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Micah Smith

Stories by Micah

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Big Freedia

Even though it's only March, New Orleans-based bounce artist Big Freedia has already had a demanding year.

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The Sum of Tiny Moving Parts

While listeners don't often find the term "family band" applied to heavier forms of music, Minnesota-based math-rock trio Tiny Moving Parts takes on the title with pride.

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Gerold Smith

When Jackson native Gerold Smith, also known as Gerold Girbeau, launched classic hip-hop radio station BDay 99.1 FM, the idea was simple: Mississippians need to be schooled on the old school.

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More Mississippi Sound

While our state's status as "the birthplace of American music" certainly sounds impressive, it doesn't say much about where Mississippi music is today.

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The Mind of David Liebe Hart

Los Angeles-based entertainer David Liebe Hart mesmerized thousands of viewers through his performances on Adult Swim's "Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!"

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Play It Again, St. Paddy

With floats, beads and libations abounding, Jacksonians will have plenty of colorful sights and sounds to enjoy during Hal's St. Paddy's Parade, but the party won't end with the parade route.

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CeeLo Green: Music for Humanity

Pop artist, TV persona, producer and entrepreneur CeeLo Green has no shortage of accolades behind him. The Atlanta native has garnered a new gaggle of fans at every stage in his career, from his time in hip-hop act Goodie Mob and soul duo Gnarls Barkley to his solo career and appearances on NBC singing competition “The Voice.”

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The Banner Studios: Setting up Stars

Sneakers squeak down the length of the basketball court at the Boys & Girls Club of Central Mississippi's Capitol Street unit.

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Drew Young

Since becoming Visit Mississippi's music programs manager in September 2015, Drew Young has represented our state's musical contributions far and wide at events such as the annual Mississippi Night at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles and Folk Alliance International in Kansas City, Mo.

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George Winston

Playing solo has allowed George Winston to develop his live performances to give audiences something new each time they see him while also letting him present his current artistic interests.

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Miranda Jordan

Miranda Jordan's signature glass pieces, which include microbead-adorned jewelry, electric lamps and bottles that customers often buy to hold perfume or candle oil, make up the product line of her one-woman craft company, Randam Art.

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Sarah Ross, Reintroduced

Sarah Restuccio was only 17 years old when she appeared on Season 12 of Fox's soon-to-end singing show, "American Idol," but she made an impression.

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Austin Wilkes

Madison-based hip-hop artist Austin Wilkes, known to fans as Mildred Noor, entered the music world with a bit of an awkward conversation.

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Royce Boyer

When Royce Boyer, the co-director of the Metro Male Chorus, and Chuck Reynolds, the band director for Madison Central High School, formed the Mississippi Chambre Music Guild in October 2014, the idea behind it was simple.

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Carnal Echo’s Second Chance

After about 25 years in education, Nashville-based singer-songwriter and pianist Rachel McCann decided to follow her first passion and proved that even the music industry occasionally deals in second chances.

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Good at Dates or Not, Meet Your Match

And yes, at its core, dating is a "bad situation." In one way or another, everyone on a first date feels like a perfect stranger.

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Unlocking ‘In a Different Key’

When Caren Zucker learned that her son, Mickey, had autism in 1996, she was ushered into a dark, misunderstood corner of the medical world.

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David Bowie

David Bowie died Sunday, Jan. 10, about 18 months after learning he had liver cancer. The world best knew the British pop-culture icon as a genre-spanning singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was 69 years old.

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Tapping into Indie Music Week

For almost a month, when Garrad Lee, a local deejay, show promoter and co-owner of record labels Elegant Trainwreck and Homework Town, spoke with Brad Franklin, the City of Jackson marketing specialist would hint at big plans for a city-wide music event.

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The Future of ‘Feel Music’

When the Recording Academy announced the Grammy nominees on Dec. 7, 2015, Cedric Burnside's seventh album, "Descendants of Hill Country," made the short list.

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Darth Vader

Even after the prequels somewhat defanged the infamous Sith lord, Darth Vader is still a driving force for the "Star Wars" franchise's newest addition, "The Force Awakens," which premiers Friday, Dec. 18.

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Pride in Priced to Move

"Priced to Move" is from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Friday, Dec. 11, and from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 12, at the Russell C. Davis Planetarium.

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Once in a ‘Blu Moon’

Mississippi hip-hop fans may be familiar with the wistful flow of rapper Justin Johnson, a Jackson native who performs under the moniker LV Baby, but his latest release, "Blu Moon," begins a new phase of his career—one that he says is all about imparting truth in the present.

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Caitlin Podas

The promise of never-ending paperwork didn't scare off Caitlin Podas, the registrar for the Mississippi Museum of Art. The Orange, Calif., native has pursued a career in museum registration for most of her adult life, though her attraction to the field isn't about administration.

