Mississippi

Grammy Winner Gives A Bluesy Tour Through The Hill Country

Published

9 months ago

April 20, 2024

Grammy Winner Gives A Bluesy Tour Through The Hill Country

The Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area is a unique region that was designated by Congress in 2009 and has played a major role in America’s history and culture.

The Northeast Mississippi region, bounded by Interstate 55 to the west and Highway 14 to the south, intermingles Appalachian and Delta cultures, was instrumental in the Civil Rights Movement and was the home of Elvis Presley, William Faulkner and Tennessee Williams. It also is the home to the Mississippi Blues Trail, where travelers can follow markers to learn about an underpublicized form of music known as Hill Country blues.

Bluesman Cedric Burnside, who released a new album, Hill Country Love, this month, lives in Ashland, about 18 miles east of Holly Springs, which is about an hour drive southeast of Memphis, Tennessee. Most of Burnside’s life was spent in Tullahoma, a little Mississippi Hill Country town outside Holly Springs, so he is well-suited to lead visitors to the region’s treasures.

Burnside’s 2022 album I Be Trying won a Grammy, and his grandfather R.L. Burnside was a renowned Hill Country blues slide guitarist and singer who learned to play from his neighbor, country blues legend Mississippi Fred McDowell.

Cedric Burnside says visitors should go to the place in Chulahoma (about 15 miles southwest of Holly Springs) where Junior Kimbrough’s juke joint once stood. Kimbrough, a member of the Blues Hall of Fame, ran the juke joint in the 1990s to keep alive the dirty blues of McDowell, Howlin’ Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson and others. The shack burned down in 2000.

“Go by there just to feel the energy of that place,” says the 42-year-old Burnside. “And anyone who knew of or met my (grand) daddy should go by his gravesite and feel his energy as well. His gravesite is close by Junior’s gravesite.”

Visitors interested in experiencing “authentic Hill Country blues and good home-cooked food” should go to the Foxfire Ranch in Waterford, Burnside says. The 80-acre ranch includes a 5,000 square-foot open-air pavilion, an indoor banquet hall, multiple stages and four cabins.

The ranch’s website describes the vibe: “Musicians love to play here with blue skies as their backdrop. Families joyfully gather here for reunions, quinceañeras and to publicly declare their commitments of love to each other. Children run freely, finding wonder nestled in the arms of whispering pines and restful oak trees. This is a place where cell phones slow down, the internet is a little finicky, the food feeds your soul and your body remembers.”

Burnside says the blues trail markers in various towns explain the significance of local blues artists and their contributions to their communities. A few more markers for R.L. Burnside and Kimbrough were recently placed in Holly Springs. In Ashland, Burnside recommends visiting the marker “in the square by the courthouse” for Royal Studio owner Boo Mitchell. His dad, Willie Mitchell, produced Al Green’s hits and was instrumental in redefining Memphis rhythm and blues.

According to the Mississippi Blues Commission, the markers “tell stories through words and images of bluesmen and women and how the places where they lived and the times in which they existed — and continue to exist — influenced their music. The sites run the gamut from city streets to cotton fields, train depots to cemeteries and clubs to churches.”

The Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area includes 19 counties and portions of 11 others.

“The Hill Country is just what it says — the hills of Mississippi,” Cedric Burnside explains. “The Delta is the flatland lower down, and Hill Country is more in the north. Holly Springs is really hilly, and Ashland is almost mountains. Senatobia is part of the Hill Country, where Mississippi Fred McDowell and (blues musicians) Othar Turner and Jessie Mae Hemphill are from. Another great Hill Country blues legend, R.L. Boyce, is from Como.”

The Mississippi Blues Commission says “Delta blues often claims the spotlight,” but “other styles of the blues were produced in other regions of Mississippi. In the greater Holly Springs area, musicians developed a Hill Country blues style characterized by few chord changes, unconventional song structures and an emphasis on the groove or a steady, driving rhythm.”

Hill Country blues is so meaningful to the region, “because it’s unique,” Burnside says. “It’s just different from any other blues you hear. For a long time, Hill Country blues wasn’t on the scene and didn’t get recognition until the 1990s through my big daddy R.L. and Junior Kimbrough. The unorthodox rhythms of this music is something people had to get used to.”

The Hill Country blues rhythms undoubtedly won over the judges when Burnside’s I Be Trying album won a Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album. The 13-track album included 11 songs written by Burnside and songs written by his grandfather and Kimbrough.

“To be the first from the Hill Country area to bring a Grammy home fills me with gratitude,” Burnside says. “All the Hill Country legends, including those I played with, should’ve won a Grammy — should’ve won several – but they didn’t. So, I won that Grammy not just for myself but for them and this region.”

Source link

Click to comment

Mississippi

Winter Storm Enzo: Here’s the latest on temperatures around Mississippi

Published

2 hours ago

January 20, 2025

Press Room

Winter Storm Enzo: Here’s the latest on temperatures around Mississippi

Arctic air is bringing bitterly cold temperatures and dangerous driving conditions to Mississippi this week.

