Category: Music - boom jackson

Rapper D.O.N.O Vegas Brings Bright Lights, Big City to Jackson

6/30/2021

by Torsheta Jackson

Kevin McGhee, who goes by the stage name D.O.N.O. Vegas, released “No Excuses” last summer during the pandemic. The album has since become his most popular release, and he hopes to create a spiritual successor to the album with his upcoming “Stil No Excuses,” which he plans to release this summer. Photo courtesy Joe Ellis

Kevin McGhee vividly remembers standing outside the Tinseltown movie theaters in Pearl, Miss. The bright lights caught his attention. They reminded him of Las Vegas, where the glaring lights of the city skyline interrupted the darkness of the desert. The concept spoke to him.

Garner Music Academy: ‘Make the Music Happen’

11/25/2020

by Richard Coupe

Latongya Garner opened Garner Music Academy in December 2019, where she hones others’ crafts. Photo courtesy Garner Music Academy

In her hometown of Pocahontas, Miss., Latongya Garner developed her affinity for music at Baker's Grove Missionary Baptist Church, where she currently serves as music minister.

Mississippi Boychoir Adapts, Plans for Fall and Christmas

9/4/2020

by Jenna Gibson

The Mississippi Boychoir hones the vocal skills of youths grades 5 through 12. Photo courtesy Mississippi Boychoir

Determined to have a successful season, the Mississippi Boychoir has been working hard to combat the issues that COVID-19 presents, quickly adapting to a virtual platform for auditions and performances.

Zac Harmon, Raised Under Jackson’s Limitless Sky

5/13/2020

by Nate Schumann

Zac Harmon held onto his traditional southern values during his careers in music and finance. Photo courtesy Darren Carroll

Zac Harmon may have left Jackson in his adult years to bolster his career as an award-winning guitarist, singer and songwriter who specializes in American blues, but he has always kept the lessons learned in his southern upbringing close to his heart.

Ladies' Night at the 4th Quarter Exchange

12/12/2019

by Aliyah Veal

Rapper Unknwn performs for the first time at the 4th Quarter Exchange, a music event that brings artists and consumers face-to-face through performances and networking. Photo by Drew Dempsey

JACKSON — 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.

Matthew West: Singing, Crying, Connecting

12/12/2019

by Nate Schumann

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

Originally 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.

Mississippi Boychoir Brings 'Tidings of Comfort and Joy'

12/12/2019

by Torsheta Jackson

The Mississippi Boychoir prepares for its annual holiday concert, "Tidings of Comfort and Joy." Photo courtesy Joe Ellis

A 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.

Rapper Vitamin Cea Wants to Bring More Realness To Hip-Hop

9/19/2019

by Aliya Veal

Gautier, Miss., rapper Vitamin Cea said she wants to instill an understanding and honor of being from Mississippi in her music. Photo by Alexander FRE$CO

When Charity Hicks was in eighth grade, her friend Jasira introduced her to Nicki Minaj after Jasira remixed one of Minaj's songs. Hicks loved the remix, and it inspired her to write her own.

Music and Art at WellsFest 2019

9/19/2019

by Dustin Cardon

WellsFest 2019 features live music from a number of local artists and benefits the nonprofit Extra Table. Photo by Greg Campbell

Malcolm White, the current executive director of the Mississippi Arts Commission and co-owner of Hal & Mal's, first organized WellsFest as a way to thank the late Wells United Methodist Church pastor Rev. Keith Tonkel for officiating White's wedding.

The Road Doesn’t Go on Forever: Medlocke on Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Farewell Tour

9/19/2019

by Tom Scarborough

Lynyrd Skynyrd will perform at the Brandon Amphitheater on Friday, Sept. 27, starting at 6 p.m. Photo by Doltyn Snedden

Lynyrd Skynyrd may not have been the first southern rock band, but the band of high-school rowdies from Jacksonville, Fla., struck a distinctly different posture than its forebears. The band's 1973 debut album, "Pronounced Lynyrd Skynyrd," showcased the kind of chip-on-the-shoulder swagger that would later become emblematic of much of the rock music coming out of the South.