tennessee Lookout maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Holly McCall for questions: info@tennesseelookout.com.

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Art Art Feature Fashion We Recommend We Recommend

Tennessee Ballet Theater presents The ICON: Babbie Lovett, Fashion Legend

Tennessee Ballet Theater dancer Dasha Andrienko in Babbie Lovett's orange Connie Fails jumpsuit (Photo: Ziggy Mack)

Babbie Lovett has about 2,000 to 3,000 garments that she’s collected in her 92 years of life as a model, show producer, store owner, and mentor in Memphis’ fashion industry. “You know there’s a fine line between collecting and hoarding,” she jests. “I’ve got a house full and three apartments full of racks.”

But, even as she jokes, she says, “It’s like I have a whole box of paints and crayons that I can use.” For her fashion shows, that is. Just last year, for instance, she put the show together for the University of Memphis: Memphis Fashion Through the Decades. “These last 10 years, all my dreams seem to be coming true,” Lovett says, “because I’ve always wanted my collection to be used for education or for fundraising.”

These days, though, Lovett has to organize her shows by feel and memory, since about two-and-a-half years ago she went blind. “It’s one of the most interesting times of my life. It’s a real journey of learning,” she says, ever the one to take a positive outlook. 

Babbie Lovett (Photo: Courtesy Tennessee Ballet Theater)

Her most recent project has been with the Tennessee Ballet Theater, which will honor the last nine decades of her many-chaptered life with The ICON, Babbie Lovett, Fashion Legend this April. Directed by Erin Walter, TBT’s artistic director, and with works choreographed by Max Robinson and Steven Prince Tate, the ballet will traverse the “peaks and valleys” of Lovett’s life, with four ballerinas representing Lovett. “There are 15 dances, and some are literal depictions of aspects of her life,” Walter says, “and some are abstractions from things that we were inspired by.”

For The ICON, Walter has incorporated pieces from Lovett’s collection in two numbers. “It thrills me because [the pieces in] my collection are really my friends,” Lovett says. “All of my clothes have a story with them. And they’ve never been worn but maybe once or twice, or most of them have been made for shows. And to see them dance just thrills me to death.”

Lovett herself fell in love with dance, long before she fell in love with fashion. “I learned to sing and dance my own way before I could walk,” she says. Even today, she’s still dancing. “I may be as blind as a bat, but in my head I’m just going to keep dancing. … There’s certain music I hear. I get up at night and sometimes I hold on to my walker and dance.”

This production will be the fifth installment of TBT’s 901 Stories, which has brought to life histories of Earnestine & Hazel’s, the Annesdale Mansion, the Medicine Factory, and the Jack Robinson Gallery through dance. “We like to celebrate things about Memphis that maybe people don’t know,” Walter says. “Maybe half of Memphis knows who Babbie is, but the other half doesn’t.” 

Tennessee Ballet Theater dancer Olivia Bran in Babbie Lovett’s Gabriele Knecht coat (Photo: Ziggy Mack)

And to Walter, at least, Lovett is Memphis history. At 92, she began life in the Great Depression, saw the fashion industry boom in Memphis, and took part in it, modeling here and in New York; she built businesses, pioneered “trashion” (taking trash and making it into fashion), and advocated for the arts and causes close to her heart. She was and still is a mentor to many. To try and describe her life in a paragraph is a disservice; to do it in a ballet, however, will put Lovett on the stage, where she’s always belonged, sharing her joy to as many people as possible.

She once wrote, and now recites from memory, no longer able to read or write due to her blindness: “There’s nothing I like better than being a star. Give me your undivided attention. God made the stage. The show is life. Fashion are the costumes we wear on stage, backstage, or in the audience. The play, music, dance, comedy, tragedy. We laugh; we cry. It’s good; it’s bad.  We clap; we boo. We leave. The show goes on. My name is Babbie. Fashion is my passion. The one thing we all have in common is we’re born naked and we cover up.”

