The Arts Beat is a weekly deep-dive into Memphis arts, music, dance, theater, fashion, film and events. Keep scrolling for a roundup of the best arts and culture stories from the week. Have a story idea? Send it to eperry@dailymemphian.com.
David Porter on ‘The Breakfast Club’
Legendary Stax Records singer, songwriter and record producer David Porter appeared on New York’s (105.1 FM) nationally syndicated show “The Breakfast Club” on Tuesday, July 28.
Porter spoke about what he would say if he could talk to his late collaborators again (including Isaac Hayes) and about sample requests for his work, including his song “The Masquerade Is Over,” which was used on Notorious B.I.G.’s “Who Shot Ya?”
This is how Porter responded to the question of whether he was disappointed by celebrities who don’t speak up “about certain things” or “have intention in what they do:”
“To some extent I am disappointed,” Porter said. “Because when we do get the opportunity to be the example that could be motivating for others, we have to be aware that we’re given a gift that you can magnify in positive ways. I try to be, at this stage of life — 85 this year — the example that can motivate people that look like me to understand that I’m just a fraction of what they can be because they have a better opportunity than I had. And if I can come from this to this, they can go from this to that.”
Porter released his memoir, “The Soul Man,” on April 14.
Christone "Kingfish" Ingram performs during the 2023 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival on Friday, June 16, 2023, in Manchester, Tenn. (Amy Harris/Invision/AP)
Clarksdale, Mississippi, blues singer and guitarist Christone “Kingfish” Ingram will also appear in New York soon.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art announced that Ingram will kick off The Met Live Arts’ Guitar Icon series. He is set to perform Friday, Oct. 2, and Saturday, Oct. 3, in the Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium in The Met Fifth Avenue.
Highlighting a new American guitar gallery at The Met, each performance in the series will feature a historical instrument from the museum’s collection.
The Met’s website states that additional performers in the Ingram show are to be announced.
University of Memphis alumnus Jason Isbell is scheduled to perform in the series on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2027.
The final performer in the Guitar Icons series is St. Vincent, who is scheduled to perform Saturday, Feb. 20, 2027.
Memphis audiences had the opportunity to see the singer and guitarist at the 2026 Riverbeat Music Festival.
Several artists with ties to the Memphis region are on former President Barack Obama’s annual summer playlist.
They include Sam & Dave (“Hold On, I’m Comin’”), Johnny Cash (“Folsom Prison Blues”), Drake (“Ran to Atlanta” featuring Future and Molly Santana) and Yebba (“West Memphis”).
PJ Morton, left, and Yebba pose in the press room with the Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance for "How Deep Is Your Love" at the 61st annual Grammy Awards at the Staples Center on Sunday, Feb. 10, 2019, in Los Angeles. (Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)