VIDEO OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN: Spotlighting artists from a wide array of sounds and styles, this year's Music Video Asheville awards ceremony recognizes works by the likes of R&B vocalist Leeda "Lyric" Jones, left, and hip-hop emcee Marcus "Mook" Cunningham, pictured at last year's ceremony.

Music Video Asheville puts local talent on the big screen

Posted on April 19, 2018April 13, 2018 by Bill Kopp

More than a decade into its celebratory chronicling of the local music scene, MVA is still evolving. One specific and ongoing goal is to make the competition as inclusive as possible.

Smart Bets: Constance Lombardo

Posted on April 19, 2018April 10, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

Asheville-based author and illustrator launches her third (and final) Mr. Puffball book at Malaprop’s on April 24.

WELCOME, ALIENS: Jonathon Keats has created music designed to communicate hospitality to life-forms who may not speak Earth-based languages.

Jonathon Keats shares his Universal Orchestra at UNCA and BMCM+AC

Posted on April 18, 2018April 18, 2018 by Alli Marshall

Keats will conduct the Universal Orchestra at UNCA on Thursday, April 19. He’ll take part in a listening session at Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center on Friday, April 20.

NEVER FAR BEHIND US: In 'Varina,' author Charles Frazier offers a retrospective tale of a past riddled with anguish and regret.

Charles Frazier’s fiction returns to the Civil War

Posted on April 18, 2018April 13, 2018 by Thomas Calder

On Saturday, April 21, Charles Frazier will read passages from his latest book, Varina, at UNC Asheville’s Lipinsky Auditorium. The author will be joined onstage in conversation with fellow-writer, Wiley Cash.

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Smart Bets: Talent! A Show

Posted on April 18, 2018April 10, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

The star-studded benefit for Our VOICE is set for April 23 at The Mothlight.

DESK JOB: Bob Boilen will be the keynote speaker at the AAAC’s annual Creative Sector Summit on April 20. The creator and host of NPR’s 'All Songs Considered' and 'Tiny Desk Concert' used to play at the Swannanoa Gathering at Warren Wilson College.

NPR’s Bob Boilen headlines the Creative Sector Summit

Posted on April 17, 2018April 17, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

The keynote address from the NPR host and panel discussions with local music industry representatives and advocates explore the arts’ economic impact on the Asheville area.

INTERDISCIPLINARY: “Art is a great place to start influencing change,” says Jessica Tomasin, who created Connect: Beyond The Page Festival + Conference with an eye on how creativity intersects with social justice. Drawing on artists and innovators across artistic genres, the festival includes contributions from the likes of,
clockwise from top left, playwright and professor Lydia Diamond, author Natalie Hopkinson, broadcast journalist and producer Lori Knight and electronic music duo Sylvan Esso.

New festival/conference examines the intersection of art and social justice

Posted on April 17, 2018April 12, 2018 by Alli Marshall

Panels discuss everything from the experience of women in media and entertainment fields to the process of turning a story into a song. Saturday night concludes with a superband made up of Ben Sollee, Big Chief Juan Pardo, Leeda “Lyric” Jones, Jaze Uries, Jacob Rodriguez and others.

Smart Bets: Toubab Krewe

Posted on April 17, 2018April 13, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

The Asheville instrumental quintet plays Ellington Underground, April 20 and 21.

TAKING NOTES: Faith Creech stars in 'The Diary of Anne Frank' at Asheville Community Theatre. The beloved story is of a teenage girl trying to live a normal life while hiding from the Nazis.

Theater review: ‘Diary of Anne Frank’ at Asheville Community Theatre

Posted on April 16, 2018April 16, 2018 by Tony Kiss

In the story, Anne tries to live as normal a life as anyone could in this situation, even as her world crumbles around her. She mostly keeps a bright attitude, believing that people are basically good at heart.

Video premiere: ‘Two Thousand Forty Seven’ by Brook van der Linde

Posted on April 16, 2018April 17, 2018 by Alli Marshall

Local poet Brook van der Linde was invited by by creative director Joel Vannfuller to join The Mermaids’ Song project, which deals with climate change and, specifically, with sea level rise.

