Setting the tone: The contributions of Black musicians to bluegrass and Americana are often ignored, and Jake Blount is here to change that. An acclaimed fiddler, Blount centers Black, Indigenous, and queer experiences at the heart of his music, paying tribute to the integral role those voices have played in the formation of Appalachian music. […]
Expanded memory: With a range of work that explores “decolonization, memory, language making, transnationality, Afrofuturism, and radicalization of the imagination,” it’s fair to say that multi-media artist Adama Delphine Fawundu takes a broad approach. But her genius lies in powerful details: a transformative shower, a vivid line of paint, an indigenous mask, the light across […]
Make room: City, county see population growth in 2020 Census It’s not your imagination—it is getting more crowded around here. Charlottesville and Albemarle are both more populous than they were a decade ago, according to newly released census data. The 2020 census was delayed thanks to the pandemic, but the Census Bureau shared its first […]
Despite support from city firefighters and bus drivers, on Monday Charlottesville City Council unanimously voted not to approve the collective bargaining ordinance proposed in March by Greg Wright of the Charlottesville Professional Firefighters Association. Instead, councilors adopted a resolution allowing City Manager Chip Boyles to draft a new collective bargaining ordinance, as Boyles recommended. “I […]
By Julia Stumbaugh On August 23, 2020 a Kenosha, Wisconsin, police officer shot a 29-year-old Black man named Jacob Blake in the back. In the days that followed, Charlottesville actor and director David Vaughn Straughn sat down to write a play. “I felt this anger and intolerance and frustration,” says Straughn. “I knew that was […]
Summer breeze: Like the turquoise sparkle in a backyard pool or the gritty glimmer of oceanside city lights, the music of Magic City Hippies perfectly captures that drowsy, summertime vibe. Hailing from Miami, the trio creates a dreamy haze with lonesome slide guitars, vintage organs, and languid, sun-drenched vocals. The band’s restrained cool can be […]
The Coen Brothers put the cold in cold-blooded murder with their 1996 dark comedy Fargo. Set during a snowy Minnesota winter, the film stars Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare, and William H. Macy as amateur criminals who bungle their way through a kidnapping. And Frances McDormand, with a memorable Midwestern accent, won an Oscar for her […]
Heart for home: With 1,000 songs to his name, award-winning singer-songwriter Brian Elijah Smith gained overdue recognition when the title track on his 2019 release In Through the Dark was used in the Netflix series “Virgin River.” Smith, who has played stages around the globe, celebrates his latest album, Apocalyptic Blues, with a regional solo […]
Aimee Seu Age: 27 Occupation: Author and poet The look: Gifted overalls, thrifted T-shirt, Ada Chen earrings, Muccha painting pendant from a roadside flea market “I’m half Korean, one-fourth Native American, and one-fourth French-Canadian, so I’ve never felt able to easily fit in or blend into the crowd; maybe I leaned into that feeling of […]
Riggleman appointed to dig in to January 6 The House of Representatives committee tasked with investigating the January 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection has hired former Virginia 5th District representative Denver Riggleman as a senior staff member. The Democrats in charge of the committee have been searching for conservatives willing to turn a critical eye to […]