After his heroic efforts to save 32 people from a capsized excursion boat on the Mississippi River, Tom Lee worked as a city sanitation worker and lived in the Klondike neighborhood.

Against a wall of windows facing a wind-swept Mississippi River, a small group of people at Beale Street Landing raised a toast to Tom Lee Wednesday, May 8, in the park named in his honor.

Mack Weaver, the new president and CEO of Memphis in May, was asked about “the competition” in BBQ contests this year. “There’s another contest going on?” he deadpanned. Yes, Memphis, there certainly is.

While her childhood consisted of standing on tabletops and performing for family and friends, a singing career was initially just an afterthought for Cordova native Raneem Imam.

Memphis singer and multi-instrumentalist Rachel Maxann, is member of the Black Opry, and also works as a therapist.

Freelance photographer Ziggy Mack caught the action, sights, and the crowd at Riverbeat on Sunday, May 5, 2024.

There have now been two three-day music festivals staged in the redesigned Tom Lee Park by two different promoters, and while there have been differences in approach, there’s also plenty of commonality and a consistent takeaway.

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Johnnie Taylor was honored posthumously with a discussion on his legacy, the unveiling of his Beale Street Brass Note and the showing of a 20-minute documentary on his musical career.

The circuitous journey of the Fugees, a landmark 1990s’ New York hip-hop trio, landed them on the banks of the Mississippi River, at Memphis’ first Riverbeat Music Festival, on Saturday night.

Throughout the weekend, artists such as The Fugees, Yung Gravy and Al Kapone & the B.A.W. Band performed for various audiences throughout Tom Lee Park. 

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Riverbeat gallery Saturday: The beat goes on

The Daily Memphian photographer Patrick Lantrip caught the acts, the sights, the colors and the crowd at Riverbeat on Saturday, May 4, 2024.

The celebration was held on the 70th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown v. Board desegregation case ruling and featured an outdoor giveaway of children’s books for grades pre-K to sixth grade and up.

The Daily Memphian photographer Mark Weber caught the acts, the sights, the colors and the crowd at Riverbeat on Friday, May 3, 2024.

A Memphis festival got off to a very Memphis start with the Lucky 7 Brass Band. In the wings were Odesza, Carla Thomas, Eric Gales and more.

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Riverbeat gallery: Crowds, music, lights down by the river

The City of Memphis’ proposed capital-improvement budget includes issuing $17.6 million in debt over four years for the amphitheater’s renovation. A potential big-name operator could be interested, too.

“Shrek the Musical” and “Legally Blonde” are some of the shows coming to theater stages across Memphis. Plus, a Pulitzer Prize winning comedy-drama makes its regional premiere at Circuit Playhouse.

This week, the Memphis Symphony Orchestra plays “Star Wars” tunes, Overton Park hosts a discussion on snakes and the Listening Lab celebrates a blues great’s 90th birthday. 

Pedro Velasquez joined Eric Barnes to talk about LifeDoc’s mission, his family’s journey from Venezuela to Memphis, and the organization’s evolution nearly 20 years after its founding.

Thay Floyd, who performed on Broadway in “Waitress” and “A Christmas Story,” got his start in Germantown High School fine arts department. 

How will the new Riverbeat Music Festival play out in the new Tom Lee Park, in the sound and on the ground? We’re about to find out. 

An Asian restaurant food tour, a Laotian happy hour and dinner, a night market and two art exhibitions are on the calendar for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Memphis.

The Buckman Arts Center’s 27th season includes renowned singers, Japanese drumming, a fusion of live painting and music, contemporary dance and a live food podcast taping.

For two decades, Ann Perry Wallace collected stories of pluck and moxie about her hero. Stringing them together and performing all herself, she tells the life of Zora Neale Hurston, author of “Their Eyes Were Watching God.” 

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of women’s ordination in the Episcopal Church, Memphis is one of 11 cities nationwide selected for a one-night viewing of the new documentary “The Philadelphia Eleven.”

A crooner comes to Midtown’s Minglewood Hall, two FedExForum concert include star music acts with Memphis roots, a Black country music revue graces the Overton Park Shell and the Shell gets its first electronic-dance event.