Soul Beach Music Festival | Aruba
Held on the Memorial Day holiday weekend, the Soul Beach Music Festival offers a mixture of neo-soul artist, nationally known comedians and island beach activities. The concert series has featured past performances by artists including Maze, Sean Paul, Chaka Khan, Wyclef Jean, India Arie, the Gap Band, Boyz 11 Men, Lauryn Hill, Nina Sky, Anthony Hamilton, Alicia Keys and Brian McKnight.
The festival again kicks things off on the sun-kissed beaches of Aruba with five-days of power-packed events, lead by a star-studded lineup of Robin Thicke, Common, Estelle, Jamie Foxx, Wayne Brady and Etana.
This year’s event runs from May 20-25, 2009. Need more information? Visit the Soul Beach Music Festival official website.
Barbados Gospelfest | Barbados
Barbadians are very religious people with over 100 religious sects operating in Barbados. Against this backdrop it is inevitable that there would be a large religious festival on the island. Gospel music plays an important role in the spiritual lives of Barbadians and the growth of Barbados Gospelfest is indicative of this fact.
Featuring a very diverse musical line up, including traditional, reggae, calypso, jazz, and soul, this annual celebration draws top gospel talent from Africa, the United Kingdom, Canada, Jamaica, US Virgin Islands, the French island of Martinique, and the USA. Past performers have included Dorothy Norwood, James Moore, Ben Tankard, Douglas Miller, Yolanda Adams, Donnie McClurkin, Alvin Slaughter, Tramline Hawkins, Candi Staton, Harrella Goodwin, and Kirk Franklin.
For more information regarding venues and performances, visit the Barbados Gospelfest website. Also check out the island’s official tourism site as well, if you’re contemplating visiting Barbados now or in the near future.
Savannah Music Festival | Savannah, GA
Like many Southern cities, Savannah hosts a variety of musical events. Spring brings the annual Savannah Music Festival. Billing itself as the Georgia’s largest musical arts event and one of the most distinctive cross-genre music festivals in the world, this year’s music festival runs from March 18 through April 5. The program will feature well over 100 performances of world-class jazz, classical, blues, bluegrass, gospel and other genres of American and international roots music tucked into intimate venues settings at local theaters and churches throughout the historic district of Savannah. Check out the Savannah Music Festival’s official website or call 912-525-5050 for more information on tickets, times, venues and performing artists.
Savannah Music Festival
Address: 204 W Saint Julian St, Savannah, GA 31401
Phone: (912) 234-3378
Official Website: www.savannahmusicfestival.org
Map & Driving Directions
Stax Museum of American Soul Music | Memphis, TN
If you are a soul music lover, make sure you get to Soulsville, USA, aka Stax Museum of American Soul Music when you visit Memphis. Built almost to the exact specifications of the original Stax recording studio, housed in the former Capitol Theatre, the Stax Museum features hundreds if not thousands of videos, films, photographs, original instruments used to record Stax hits, stage costumes, interactive exhibits, and other items of memorabilia.
The museum’s most memorable exhibits include an authentic replica of an old Mississippi Delta church demonstrating soul music’s roots in gospel; the Soul Train dance floor (with TV show clips), Isaac Hayes’ restored 1972 gold-trimmed, peacock-blue El Dorado Cadillac; and case after case of artist bios, costumes, performance footage and the actual Stax recording studio itself. Definitely a must see when visiting the city with the nearby Rock n Soul Museum running a close second.
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
870 E McLemore Ave Memphis, TN 38106
Tel: 901-946-2535
Official Website: Soulville USA
Map & Driving Directions
Stax Records “Soulville USA” | Memphis, TN
Known as the home of Memphis Soul or southern soul, Stax Records released some of the most influential recordings of the 1960’s, including such hits as “Soul Man,” “Respect”, and “(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay” among many others. Although its stable of music artists consisted almost entirely of African Americans, the label was also home to several popular ethnically-integrated bands, including the label’s house band, Booker T. & the MG’s. Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, Carla Thomas, William Bell, Johnnie Taylor, the Staple Singers, and Isaac Hayes are just a few of the artists who called Stax home. Recent perfomers who have recorded for the label include Angie Stone and Lela Hathaway.
For more information on the history and music of Stax Records, be sure to visit the label’s official 50th anniversary website.
Stax Records studio session: From left, the musicians Sam Moore, Isaac Hayes, Andrew Love, Wayne Jackson, Dave Prater, Jim Stewart and Steve Cropper, around 1970.
