Precisely what sonic rubrics need to be met can change from person to person, but as area radio hosts, publicists and studio professionals note, success is attainable for local musicians aspiring to reach a broader audience.
Around Town: Historic Asheville inn invites writers to interpret history
The Gray Rock Inn Writers Project calls on local authors to contribute fiction and nonfiction pieces. Also: Dark City Poets Society celebrates one-year anniversary of Poetry Night; LEAF Down By the River celebrates youth performers; and more!
Burnsville poet Pat Riviere-Seel discusses poetry, voice and gardening
Award-winning poet and Burnsville resident Pat Riviere-Seel speaks with Xpress about her life as a poet and the unique perspectives all writers bring to the page.
Asheville Comedy Festival returns after two-year hiatus
Performers and organizers discuss the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on comedy and how shared laughter is more powerful now than ever.
Around Town: New children’s book spotlights famous and lesser-known Black historical figures
A local attorney pens a new children’s book. Plus, UNCA hosts the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival, a new art exhibit highlights creatures of the Serengeti and the Mount Mitchell Crafts Fair returns to Burnsville’s town square.
Documentary short immortalizes 1972 HHS basketball team
Director Keith Dunnavant discusses making his latest documentary sports film.
Local bands discuss touring amid inflation
Rising costs have brought an already wrought situation to the brink, but Asheville-area artists continue to make it work.
Terry Roberts explores jazz and economic ruin in his latest novel
“I wanted to somehow capture both the ’20s, with its jazz influence, while at the same time explore the decade’s demise — that pivotal point when things start to go south,” says author Terry Roberts, in discussing his latest novel.
Around Town: Asheville Jewish Community Center celebrates Israeli fine art
J Art Show explores work of prominent Jewish artists, BMCM+AC reimagines 1951 dance and music performance, Anything Fiber Yard Sale features leftover studio finds, and more!
Three local bands celebrate landmark anniversaries
Local bands Andrew Scotchie and the River Rats and Empire Strikes Brass celebrate 10 years; meanwhile, fellow Asheville act, River Deep, turns 30.
Around Town: Folkmoot’s Summerfest returns to Waynesville
Folkmoot’s Summerfest will bring local and international dance and music to Haywood County. Plus, the Museum of the Cherokee Indian will highlight Native American filmmakers, a local author looks back at her life, and the summer edition of the Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands returns.
Local couple collaborate on comprehensive Appalachian Trail book
Amber and Joshua Niven discuss working together on their new book, “Discovering the Appalachian Trail: A Guide to the Trail’s Greatest Hikes.”
Exhibit spotlights LGBTQIA+ photographers
“This Skin I’m In: A Visual Narrative” runs through Aug. 29 at Revolve gallery.
Around Town: Story Parlor residency program debuts with ‘Dirty Laundry’
Story Parlor residency debuts with multidisciplinary immersive show. Plus, local sculptor’s work is focus of new show, Slavic folk concert raises money for Ukraine, and Swannanoa Valley Museum & History Center exhibit looks at area’s flood history.
Local poet Anne Maren-Hogan discusses the influence of community on her writing
Xpress speaks with the award-winning poet, Anne Maren-Hogan, about the people and places that inspired the poems in her latest collection, “Vernacular.”
Local veterans find healing through the arts
Photography, music and writing have helped area military servicemen work through combat trauma.
Around Town: Exhibit highlights Jewish experience in North Carolina
A traveling Jewish history museum exhibit comes to Asheville’s Congregation Beth Israel. Plus, The Snozzberries bring back Psychedelic Circus, a local author pens his life story, and Art in Bloom returns to Black Mountain.
Seth Walker, Valorie Miller and Erika Lewis release new albums
Two recent transplants and an Asheville mainstay discuss their latest LPs.
Appalachian short-story collection blends comedy and tragedy
Local author Melanie McGee Bianchi discusses her recently published debut collection, The Ballad of Cherrystoke and Other Stories.
Around Town: Buncombe County Special Collections blog opens to community posts
The Buncombe County Special Collections blog opens up to community submissions. Plus, local multimedia artist puts on augmented reality show, author chronicles history of the Toe River Valley, and photographers express experiences of queerness through visual autobiographies.
Local record-shop entrepreneurs discuss the wild world of vinyl
This roundtable discussion hits on vinyl trends, keeping up with new music and counteracting record-store stereotypes.