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Supporting Local Artists at Chimneyville

Since 1976, the Craftsmen's Guild of Mississippi has kept many Jacksonians out of the outlet stores and away from the clearance racks while also supporting local arts with the Chimneyville Crafts Festival.

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Eddie Izzard: Tour de Force

Eddie Izzard considers himself a "British European." Like many of his countrymen, the internationally known comedian, actor and writer is embroiled in a deep sense of history—not all of it good.

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Books Beyond Bars

Under most circumstances, one would be correct in assuming that life-changing movements don't begin with a puppet show.

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Katt Williams

Comedian Katt Williams kicked off his latest arena tour, "Conspiracy Theory," in October.

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UPDATED: 3rd Eye Music Festival Back on in Fondren After Negotiations

Two days before the inaugural 3rd Eye Music Festival was scheduled to take place in Fondren Park, the event is in flux following a City of Jackson decision against the multi-genre event.

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Eric Riggs

Eric Riggs created The Detectives Comedy Dinner Theatre with lead actress Keni Bounds in 2009.

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The New Class of Classics

Andrew Sauerwein says people often think of classical music as something in history, not realizing that there are thousands of working composers today.

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Remembering ‘Riot’

When James Meredith became University of Mississippi's first African American student, a cub reporter and part-time university employee named Edwin Meek was there, photographing him every step of the way.

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Drew Mellon

For Clinton native Drew Mellon, the U.S. director for international nonprofit The Hard Places Community, his connection to Cambodia isn't a question of geography, but of compassion and calling.

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The New Mastersounds

Eddie Roberts, guitarist of British funk band The New Mastersounds, can attest to the fact that a lot can change in 16 years.

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2015 Artist to Watch: Rafiki Grove

Indie-rock outfit Rafiki Grove may be new to the Jackson area, but guitarist and vocalist Daniel Norris and guitarist Cody Warren have been writing together for nearly six years.

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2015 Artist to Watch: Tlo da Champ

Growing up, music was a constant for Jackson-based hip-hop artist Tony Lofton, known to fans as Tlo da Champ.

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2015 Artist to Watch: Deez Notez

In a short time, Deez Notez has already created a solid fan base with its ever-adapting set list.

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The Recording Conundrum

Leroy Jones Jr., the owner of recording studio Sonic Signature, has lived in Jackson his whole life and has produced music for a large amount of that time.

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Pause for Applause

A signature sound is more a product of its surroundings than the artists that fill them, and whether we like to admit that or not, an audience's reaction has an extraordinary impact on those surroundings.

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Amulet Strange

Before travelling to Jackson earlier this year, Amulet Strange had never stepped foot in Mississippi, and yet she had been preparing most of her life for a job here.

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Richard Grant

In his latest work, "Dispatches from Pluto: Lost and Found in the Mississippi Delta", Richard Grant delves into a region that's foreign but not at all far away.

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Jason Daniels: Roots and Reflection

When Jackson singer-songwriter Jason Daniels realized that the time was right for a vinyl re-release of his 2013 debut album, "Dashboard Visions and Rearview Reflections," it wasn't just about sound quality and having a product.

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Lake Street Dive

After more than a decade performing together, the musicians of Boston soul-pop act Lake Street Dive are starting to see their hard work pay off in a big way.

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Peter Friedrich

As the assistant professor and chair of the theater department at Millsaps College, Peter Friedrich is working to bring change that goes beyond the college to the national theater culture.

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The State in ‘Little Stories’

As a rule, photo books have a few simple goals. Whether the focus is on nature, architecture or even a specific event, they can either provide deep and poignant reminders of the past or lively, beauty-centered images of present.

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The Sound of WellsFest

Over its 32-year run, WellsFest has become one of the city's most multifaceted events, offering activities for art enthusiasts, 5K fans, green-thumbed gardeners and good-old-fashioned food lovers.

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Cindy Griffin

For the past 14 years, Cindy Griffin has been a driving force for Habitat for Humanity Mississippi Capital Area, and for the past 11 of those, she has served as the executive director.

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The Chemistry of Paperclip Scientists

Long before Jackson musicians Joey Plunkett and Vince Johnston launched samba-infused jazz-rock group Paperclip Scientists, they were writing songs while huddled around a four-track recorder.

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Spinning on the Same World

The Whirling Dervishes of Rumi, a Sufi Muslim order from Konya, Turkey, perform Wednesday, Sept. 23, at Thalia Mara Hall.

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Music Legend Steve Earle: The Mississippi Flag Must Change

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Steve Earle is the latest person to join the flag debate though his voice comes in the form of a good-old-fashioned protest song.