Musician April Bennett gets creative in finding her ‘new normal’ 

Instead of a packed house, musician April Bennett and local hip-hop band Lyric played to a nearly empty space at the Orange Peel for the May 15 livestream of Downtown After 5. “It was definitely weird playing in one of the biggest rooms in the city with no people in it except for the staff who were recording it,” she remarks with a laugh. “But I was really glad for that [opportunity]. It was definitely a much-needed morale boost during these crazy, crazy times.”

Five o’clock world

Fridays are worthy of celebration in any week. The daily grind gives way to the wide-open window of the weekend and, in warm-weather months, downtown Asheville’s streets take on a festive atmosphere of buskers, shoppers and diners claiming patio seating. So Downtown After 5 — held the third Friday of each month, May-Sept. — capitalizes on what’s already a party-in-the-making.

Earth Day on pavement?

If anyone questions the validity of the Huffington Post's recent article regarding the fluff which fuels Asheville's reputation, then you should look no further than the absolutely preposterous Earth Day celebration which was auspiciously sited on the rolling , um, pavement of Lexington Avenue. Yeah, that’s right: an Earth Day celebration on pavement. Had the […]