Hey e’erybody!!! I’m finally back from vacation and back from the near dead (ok, that may be a bit of a dramatic stretch, but YOU try experiencing a pulled calf muscle, poison ivy on you AND your dog, and a stomach bug all at once and get back to me, mmm’k?) Good thing the vacay happened first! It was WAY overdue!! More on that later. Let’s talk about something really cool that happened here in Memphis recently. I’m referring to the opening of River City Records down at 101 S Main St. To quote directly from their site: “River City Records is The ULTIMATE Memphis Record Store. Blues, Soul, Rock & Roll, Gospel, and Hip Hop/Rap are all steeped deep in Memphis. We’ve created a space that highlights everything that Memphis and the MidSouth have brought to the music world.”
Now, I don’t know about y’all, but man alive, am I excited about this! First of all, VINYL LOVERS REJOICE! Secondly, they are all about our local artists from around the MidSouth, as well as artists who have roots in Memphis. Thirdly, (Is that even a word? It is in MY world, so I’m allowing it) even before they OPENED, they were sending out word on the street to local artists to get their music in their store during the pandemic to help them with sales, giving them 100% of the profit for a limited time. WHO EVEN DOES THAT? Well, River City Records does, that’s who! Here is what they put out back on August 10th: “With all the excitement of opening River City Records, it saddens us that our local musicians are once again being forced to cancel gigs/tours with the new COVID resurgence. For the final 4 months of 2021, any local artists that want to bring in their CDs or LPs can set their price and receive 100% of the sale proceeds. I’ll promote em, stock em, and hype em up to customers. Our Memphis musicians are struggling and any small thing we can do to give back to those that have given us so much over the years is the LEAST we can do.” Y’all! Can we just stop for a moment, appreciate this selfless act of kindness, and let that sink in………….
Yeah, pretty amazing, huh? You already know how I promote random acts of kindness on my radio and tv shows; and this, my friends, is a GLOWING example of just that! So, if you are a local artist in the Memphis area, TAKE THEM UP ON THIS OFFER, Y’ALL! 100% PROFITS TO THE ARTISTS through the end of 2021. Extra Christmas $$..cha ching!
The store recently celebrated it’s grand opening on September 11th. (I wasn’t able to be there ’cause Aunt Connie was Queen of the Day with her Surprise 50th Birthday party of which I was co-chair) but I followed as much of the festivities online as I could. To say they had an amazing day would be putting it lightly. I reached out to Memphis’ own Music Medicine Man (ok, I made that up, but I DID warn him I might say that) Owner, Chris Braswell, for his thoughts on the grand opening. Here’s what he had to say: “With any new business, you never know until you open your doors what the response is going to be. We obviously had high hopes of a good turnout, and the day exceeded even my highest hopes! We had people waiting at the door at 11 am, and we stayed open 2 hours late to accommodate everyone. The love I have for this city and its music family is huge. Memphis is a city steeped in community. We stick together and support each other. It’s a beautiful thing. #MemphisMusic #SupportLocalArtists.” I believe he said what every music lover and supporter in Memphis feels. I’ve been impressed with Chris, his vision for this store, and his support of local artists since he came on my radar earlier this summer.
Since I know many of you have Memphis on your travel destination bucket list, I’m just gonna go ahead and tell you to put this place on your list of “GO TO” places to visit while in town to pick up some amazing music brought to you by some of the most talented and diverse music artists you’ll ever come across. I know a lot of folks automatically think “Elvis” when they put the words “Memphis” and “Music” together, but y’all; for a city that is known locally for it’s “grit and grind” mentality, there are SOOO many more artists you all need to check out.
There are artists currently recording and putting out music right here in Memphis that need to be on your play list. Here are a few that River City Records has already mentioned in regards to their store: Max Kaplan & The Magics, Memphissippi Sounds, DK Harrell, Southern Avenue, Loose Opinions,
I’m telling you about these because most of them haven’t received the international spotlight they sooo deserve. ENTER KIMBER, ENTER RIVER CITY RECORDS! (I totally sang that in the tune of “ENTER SANDMAN” but I digress…) What’s even cooler, River City Records will be spotlighting an album release of current artists with Memphis roots. They will be playing their music in the shop, putting their release in their front display and hyping the release on Social Media and website, AND will be having them in at the end of the month for an in-store listening party/live show and album signing. Their first one will be Thursday, September 30th, featuring Southern Avenue! YAESSS! In my best Madea whisper impression ever….Get yo asses to that performance!
I can’t wait to get down to the store (I had the intention of going over the weekend and the fear of being mistaken for the Hunchback of Notre Dame won out, so I decided to wait until I could walk upright and be completely de-rashed.) I will most definitely give y’all an update once I get down there, and will share tons of pictures to boot! In the meantime, go to their FB and Insta pages, check out the website, and when downtown, GO TO THE STORE! Hey, PLEASE tell them Memphis Kimber sent ya, cause well, I did. 🙂
Kimber is currently in the process of beginning a new workout regime (hence the pulled calf muscle), so tread lightly and drop her some hot flaming Cheetos and a diet coke. If ya sneak her a box of milk duds, she will probably do her patented happy dance for ya, just saying.
Walking In Memphis With Kimber 