Nashville Scene

In this week’s issue of the Scene, we explore the impending mayoral election in several parts. We look at the race’s best known candidates, examine those who are vying for Nashville’s conservative vote, explore prominent local figures who are conspicuously absent from the ballot and more. On this week’s Scenecast, we sit down with staffers Steven Hale and Stephen Elliott and contributor Steve Cavendish to talk about the mayoral candidates — and we even take a little quiz to see if we can ID all 13 candidates.

This week's issue of the Scene is our annual Summer Guide, in which we point to the most enticing events going on this summer, and take a look at interesting folks from all over town. That includes artists, a drag queen and a very charismatic chef. But on this week's Scenecast, we talk about the 49th annual Nashville Film Festival, which takes place May 10-19 at Regal Hollywood 27. In the May 3 issue of the Scene, we picked out 25 interesting titles from this year's programming. We spoke to Nashville native Alex O Eaton about the world premiere of her debut feature 'Mountain Rest,' and we had a look at some of the festival's short-film programming. On this week's Scenecast, we speak to Jason Shawhan. If you know film in Nashville, you know Jason. He's a Scene contributor, a Belcourt employee, a Nashville Film Festival programmer and a self-described media prophet. He programs the festival's Graveyard Shift competition category. On this Scenecast, we talk to Jason about this year's Graveyard Shift films and a lot more. Fair warning: If you haven't yet seen 'Avengers: Infinity War,' there's some very lightly spoiler-y content from minute 21 to minute 23.

In this week’s issue of the Scene, contributor Erica Ciccarone explores the art scene in historically black North Nashville. She speaks with members of the artists’ group Norf Art Collective, as well as business owners and community members who participate in the monthly Jefferson Street Art Crawl. Erica’s story focuses on the role of art in creating an inclusive space and a sense of ownership in a culturally rich part of Nashville. On this week’s Scenecast, we sit down to talk with Erica about her cover story and more.

On May 1, Nashville will conclude one of the most significant public referendums it has ever held, on the most expensive municipal project the city has ever proposed: a citywide transit overhaul. The initiative, called Let’s Move Nashville, includes upgrades in the bus system and the building of light rail on the city’s major corridors. The plan also includes a tunnel to be dug beneath downtown, from Charlotte Avenue to SoBro. Part of the plan to pay for Let’s Move Nashville is four tax increases: sales, hotel-occupancy, business and rental-car taxes. In this week’s issue of the Scene, staffers Steven Hale and Stephen Elliott highlight the cases for and against passage of the transit initiative. Also in the cover package, Stephen Elliott runs through some of the primaries on the ballot, among them the offices of sheriff, public defender, register of deeds and county clerk. Today on the Scenecast, Hale and Elliott join me to talk transit.

Songwriter John Prine has been making records for nearly 50 years. He’s won Grammys and Americana Music and Honors Awards, and over the years his avowed fans have included the likes of Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash and modern-day collaborators like Brandy Carlile, Jason Isbell, Amanda Shires and The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach. On Friday, April 13th, Prine will release 'The Tree of Forgiveness,' his first album of new material in 13 years. For this week’s Scene cover story, contributor Marissa R. Moss spoke with Prine about the record, his career, his collaborators and more. On this week’s Scenecast, we invite Marissa in to talk about her story.

A lot of hockey fans probably saw the Predators’ historic run to the 2017 Stanley Cup Finals as a fluke, a lucky break for the goofy catfish-throwin’ Southern town. But Smashvillians knew better. As tens of thousands of fans filled the streets of downtown Nashville to watch the team make history, they knew this was likely the start of something bigger — even if the team didn’t ultimately bring home the Cup. In this week’s issue of the Scene, we examine this season’s Predators as they make another run at the Cup. It's All Your Fault co-host David Boclair takes a look at the team’s six newest additions — among them Ryan Hartman and Scott Harnell — while IAYF co-host and Scene culture editor Megan Seling sits down with Viktor Arvidsson, and also updates us on what some of last year’s breakout postseason stars are up to. On this week’s Scenecast, we talk to Megan about the Preds' quest for the Cup.

