Chet Lott donates $125,000 from Erased It sales

"Following Katrina, Chet Lott was impressed with the way Red Cross volunteers worked to rebuild hope in Pascagoula and along the Gulf Coast. Monday, Lott, the son of Sen. Trent Lott, gave the Southeast Chapter of the American Red Cross $125,000. The money was raised from sales for his 'Erased It' compact disc....In the days that followed Hurricane Katrina on Aug. 29, 2005, Lott said he came to the Coast and saw the damage done to his father's house on Beach Boulevard. The experience, he said, resulted in his writing two songs, 'Erased It' and 'Where I am From.' Those two songs, he said, became the foundation of the 14-track 'Erased It' album. The album sold more than 8,000 copies, with all profits going to the Red Cross." (Read the full story here)

Music Business at USM and other updates

New USM program gets students in the music business: A new program [at the University of Southern Mississippi is] devoted to teaching students how to succeed in the world behind the scenes of the entertainment industry...a student of the Entertainment Industry Program [learns] mixing, mastering and tracking of music generated by local artists as well as management, promotion, marketing, distribution and tour support of those same musicians through the program's own record label, South City Records, a first for the university.

Under the direction of entertainment industry professor Darko Velichkovski, who's an independent producer, Juilliard graduate and former member of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, the music industry department was reborn five years ago with a mission of reviving a program, which at that time turned out only 12-15 students a year.

Since then, the program has incorporated a wide range of projects beyond the music industry including film, television and radio, as well as splitting the degree into two areas of emphasis - production and management.

Velichkovski said he wrote a curriculum based on what the college wanted to compete with similar academic programs at other universities so plans could be made to expand with more faculty and equipment as it evolved.

Now, the program has nearly 100 students. [Full Story Here]

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McComb native Bo Diddley released from hospital after suffering a heart attack

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New Harmonies - WLOX: There are so many forms of music with deep American roots. Jazz, the Blues, Gospel and Country were all developed and perfected in the United States. Mississippi is among a number of states that have made major contributions to the American music scene. The Smithsonian Institute got together with Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College to bring a unique exhibit to the Jefferson Davis campus. It's called New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music. The exhibit is in the school's Fine Arts building through September 28th. (Full Story with Video Here)

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USM hosts honors forum on Mississippi blues culture

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Book Review: "High Cotton: Four Seasons in the Mississippi Delta"

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Mississippi Gulf Coast Blues & Heritage Festival Cool blues comes to Pascagoula

16th annual Mississippi Gulf Coast Blues & Heritage Festival - Noon to 9 p.m. Saturday, Sept 8 - Pavilion at Jackson County Fairgrounds, Pascagoula

Performers include Bobby Rush, E.B. Buchana, Theodis Ealey, Ms. Jody, the Apollo Blues Band, the Crescent City Blues Band, Keith "Chickin Daddy" Hunter and the Hot Wings....Prior to Saturday's heritage festival, the blues commission is holding a student "Musical Instrument Contest" from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Jackson County Civic Action Center in Moss Point. (Full Story Here)

News Round-up

Clarksdale native Ike Turner, a member of the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame, was jailed in Los Angeles for a 1989 narcotics warrant (full story). 05/17/2007

Pascagoula native Jimmy Buffett has teamed with Harrah's Entertainment to open the Margaritaville Casino and Resort, part of a $700 million expansion at Harrah's Grand Biloxi property (full story). 05/16/2007

Brookhaven Daily Leader: "Thirteen-year-old Cortland Collins, of Hazlehurst, got his first drum set at age 3...And by this point [age 13], the boy has followed the beat of his own drums to the Apollo in Harlem, New York, as well as the Trumpet Awards, which honor musicians from over 185 countries..."They're not sure, but we've been told he's probably the youngest musician to ever hit the stage at the Apollo" (full story). 05/15/2007

Blues harmonica player Carey Bell, a native of Macon, died in Chicago at the age of 70. Bell was a veteran of both Muddy Waters' and Willie Dixon's bands (full story). The AP and and the UK Times Online both have write ups about his life and work. 05/07/2007

The Mississippi Development Authority added a Jimmie Rodgers marker to the Mississippi Blues Trail at the Singing Brakemen Park in Meridian. Rodgers, considered the father of country music by blending blues with folk, is a member of the Blues Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame (full story). 05/03/2007

"A 28-year-old former Tupelo newspaper reporter wants the city of Starkville to posthumously pardon musician Johnny Cash for a public drunkenness arrest in 1965" (full story). The arrest led to Cash's famous tune "Starkville City Jail." 05/01/2007