Walter says that she always brings a notebook with her for moments like this and many others when Lovett says something that catches her ear. For that reason, Walter has also set up a multisensory exhibit to accompany the show featuring old phones that, when picked up, will answer with recordings of Lovett telling stories from her life, moments not included in the show and moments that, Walter says, “she says in a much better way than I was able to write [for the show’s monologues between the dances].” 

Profits from The ICON will go to TBT’s Frayser Dance Project, which offers free dance classes to students in the Frayser neighborhood. The program is in its fourth year and is sponsored by Nike and Alliance Healthcare. 

Babbie Lovett (Photo: Courtesy Tennessee Ballet Theater)

“That’s why I’m so excited about being a part of all of this because the funds that are raised when you do shows, even if it’s just the beginning, if you can get people interested, then you can get the contributions that you need to preserve the arts or give people an opportunity that they didn’t have before,” Lovett says. 

In the meantime, Lovett looks forward to experiencing the ballet. “My talent has always been able to feel an audience and to be able to see that audience was wonderful. But to be able to feel that audience now is also a gift, so I’m looking forward to feeling and hearing the show.”

Purchase tickets to The ICON: Babbie Lovett, Fashion Legend, sponsored by Alliance Healthcare Services, here. Performances are at the McCoy Theatre at Rhodes College on Friday, April 4th, and Saturday, April 5th, at 7:30 p.m., with a Sunday, April 6th, matinee at 2:30 p.m., and Friday, April 11th, and Saturday, April 12th, 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $45 and include a wine reception immediately following the performance, where you will have a chance to meet Lovett, and models and dancers showing Lovett’s collection and Sue Ambrose’s couture designs constructed from bicycle tires.

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Art Art Feature

Floyd Newsum’s Homecoming

Floyd Newsum, Soul of Blue (Photo: Courtesy Dixon/Estate of the Artist)

As Ellen Daughtery, the Dixon Gallery & Gardens’ assistant curator, prepared the current exhibition on display — “Floyd Newsum: House of Grace” — Newsum, who was based in Houston, told her the show felt like a homecoming. He grew up here, went to Hamilton Elementary and Hamilton Junior and Senior High Schools, and graduated from the Memphis Academy of Arts (later Memphis College of Art) in 1973. “He thought of Memphis as his foundation, his home, where his family was, one of the most important things for him,” Daughtery says. “He believed in Memphis, even though he hadn’t lived here in a long time.” 

Unfortunately, Newsum died in August 2024, unable to see the first major exhibition of his art in Memphis, yet his joy remains, radiating through his work in “House of Grace.” 

Resembling almost a child’s sketchbook, full of scribbled shapes and drawings etched into spare space, Newsum’s works on paper captivate viewers’ attention, as their eyes travel from one image to the next, taking in each inch of the paper. The viewer is “engulfed,” Daughtery says, noting the works’ large size. 

“It forces you to look up, which for him was important — the idea of ascendance.” Or you can get up close. “It’s really different from different perspectives.”

“They have an overpowering sense to them for sure,” Daughtery adds. “And one of the things that’s fun about them — I think they’re intended to be fun — is that you look at them for a while and you see things emerging out of them.”

This almost seek-and-find style took decades for Newsum to develop, for it wasn’t until the 2000s that he moved away from realism and toward abstraction. He had learned of women in the Sirigu Village in Ghana who paint and repaint abstract patterns on the walls of their homes each year. “That was the spark,” Daughtery says. “He said that was the permission: He had to become abstract.”

He wasn’t imitating the Sirigu women, but he saw them as long-distance teachers he wanted to honor in his practice. He even titled a few paintings after their village. After all, they were the ones who set him free in abstraction.

“And we should take free at its word,” Daughtery says. “He was a civil rights activist. He believed in the idea of freedom in many different contexts, so he thought that abstraction was a freeing thing. It allowed him to get rid of his worries and have a direct emotional response to art.”