This week's issue of the Scene covers a lot of ground, beginning with the eighth annual Nashville Fashion Week. NFW kicks off on April 3 at OZ Arts, and NFocus editor and Scene Contributor Nancy Floyd chatted with all six designers featured in this year’s opening-night designer showcase. Among those designers is Maria “Poni” Silver, the recipient of this year’s Nashville Fashion Forward Fund. In this week’s Scenecast, Floyd sits down with Silver to talk about her inspiration, which is rooted in the experiences of Silver's mother, a Dominican immigrant who lived in New York City in the 1970s. Scene editor D. Patrick Rodgers also talks staff writer Steven Hale about his story on the mock executions that take place at Tennessee’s Riverbend Maximum Security Institution. You can listen below, as well as on iTunes, Stitcher and TuneIn (which is also available through Amazon Echo devices). Rate us on iTunes and leave a comment if you like what you hear.

For the Scene’s second annual food-industry survey, we made a list of chefs, general managers and owners at many of the best restaurants in town and made them a deal — we give you a list of questions, and all we ask is that you respond with honesty. The participants run the gamut from experienced veterans with decades in town to talented newcomers, with a diverse mix of ages, races and genders. We asked more than 60 people to participate, and roughly 40 responded. By agreeing to withhold their identities, we got a look at Nashville’s dining scene through the eyes of those most responsible for its current success. This week, editor D. Patrick Rodgers sits down with contributors Steve Cavendish and Chris Chamberlain to talk about the responses we got — from the best desserts in town to the worst trends, who deserves a Beard Award and more. You can listen below, as well as on iTunes, Stitcher and TuneIn (which is also available through Amazon Echo devices). Rate us on iTunes and leave a comment if you like what you hear.

This week’s Scene cover package features two items — one looking at Nashville’s new mayor, David Briley, and another looking back on the scandal that brought down our former mayor, Megan Barry. For the latter, we spoke to NewsChannel 5’s Phil Williams, who was first on the story and responsible for more than one of its juicier twists and turns. Scene contributor Steve Cavendish and staff writer Amanda Haggard sat down with Williams to digest the news around Barry’s affair and subsequent resignation. You can listen to that conversation here or read an excerpt in this week’s print issue. Due to some technical difficulties, the quality of this week's audio isn't quite as high as usual. Apologies. But it's still a great listen, and we hope you'll bear with us.

This week, we at the Scene present our annual People Issue, in which we talk to some of Nashville’s most interesting folks. You’ll meet mother and future student Seana Arrechaga, a soldier’s widow who doesn’t like how some people have appropriated her family’s grief. You’ll meet Nashville sideman and drummer extraordinaire Jerry Pentecost, and student activist Katherine Ledezma-Soto, along with attorney and advocate Alex Little, fiber artist Kate Madeira, and ballerina-turned-boxer Sarah London. Also in this week’s People Issue you’ll read Steven Hale’s profile of historian and professor Learotha Williams. Williams is an associate professor of African-American and public history at TSU who runs the North Nashville Heritage Project — an initiative to preserve and share stories of black history in North Nashville. This week on the Scenecast, Hale sits down to talk with Williams about some of the stories he’s collected over the years, and why his work is so important.

In this week's cover package, we have a look at the state’s long and complicated relationship with cannabis — both industrial hemp, which can be grown by licensed farmers as part of a state pilot program, and marijuana, the use of which is still illegal both for medical and recreational purposes. Pick up a copy or visit nashvillescene.com to read more about that. But flip to the back of the paper and you'll find our run-down of this year's Academy Award nominees. In our latest Scenecast, Scene editor D. Patrick Rodgers, Nfocus editor Nancy Floyd, Scene and Nashville Post staffer Stephen Elliott, and Scene staffer Steven Hale discuss our picks for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actress in a Leading Role, and more. We cover everything from the cultural impact of 'Get Out' and 'Lady Bird' to the performances in 'I, Tonya,' sound design in 'Dunkirk' and everything that's wrong with 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.' Fair warning: At least one of us did not like 'Three Billboards.' At all.

McKamey Manor, just an hour south of Nashville, holds frightening intrigue for thrill-seekers from all over the world. The notoriously extreme haunted house subjects willing visitors to activities that push them to their mental and physical limits, which are then broadcast to eager fans across the internet. This week, editor D. Patrick Rodgers and culture editor Megan Seling sit down to talk about the house of horrors, its complicated legality and why, despite the terror, people just can’t get enough.

Staff writer Amanda Haggard talks to journalist Radley Balko, who investigated the work of a Mississippi medical examiner named Steven Hayne, along with his dentistry sidekick Michael West. Balko discusses Hayne’s history and impact, which is darkly fascinating, as he testified in close to 80 percent of homicide trials in Mississippi for 20 years – often employing shoddy reasoning and pseudoscience. Balko will be releasing a book detailing the full story at the end of February, titled 'The Cadaver King and the Country Dentist: A True Story of Injustice in the American South.'

