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image borrowed from KATV A beautiful weekend unfolded in north central Arkansas for the Fourth of July holiday.  The promise of mostly clear skies, hot and steamy weather, and yet another edition of the World Championship Cardboard Boat Races ensured a good time for all involved. While many delayed their journey until that Friday afternoon, we got a jump on things and made it down Thursday evening.  This offered up the opportunity to squeeze in a little hiking about, visiting with family and friends, and general relaxation, prior to the main event. It also enabled us to catch a late evening performance at Sandy Beach by a couple of stars from "The Voice."  Cory Jackson and Marybeth Byrd took the stage, aka flatbed semi-trailer, in the parking lot overlooking the beach and a fantastic sunset at 7 pm. Cory led off with a string of well known tunes mixed in with a few of his own.  He has got a voice that pairs well with the tunes he chose to croon, never missing a beat.  The sma

Hearing that they legendary Willie Nelson would be in town again, the decision was made to make the pilgrimage out to have a listen one more time, in spite of the growing concern surrounding COVID.  Tickets and precautionary measures in place, the night proved a fantastic evening of flashbacks and introductions. Arriving in time to catch the opening act, disappointment at conditions surrounding entry delayed the situation. The coordination by staff at the venue was clumsy at best, and undoubtedly not COVID aware or sensitive.  A full house of people, which appeared to have arrived all at the same time, were mostly unmasked, crowding through two entry points. Seats were located and secured just in time to catch the last tune from George Thorogood and the Destroyers, followed immediately by a quick set change.  Although it had been quite a few years since catching the act, he played as his electric-slide-blues style as good as ever.   Willie Nelson & Family took the stage next.  He w

Stumbling upon a mural-in-progress at one of the most unlikely places in Kansas City, we paused for a moment to talk with the artist about the project.  The painting was going up on the side of some relatively new residential townhouses and featured an interpretation of the Kansas City Chiefs.  The artist was engaged in getting the mural outlined, while his girlfriend supported his efforts lounging in the afternoon sun.   It was really exciting to see this type of work going up in the 'burbs, rather than the usual dilapidated downtown structure.  Reaching out to the artist later, we asked if he would be interested in doing a brief email interview about the project and himself.  Evan Brown, tell us about yourself and background ... I am a Kansas City based painter and illustrator with an absolute and utter obsession with what I do.   After graduating from the University of Kansas with a degree in Illustration, I formed Doodle Dood LLC, a business that centers around my desire to use

One of our closest friends and allies passed this week. Known to most as DJ Two Heavy, he was one of the kindest and most generous people we were fortunate enough to call a friend. He supported the works of this site from the beginning, contributing and collaborating occasionally, and someone we always looked forward to seeing. His warm and inviting personality made for good company on a night out, and his music always kept us groovin' into the early hours. DJ Two Heavy contributed to the electronic dance music and club scene in Kansas City with his own brand of House that he referred to Hip House. Spinning up a fusion of Hip Hop, Electro, and House music, he held regular resident gigs at some of the best clubs on the circuit throughout much of the coverage by this site, and beyond.  He always enjoyed seeing people dancing to his music and enjoying themselves and was quick to make friends with anyone he met.  Rest in Peace Friend.  Thanks for some good music and good times. You

... a monthly column of five topics from the worlds of  music, dance, life, art, & culture ...  music According to electronic beats, "in the last few years, DJs and producers have been sublimating their societal anxieties into blood-curdling vocals, grating distortion, and pummeling blast beats." dance Westworld introduces a collection of short films by Wonderbound, set to take the place of its annual fundraising gala, to include a projection mapping performance piece set to the Gasoline Lollipops song "Fast Train." life EarthSky shows us that "for the first time, astronomers have detected a planet orbiting a white dwarf star. If further confirmed, the discovery shows that some planets could survive the destruction of their sun-like stars, and some might even remain potentially habitable" art Gizmodo reviews the latest solo exhibition of Scott Li