The Early Word: Grizz get caught in a storm; Liberty concert mystery solved
Good morning! Would you care for a spot of tea? It’s Monday, April 21 — National Tea Day. So, unless you’re in the “tea just tastes like hot water” camp, maybe swap out that coffee for a cup of orange pekoe this morning.
And while you’re sipping, plan your week with This Week in Memphis. Now, let’s get to the real tea, er, news.
Before last night’s thunderstorms rolled into the Memphis area, the Memphis Grizzlies were in a storm of their own in Oklahoma. And as our own Drew Hill says, the “Grizzlies amounted to the family dog shaking on the bathroom floor.” Because the Oklahoma City Thunder absolutely clobbered the Grizzlies in the first playoff match-up, 131-80. The game was so bad that the Grizz were trailing by 50 points well into the third quarter. So, on the bright side, maybe there’s nowhere to go but up in game two on Tuesday. But first, let’s look at everything that went wrong.
Last week, the University of Memphis announced that the controversial R&B artist Chris Brown will play a show at the Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in October. It’ll be the first show at the stadium in 30 years. But why the music drought? That’s what our own Jody Callahan looked into for his latest installment of Ask the Memphian. The last show at the then-Liberty Bowl was U2 in 1997, and it was the second-lowest attended show on the first leg of their tour. That may offer some perspective on what happened to Liberty Stadium shows, but it seems the venue itself may also be to blame.
Plus, five people were shot in the Medical District, the MPD is being sued over an arrest and we’ve got tips on what to order at Felicia Suzanne’s.
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Bianca Phillips
Bianca Phillips is a Northeast Arkansas native and longtime Memphian who’s worked in local journalism and PR for more than 20 years. In her days as a reporter, she covered everything from local government and crime to LGBTQ issues and the arts. She’s the author of “Cookin Crunk: Eatin’ Vegan in the Dirty South,” a cookbook of vegan Southern recipes.
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