Asheville Music School Magical Mystery Tour

Smart Bets: Asheville Music School’s Sound Effects

Posted on April 16, 2018April 10, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

The Asheville Music School benefit concert takes place April 19 at Isis Music Hall.

AIR SCOTLAND: Frances Cunningham and EJ Jones of the Piper Jones Band open for fellow Scottish music group Seven Nations on April 20 at Jack of the Wood. Funds raised from the show benefit the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games.

Conscious Party: Highland Games benefit concert

Posted on April 15, 2018April 12, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

Grandfather Mountain Highland Games rock headliner Seven Nations and the Piper Jones Band play Jack of the Wood on April 20.

Acoustic Asheville: Jelly Ellington

Posted on April 14, 2018April 12, 2018 by Jesse Hamm

The Austin, Tex.-based musician was was born and raised in Asheville and has played stages big and small all over the region.

Video premiere: “Alabaster” by Spaceman Jones and The Motherships

Posted on April 13, 2018April 10, 2018 by Alli Marshall

“We wanted a video that bubbles darkly and tells the story of someone who is striving for a different life. A better life,” says Cliff B. Worsham of Spaceman Jones and The Motherships.

CUSTOM MADE: “We have this thing called ‘the Cherokee Experience,’” says Bo Taylor, director of the Museum of the Cherokee Indian. “If you want to do fire making, we can do that. You want to make a basket, we can make it happen.” Artist Jarrett Wildcatt, pictured, weaves twine into bags in the museum lobby.

The Museum of the Cherokee Indian and The Oconaluftee Indian Village prepare new exhibits

Posted on April 12, 2018April 6, 2018 by Timothy Burkhardt

The Indian Village is right down the road from the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, and it is designed to show visitors what life in a traditional Cherokee village would have been like during the 18th century.

FASHION-FORWARD THINKING: Riley Phillips does paint-chip couture like no one else. Wanting to rock the runway while cutting her carbon footprint, the designer uses recycled materials such as bags and old VHS tapes in her high-fashion designs.

Fundraiser educates on the perils of pollution

Posted on April 11, 2018April 9, 2018 by Lauren Stepp

Funds raised benefit GreenWorks’ Youth Environmental Leadership Program, an outreach initiative that provides young adults ages 16-19 with environmental career exploration opportunities.

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Smart Bets: The Point In Between

Posted on April 11, 2018April 3, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

The Flood Gallery Fine Arts Center launches its Black Mountain location with an exhibition of Phil Kurz’s artwork and writing on April 14.

LAY OF THE LAND: Joy Harjo, the author of 10 books of poetry and a memoir, appears at UNCA’s Lipinsky Auditorium on April 12, as part of the university’s Visiting Writer Series and its American Indian and Indigenous Studies Series. She’ll also read at Wordfest on April 14. “We’re starting to notice some differences in how people write closer to the ocean versus more prairie landscapes and so on,” she says.

Asheville Wordfest explores the relationships between science, art and environment

Posted on April 10, 2018April 13, 2018 by Doug Gibson

Events take place Thursday-Sunday, April 12-15, at UNC Asheville, Malaprop’s and the Lenoir-Rhyne University’s Asheville campus.

BET Pottery show at Marshall High Studios

Smart Bets: The Potters of Madison County Market

Posted on April 10, 2018April 3, 2018 by Edwin Arnaudin

The group’s eighth annual market, featuring guest potters from around the Southeast and beyond, is set for April 14 at Marshall High Studios.

NOTEWORTHY: Abrianna Brown’s forthcoming album, 'Dysthymia,' slated for a September release, focuses on themes of depression and anxiety. “It’s forced me to think about these topics that I don’t want to think about,” she admits.

AMBY blends classical music sensibilities with a modern aesthetic

Posted on April 10, 2018April 10, 2018 by Alli Marshall

Abrianna Brown’s forthcoming album, Dysthymia, slated for a September release, focuses on themes of depression and anxiety. “It’s forced me to think about these topics that I don’t want to think about,” she admits.

Smart Bets: Minds & Rhymes