And he wanted the same for his viewers — to have a direct emotional response. From simple drawings of animals and houses to cut-out photographs of his grandmother to pasted-on used pastels, Newsum “developed a kind of imagery that he used over and over again,” Daughtery says. “He liked the idea that it was childlike, that he was able to communicate on this level that he thought was universal, like little houses that look like a child’s drawing.”

The houses, a universal symbol of community, also harken to one of Newsum’s projects in Houston, where he spent the majority of his life as a beloved professor at the University of Houston and as co-founder of Project Row Houses, a social art organization that restored shotgun houses into studios in one of the city’s oldest African-American neighborhoods. With its arts-focused mission, Project Row Houses supports artists, young mothers, small businesses, and community members. 

Looking back, this passion for community was ingrained in Newsum’s youth. His father was one of the Memphis Fire Department’s first Black firefighters and a civil rights activist. “He took Floyd with him when he was in high school to rallies,” Daughtery says. “Floyd marched in 1968. He found a great inspiration in his father.”

In turn, ladders appear in Floyd’s works, in homage to his father’s job but also as a symbol of hope. Sometimes, his ladders turn and twist on the paper. “Help isn’t always straightforward, but it’s there,” Daughtery says. “It’s coming.”

It’s just another one of Newsum’s positive ways of looking at life. In life, he was known for saying: “You can delay my success, but you cannot determine it.” In terms of his art, “I would say wider success eluded him until later in life,” Daughtery says, but now he has his “House of Grace.” 

“House of Grace” closes April 6th at the Dixon Gallery & Gardens. Admission is free.

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“West Memphis River” Renaming and Other Hilarious Memphis April Fool’s Day Gags

Credit: City of West Memphis via Facebook

The city of West Memphis has petitioned President Donald Trump to rename a portion of the Mississippi River, West Memphis River.

“We’re tired of Mississippi getting all the credit,” said Mayor [Marco] McClendon. “It’s time to put West Memphis on the map — literally.”

McClendon said the rebranding would come with new signage, tourism campaigns, and possibly a West Memphis River cruise port.

NAH! Those West Memphis folks were just having a laugh on April Fool’s Day. And they weren’t alone. The MEMernet was filled with all kinds of people, businesses, and organizations having a good time on social media Tuesday.

Here are a few:

Akbari what?!

Credit: Sen. Raumesh Akbari via Facebook

Zoo what?!

Posted to Facebook by Memphis Zoo

“ANNOUNCEMENT: We’re expanding our Memphis identity in a bold new way.

“Memphis Zoo. Memphis, Egypt. Memphis, Tennessee. A pyramid at our entrance. It only made sense. We’re (very unofficially) launching Bass Pro at the Zoo. A concept that would bring a satellite Bass Pro Shops location right into our front plaza.

The idea? A one-of-a-kind experience. Guests could grab a camping stove, pick out the perfect tackle box, and then stroll straight into the heart of the Zoo. Maybe even roll a few frames in a tiny bowling alley near the tortoises.

“We mentioned the idea to Bass Pro. They haven’t responded. At all. So, for now, it remains a vision. But we’re putting it out into the world… because it’s April 1, and that’s what visionaries do.”

Nacho what?!

Posted to Facebook by Memphis Made Brewing Co.

“You know we had to do it big for BBQ season! 🐷 Introducing “If You Smoke It, They Will Come.” A one-of-a-kind Imperial BBQ Nacho Stout, this is a creation that could only be Memphis Made!

“Brewed with corn chip malt and smoky pork shoulder puree, this porker of a stout packs a punch at 11.3 percent ABV (Be careful over the pit when you’re smashing these bad boys!) Available on tap every Tuesday at The Ravine and in 4-packs at all Memphis Publix locations, this conversation piece is sure to make a splash at one or both of our local May BBQ Competitions!

#memphisinmay #smokeslam #bbqfest #memphismade”

Sausage what?!