Mississippi woke up to chilly temperatures this morning, but that’s just the opening act. Temperatures are expected to drop into the teens and lower this week and parts of the state, including the Mississippi Coast, could see 2-4 inches of snow.

According to the National Weather Service, light snow is expected as for north as the South Delta with accumulation becoming heavier moving south. South Mississippi is under a Significant Threat with accumulations up to 4 inches on Tuesday with dangerous driving conditions and power outages expected.

The entire states faces dangerous cold with the low expected to be around 9 degrees in Oxford on Wednesday morning and 18 degrees along the Mississippi Coast. Overnight temperatures well below freezing are expected to linger across the state for several days including the Jackson and Central Mississippi areas.

Here are the expected temperatures according to the National Weather Service as of 5 a.m. Monday.

Jackson

Tuesday: Low 22 degrees, high 34 degrees, 50% chance of snow
Wednesday: Low 13 degrees, high 41 degrees
Thursday: Low 20 degrees, high 48 degrees
Friday: Low 25 degrees, high 51 degrees
Saturday: Low 28 degrees, high 59 degrees

Southaven

Tuesday: Low 21 degrees, high 27 degrees
Wednesday: Low 14 degrees, high 36 degrees
Thursday: Low 23 degrees, high 44 degrees
Friday: Low 25 degrees, high 45 degrees
Saturday: Low 31 degrees, high 53 degrees

Corinth

Tuesday: Low 18 degrees, high 28 degrees
Wednesday: Low 10 degrees, high 36 degrees
Thursday: Low 19 degrees, high 45 degrees
Friday: Low 23 degrees, high 44 degrees
Saturday: Low 27 degrees, high 52 degrees

Oxford

Tuesday: Low 17 degrees, high 29 degrees
Wednesday: Low 9 degrees, high 37 degrees
Thursday: Low 18 degrees, high 44 degrees
Friday: Low 23 degrees, high 45 degrees
Saturday: Low 27 degrees, high 55 degrees

Greenville

Tuesday: Low 23 degrees, high 32 degrees
Wednesday: Low 16 degrees, high 39 degrees
Thursday: Low 24 degrees, high 48 degrees
Friday: Low 26 degrees, high 50 degrees
Saturday: Low 31 degrees, high 57 degrees

Greenwood

Tuesday: Low 21 degrees, high 33 degrees
Wednesday: Low 14 degrees, high 40 degrees
Thursday: Low 22 degrees, high 48 degrees
Friday: Low 25 degrees, high 50 degrees
Saturday: Low 30 degrees, high 58 degrees

Starkville

Tuesday: Low 18 degrees, high 33 degrees, 20% chance of snow
Wednesday: Low 11 degrees, high 39 degrees
Thursday: Low 19 degrees, high 47 degrees
Friday: Low 23 degrees, high 48 degrees
Saturday: Low 26 degrees, high 56 degrees

Yazoo City

Tuesday: Low 22 degrees, high 32 degrees, 30% chance of snow
Wednesday: Low 15 degrees, high 39 degrees
Thursday: Low 22 degrees, high 47 degrees
Friday: Low 25 degrees, high 50 degrees
Saturday: Low 30 degrees, high 57 degrees

Philadelphia

Tuesday: Low 19 degrees, high 33 degrees, 40% chance of snow with little or no accumulation
Wednesday: Low 11 degrees, high 41 degrees
Thursday: Low 18 degrees, high 47 degrees
Friday: Low 23 degrees, high 49 degrees
Saturday: Low 26 degrees, high 56 degrees

Vicksburg

Tuesday: Low 22 degrees, high 33 degrees, 40% chance of snow
Wednesday: Low 13 degrees, high 41 degrees
Thursday: Low 20 degrees, high 48 degrees
Friday: Low 25 degrees, high 52 degrees
Saturday: Low 29 degrees, high 60 degrees

Meridian

Tuesday: Low 20 degrees, high 33 degrees, 60% precipitation, snow accumulation less than 1/2 inch
Wednesday: Low 12 degrees, high 41 degrees
Thursday: Low 19 degrees, high 47 degrees
Friday: Low 23 degrees, high 50 degrees
Saturday: Low 25 degrees, high 56 degrees

Natchez

Tuesday: Low 23 degrees, high 31 degrees, 70% chance of snow
Wednesday: Low 13 degrees, high 38 degrees
Thursday: Low 19 degrees, high 45 degrees
Friday: Low 25 degrees, high 50 degrees
Saturday: Low 30 degrees, high 58 degrees

Brookhaven

Tuesday: Low 22 degrees, high 32 degrees, 80% chance of snow
Wednesday: Low 11 degrees, high 39 degrees
Thursday: Low 17 degrees, high 46 degrees
Friday: Low 23 degrees, high 50 degrees
Saturday: Low 26 degrees, high 57 degrees