The Scenecast is back to celebrate the pinnacle of love in America: The Bachelor. Staff writers Steven Hale and Stephen Elliott and NFocus editor (turned resident Bachelor expert) Nancy Floyd sit down to talk about Bachelors and Bachelorettes past and present and why so many of them have roots in Nashville. They discuss heartthrob Luke Pell’s music career, Nashvillian Christen Whitney aka "Scallop Fingers," successful Bachelor marriages here in Nashville, Arie Luyendyk Jr.’s shortcomings and more.

This week the Scene named the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee our 2017 Nashvillians of the Year for their work in supporting the nonprofit sector in Nashville. Executive Director Ellen Lehman talks with staff writer Steven Hale and editor Steve Cavendish about The Big Payback — their annual day of giving that has raised $9.3 million for charities in the last four years — and about how and why Nashville gives.

On today’s podcast, we talk to David Drobny, one of the people behind the Nashville Severe Weather Twitter account. A lawyer by trade, he turned his fascination with the weather into one of Nashville’s most viewed Twitters and, during severe weather events, one of the most useful. You can find it online @NashSevereWX. There’s a reason it’s been voted Best Twitter Account by Scene Readers several years running in our annual Best of Nashville poll. We talked about Tweet-eorology, the #Snowdome and what we can expect from the weather this winter.

Paul Kuharsky has spent the past two decades covering the Titans for The Tennessean and ESPN. And though he spends a few hours every day delivering his opinion on sports for 104.5-FM The Zone, he’s a Columbia Journalism School grad who, first and foremost, has been a journalist. So when huge ESPN cuts came down this year, Kuharsky was forced to make some hard decisions about his career. Instead of signing on with an established outlet, he started his own site where readers could pay him directly for his news and views. It’s a growing trend as the revenue models behind traditional journalism continue to be disrupted. Editor Steve Cavendish talked to him about launching himself as a brand, the state of sports coverage and what he thinks of this edition of the Titans.

After two-term incumbent Bob Corker announced his retirement earlier this fall, Tennessee has turned into one of the most interesting Senate battlegrounds in the country. Staff writer Steve Hale and editor Steve Cavendish sat down with Nashville attorney and Democrat James Mackler to talk about his candidacy to replace Corker.

Two decades after Cyrus Wilson was convicted of murder, the case against him has fallen apart with four witnesses saying they lied at his original trial. Scene editor Steve Cavendish and staff writer Steven Hale discuss Wilson's case, how it got here and where it goes now.

On this week’s bonus Scenecast, managing editor D. Patrick Rodgers talks to longtime local country singer Margo Price about her powerful second solo record, All American Made, out now via Third Man Records. The two talk about the sophomore slump (or lack thereof), politics in country music, touring the country in 2017, hanging out with Willie Nelson and more.

One of our favorite local bands, Bully, is releasing a new album this week — Losing will be out Fri., Oct 20 on Sub Pop — so culture editor Megan Seling sat down with singer/guitarist Alicia Bognanno to talk about the new music, the upcoming album release shows at Mercy Lounge, how the band picks their obscure cover songs and, of course, Bognanno’s very adorable dog Mezzi.

Best Bagel? Best Place to Get Your Ass Kicked (in a good way)? Best Sandwich? Best Album? Best Cuddle Puddle? For our annual Best of Nashville issue, the Scene staff shares a few of their favorite BON’s and why they were a writer’s pick.

The Preds are back for a new season and our Hockey Outsider (Megan Seling) and our Hockey Insider (David Boclair) talk about the hangover from last year, new captain Roman Josi, who's going to step up this season and make a few predictions.

In the wake of the NFL player protests during the national anthem, we talk with Andrew Maraniss, the author of "Strong Inside," the story of Perry Wallace and breaking the color barrier at Vanderbilt in the 1960s. The issues which faced Wallace — and many of the names he was called just for being black — echo much of the criticism of NFL players. Maraniss also talks about the challenge of converting his book into something for middle schoolers to read, his Pulitzer-winning father and more.

On today’s pod, we’ve got a fascinating interview with attorney and local historian David Ewing, who’s been part of the Ryman Auditorium 125th anniversary project. Ewing talks to us about what he’s found, why the Ryman moved the "Confederate Gallery" sign out of the main auditorium and some of the stuff he’s uncovered while digging into the Ryman’s past — including how in 1972 Neil Diamond kicked off a tradition of pop stars playing the venue when they could easily sell out bigger places.