Posted to Instagram by Crosstown Concourse

“Before Monogram Foods even unpacks at Crosstown Concourse, they’re already bringing the heat — literally. To celebrate their upcoming move, they’ve teamed up with us to introduce a Circle B Smoked Sausage-Scented Candle inspired by the bold flavors of Memphis and the vibrant energy of Crosstown.⁠

⁠“Founded in Memphis in 2004, Monogram Foods is a leading producer of meat snacks, hot dogs, bacon, and other packaged foods, supplying some of America’s most beloved brands. Their move to Crosstown Concourse will bring their innovative spirit and hometown pride to the heart of our community.⁠

Posted to Instagram by Crosstown Concourse

⁠

“🔥 The Circle B Smoked Sausage Candle – Smoky, savory, and guaranteed to make you crave a classic smoked sausage.⁠

⁠“This limited-edition candle will be available for purchase throughout Crosstown Concourse, including at @milisflowersandgifts

⁠”Stay tuned for more updates as Monogram Foods settles into Crosstown!”

GTA what?!

Posted to Reddit by u/Legpistons

”Super pumped about the new GTA!”

Comment by u/readforhealth

“Side Quest Southaven Rendezvous

“Rico heads south of the border to grab 12kilos from the Chesteridge apartment complex. Little does he know, Brunnie B is also en route; and he hasn’t forgotten about the mess you made of his shop during the bust up. Meanwhile, Kitty Lee preps and wraps freshly packed powder for your arrival. This could get messy.

“Car 2018 Dodge Challenger Gauntlet

“Weapons Two Sig 365Ls and a sawed-off 12

”Objective Grab cargo and get back above the line by 5 O’clock”

Duck tour what?!

Posted to Facebook by Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park

“Special April 1st Tour!

“Plunge into the silliness this April Fool’s Day with Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park’s one-of-a-kind, one day only, Submarine Tour of Poplar Tree Lake! 

“Hop aboard with Ranger Chuckles as he steers through the stump-filled shallows in our cutting-edge, pedal-driven submarine — equipped with snorkels for quick getaways and a periscope that moonlights as a selfie stick. 

“Be amazed by underwater spectacles like the rare migration of freshwater rubber ducks and the mysterious Poplar Tree Lake Kraken (spoiler alert: it’s just a giant bass). 

“Secure your pretend tickets today for a laugh-out-loud journey that’ll leave you soaked in fun — metaphorically speaking!

“Stay tuned for more April Fool’s Day events that don’t really exist! 😂 “

River what?!

Credit: City of West Memphis via Facebook

“🚨 BIG ANNOUNCEMENT FROM MAYOR MCCLENDON 🚨 

“Mayor McClendon has officially requested federal approval to rename a portion of the Mississippi River to…The West Memphis River. 

“’We’re tired of Mississippi getting all the credit,’ said Mayor McClendon. ‘It’s time to put West Memphis on the map — literally.’”

The proposed section would span from the I-55 Bridge to the I-40 Bridge. 

Posted to Facebook by City of West Memphis

“‘We’re not trying to take the whole river,’” Mayor McClendon said. “’Just the best part.’”

“The rebranding would come with new signage, tourism campaigns, and possibly West Memphis may soon be home to a West Memphis River cruise port! Passengers can board for scenic tours newly renamed West Memphis River, taking in the sights, and sounds of the Delta in style.

”The petition has been submitted to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names and is now in the hands of President Trump. Stay tuned.”

Sauce what?!

Posted to Facebook by Rotolo’s Craft & Crust – East Memphis, TN

“B.Y.O.B 🪣

“What’s the elite pizza dipping sauce? 🍕

Ranch lovers, this is your moment! For ONE DAY ONLY we’re filling up your bucket with our creamy ranch. No limits.”

Elwood’s what?!

Posted to Facebook by Elwood’s Shack

“All sandwiches buy one get 3 free. One day April special. Today Only.”