With the mission of tying Memphis’ soul music history to the city’s soul music of today, the Soulsville USA Festival is returning to College Street and McLemore Avenue.

Brennan Villines has been a staple in the Memphis music scene for years, playing at nearly every venue in town. However, it wasn’t until this summer when he appeared on FOX’s “The Four” that the 30-year-old artist captured the hearts of thousands around the country singing a soulful rendition of “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles).”

The second annual Mempho Music Festival at Shelby Farms Park was so successful that organizers say they expect to expand the event in 2019. “Memphis deserves a world-class music festival,” Mempho founder Diego Winegardner said Sunday. 

The idea of Mempho Music Festival stems from a bike ride founder Diego Winegardner took with friends a couple of summers ago on the Shelby Farms Greenline to Shelby Farms Park itself.

Last month, Memphian and Grammy-winning saxophonist Kirk Whalum received a note on the Beale Street Brass Note Walk of Fame.

Acclaimed violinist Tai Murray will be featured at the Memphis Symphony Orchestra’s opening weekend concerts for its 2018-19 season Sept. 29-30.

Seven bands will come together Saturday night for a concert at Lafayette’s Music Room benefitting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

About 30 people gathered in the IHeartMedia offices on Thousand Oaks Boulevard on Thursday, Sept. 20, to meet gospel star Jonathan McReynolds, an event that was part of a new partnership between IHeartRadio and AT&T.

Since its founding four years ago the Memphis Music Initiative has led a vagabond existence: first sharing office space with ArtsMemphis in East Memphis, then with the Memphis Education Fund at the former Memphis College of Art graduate school building on South Main and finally in Crosstown Concourse.