Depeche Mode, the British band that played a key role in shepherding synth pop into the mainstream, hasn’t visited Music City since an under-attended stop at Starwood Amphitheater in 1988. But they had no trouble selling out Ascend Amphitheater for Monday’s gig. Music editor Stephen Trageser sits down with two of the biggest DM fans we know — former music editor Adam Gold and longtime contributor Jason Shawhan — to explore the complexities of the band’s work.

The Scene's Nancy Floyd and Steven Hale breakdown the one-night-only Bachelor in Paradise finale and Nancy has a theory about how this show is really just Saved By The Bell.

Amanda Shires is one of the most interesting people in music right now. She released her fifth solo album "My Piece of Land" to great acclaim last year, while maintaining her gig as a talented side player in her husband Jason Isbell's band. Ahead of this year's AmericanaFest — where she's nominated for Emerging Artist of the Year — she tells us about preserving her identity as an artist after becoming a mother, sexism in the music industry, and her love for poetry and gardening.

The Scene’s Steven Hale and Nancy Floyd debrief after the the penultimate week of "Bachelor in Paradise," breaking down Dean’s weapons-grade stupidity and our dashed hopes of #WellsForBachelor. Also, twins, the sadistic monsters that run this show and, with the finale coming next week, is it even possible to make predictions about Paradise?

We talk to James Peisker and Chris Carter of Porter Road Butcher about the state of meat in Nashville. It's been more than five years since they opened their independent, whole-animal butcher operation in East Nashville. What have they learned? What does Nashville like to eat? What don't people know about the meat they buy in grocery stores? Then, D. Patrick Rodgers reviews "Patti Cake$," the new "Juno" meets "8 Mile" film about an underdog rapper.

The Scene's Steven Hale and Nancy Floyd discuss why Wells Adams seems like he's being groomed to be the next Bachelor. Also, they dig into the DeMario/Corinne allegations and the Stockholm Syndrome that the contestants feel.

Writer Steve Haruch talks about Nashvillian Koganada's new film "Columbus," the first feature from the local director. It's generated great critical buzz. How did a quiet movie about architecture in Indiana get made? And then Editor Steve Cavendish discusses Chinese food with Ashley Brantley, who reviews Tánsuŏ (the new Maneet Chauhan restaurant) in the latest issue.

WHY ARE THE NASHVILLIANS ON THE SHOW MAKING OUT?!?!?! Steven Hale and Nancy Floyd have theories and lots of questions about this week's Bachelor in Paradise episode, which includes Wells Adams getting in the game and a farewell to Danielle.

The solar eclipse is coming and Nashville is in its path. Managing Editor D. Patrick Rodgers talks about the hordes descending on Music City, the shadow snakes you might see, how to not burn your eyes and, most importantly, one astrologer's claim that the eclipse might herald some huge changes — goodbye President Trump? Then, Music Editor Stephen Trageser reviews the new Kesha album (spoiler alert: it's good), plays some clips and discusses the Nashville singer's legal problems.

Scene staffers Nancy Floyd and Steven Hale recap this season of ABC's Bachelor in Paradise, with special attention paid to the Nashville participants on the show. This week: Remember the rumors of sexual assault which shut down production of the show? It turns out ABC will milk that for all of the viewership it's possibly worth. Also, why are Wells Adams and Danielle both on this show?

In an era ruled by social media, who gets to decide what the city looks like? Tenacious residents who want authority over their own neighborhoods? Ambitious newcomers with visions of branding their way to fame? Or millennial tourists who line up to pose in front of a brick wall at 11 a.m. on a Tuesday?

Nancy Floyd and Steven Hale with a quick recap of the finale of ABC's "The Bachelorette" and the awful things awful people do when they try to quickly fall in love on television.

These are the girls you’ve heard of — the girls you’ve literally heard. These are the Woo Girls, and they are everywhere, even on a suffocating night in Summer. Nashville Scene staff writer Steven Hale and nFocus editor (and Scene contributor) Nancy Floyd talk about Nashville's bachelorette scene, the companies that support it and how it's taken over downtown. Then, the pair break down the upcoming finale of The Bachelorette on ABC and Nancy, who has recapped the season for the Scene, makes a few predictions.

The Nashville Scene Cast is a weekly podcast from the Nashville Scene that explores relevant Nashville topics with voices from around the city. New episodes will upload on Thursdays. This week features an intro podcast, which touches on what topics future podcasts will cover and what you can look forward to.