Hattiesburg

Tuesday: Low 23 degrees, high 33 degrees, 80% chance of snow with 1-3 inches accumulation
Wednesday: Low 13 degrees, high 41 degrees
Thursday: Low 18 degrees, high 46 degrees
Friday: Low 23 degrees, high 51 degrees
Saturday: Low 25 degrees, high 57 degrees

Wiggins

Tuesday: Low 25 degrees, high 32 degrees, 90% chance of snow with 2-4 inches accumulation
Wednesday: Low 15 degrees, high 41 degrees
Thursday: Low 19 degrees, high 46
Friday: Low 24 degrees, high 50 degrees
Saturday: Low 26 degrees, high 57 degrees

Biloxi

Tuesday: Low 26 degrees, high 34 degrees, 90% chance of snow with 2-4 inches accumulation and additional snow, freezing rain Tuesday night
Wednesday: Low 18 degrees, high 40 degrees
Thursday: Low 22 degrees, high 46 degrees
Friday: Low 27 degrees, high 51 degrees
Saturday: Low 31 degrees, high 57 degrees

Do you have a story idea? Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com.

Source link

Mississippi

Chris Beard Speaks on Malik Dia’s Limited Minutes in Loss Against Mississippi State

Published

9 hours ago

January 20, 2025

Press Room

Chris Beard Speaks on Malik Dia’s Limited Minutes in Loss Against Mississippi State

The Ole Miss Rebels encountered their first bump in the road in SEC play as they suffered a loss to in-state foe Mississippi State on Saturday night.

One noticeably missing piece to Saturday’s game was trasnfer center Malik Dia, who has been dominant since conference play began.

Dia saw struggles earlier on this season, seeing limited minutes due to foul trouble, but this was not the case as he only had one personal foul in his 18 minutes of play.

Dia finished the game with eight points, two rebounds, two assists and a steal, but he also struggled to hold onto the ball, recording four turnovers.

Rebels head coach Chris Beard spoke postgame on why he veered away from the big man, even taking some blame for limiting Dia’s minutes.

“We need Dia to to play, and we need him to play well,” Beard said. “Should he have played more today? Maybe. Probably. Those are decisions coaches have to make. What we were doing was obviously working.

“We got back in the game, we had a chance to win the game, the game went to overtime, but certainly Dia is one of our best players. He needs to be on the court for us.”

Coming into the matchup, DIa has averaged 17.5 points per game and 10 rebounds, including his season-high 23 points matched with his career-high 19 rebounds earlier this week in a win over Alabama.

Ole Miss is set to take on Texas A&M at home on Wednesday where Beard could look back to the first-year Reb to provide a spark in Ole Miss’ first home game in 11 days. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. CT on ESPN2.

Source link

Mississippi

Ole Miss women’s basketball slips by Mississippi State with late 8-0 run

Published

17 hours ago

January 19, 2025

Press Room

Ole Miss women’s basketball slips by Mississippi State with late 8-0 run

STARKVILLE — The Ole Miss women took Part II of the weekend’s in-state basketball rivalry series against Mississippi State.

After Mississippi State men’s hoops topped the Rebels in overtime on Saturday, the Rebels’ women prevailed Sunday 71-63 at Humphrey Coliseum. Both teams held leads in the fourth quarter, but Ole Miss scored eight unanswered points in three minutes for the win.

Rebels guard/forward Madison Scott led the game with a career-high 30 points, followed by MSU’s Jerkaila Jordan with 19.

It’s the only time Ole Miss (13-5, 4-2 SEC) and Mississippi State (15-5, 2-4) are scheduled to play each other this season.

Mississippi State took control early but Ole Miss had an answer

The Bulldogs forced Ole Miss coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin to take a timeout five minutes into the game when they opened a 14-5 lead. Denim DeShields and Debreasha Powe both nailed 3-pointers that beat the shot clock buzzer. The lead ballooned to 18-8 before Ole Miss shaved the lead down to one at the first quarter’s end.

It was sparked by Scott, who scored five consecutive points in an 11-2 run. MSU made 1-of-6 field goal attempts in the final four minutes. Kennedy Todd-Williams scored the first bucket of the second quarter, which gave Ole Miss its first lead of the game.

Ole Miss allowed just nine points in the second quarter as it took a 34-29 halftime lead. Jordan scored seven of MSU’s nine points in the quarter.

Ole Miss, Mississippi State traded lead back and forth in second half

Ole Miss commanded the early portion of the third quarter, building a 43-37 lead. However, MSU produced a 9-1 run to regain a brief lead.

Scott scored nine more points in the quarter, but Eniya Russell kept the Bulldogs in pace with nine points of her own, including two 3-pointers. Ole Miss took a 53-51 lead into the fourth quarter.

Ole Miss and Mississippi State were tied at 61-61 with five minutes remaining, but the Rebels gained separation on an 8-0 run. Four of the points were scored by Scott, who also blocked a Russell layup with one minute remaining.

Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.

Source link