Category: Entertainment

Pearl-Cohn, Miquan Tucker Shoot Their Way to Region Victory

Scott Wallace

Junior small forward Tucker hits 10 three pointers to lead Pearl-Cohn to home game on Monday The Pearl-Cohn Firebirds used a hot shooting night from Miquan Tucker (pictured, right) to outlast the East Nashville Magnet Eagles 71-60 in the Region 5AA championship game from Pearl-Cohn. Tucker went 10 of 17 from behind the three-point line to lead of scorers with 31 points. “I was shooting the ball with confidence and looking for my teammates,” said Tucker. “After winning this game, my focus is on the next game. We have to stay locked in, in practice and execute.” Tucker scored 19 first half points to help stretch a second quarter 17-point lead with 4:21 left in the half. The Eagles closed the half on a 16-6 run to cut the lead to 30-26 on a Caleb Grimes three point shot at the buzzer. After Pearl-Cohn junior post Tyrone Marshall (pictured, left) scored a basket to start the second half, the Eagles went on a mini 6-0 run to tie the score at 32. Marshall then took over on both ends finishing the quarter with three dunks and three blocks. The dunks all came off of pick and dive plays that forced…

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East Nashville and Pearl-Cohn To Play for Region Championship

Scott Wallace

Two storied high schools will battle for the right to host a sub-state game. Before the season started, not too many people would have predicted this match-up. The East Nashville Eagles were coming off an undefeated regular season in 2018 but fell short by one game of reaching the regional finals. That team graduated six of their top eight players. The Pearl-Cohn Firebirds ended the 2018 season in last place in District 10AA. New coach Terry Cole had a couple of nice pieces coming back but the resurgence was thought to be in the future. Both teams lost to Martin Luther King Academy I the district tournament but now they have clinched a berth to play at least two more games. “All I have to say is that we made it to Friday,” said Eagles head coach Jim Fey. Last year we had a good team. We didn’t make it this far. I knew this team had a chance because they play hard. I like our chances.” Eagles Hold Off MLK The Eagles and the Martin Luther King Academy Royals gave everyone in attendance at Pearl-Cohn their money’s worth in the first game with East holding on in a 54-51…

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Celtic Woman Brings Irish Music to Nashville and the World

Bethany Bowman

Celtic Woman consists of four of the most beautiful and talented musical performers in the world. I recently sat down with all four, Máiréad Carlin, Éabha McMahon, Tara McNeill, and Megan Walsh, as they took a break from rehearsal here in Nashville. We discussed the rich history of Irish Music and their incredible heritage, as well as their latest album Celtic Woman: Ancient Land. The album’s release date was 26 October 2018. This is the group’s thirteenth studio album and eleventh DVD. On Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019, they kick off their 70-city, United States portion of a world tour in Nashville at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center’s Andrew Jackson Hall. Celtic Woman has been together since 2005 with a different lineup over the years. They may be a household name in Ireland, but that shortchanges their appeal around the world. The global superstars are highly recognized and are probably the best known Irish musical group since U2. This version is probably the most talented. Their passion for music and their fans is contagious. Like most of their albums, Ancient Land brings a mixture of traditional Irish songs with contemporary arrangements. This particular album was dedicated to Dave Kavanagh, one of…

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District 10AA Boys Sweeps Region 5 Games

Scott Wallace

For the second consecutive year, the District 10AA boys’ teams swept the four Region 5AA quarterfinals. By virtue of the top seeded Martin Luther King Academy Royals, the second seeded Pearl-Cohn High School Firebirds and lower seeds the East Nashville Magnet Eagle and the Maplewood High School Panthers all winning against their District 9AA opponents, the Region 5AA semi-finals have been moved from Greenbrier High School to Pearl-Cohn High School on Wednesday. At 6pm, the district regular season champion East Nashville will take on district tournament champion MLK in a rematch on the district semi-final which MLK came from a double-digit deficit to win 56-51. The Eagles are coming off an impressive 91-71 road victory over White House High School. After being 25-21 at the end of the first quarter, White House went on a 6=0 run to go up 31-21 at the 7:05 mark of the second quarter. East then went on a 26-4 run in the second and part of the third quarters to take a commanding lead and never looked back. East Nashville vs. White House East Nashville (91) Taras Carter 7-13 5-9 22, Caleb Grimes 5-9 0-1 11, Tre Shaw 2-4 0-0 4, Isaiah Jones 4-4…

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‘Unplanned’ Abortion Movie Has Zero Nudity or Sex, Gets ‘R’ Rating for Violent and ‘Disturbing’ Images Of Aborted Babies

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by Grace Carr   The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) officially gave the upcoming abortion film Unplanned an “R” rating Friday for “some disturbing/bloody images” of aborted babies. Movies are rated R for profanity, nudity, sex or violence. Unplanned contains no profanity, nudity or sex. “Ironically, the MPAA seems to be indirectly endorsing the pro-life position: namely that abortion is an act of violence,” writers and directors Cary Solomon and Chuck Konzelman told Movieguide. The film tells the true story of former Planned Parenthood clinic director Abby Johnson who worked at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Bryan, Texas, until 2009 when she left the organization after assisting in an ultrasound-guided abortion of a 13-week-old unborn baby. Johnson was Planned Parenthood’s youngest director of a clinic in the nation. She helped over 22,000 women have abortions during her time at the clinic. Planned Parenthood named Johnson as the employee of the year in 2008. She worked at the abortion provider for eight years before leaving the group. Johnson also had a medication abortion before she became pro-life. The R rating will mean that “many teenage women in this country who can legally obtain an actual abortion without parental permission will be prohibited from going to see our film…

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District 10AA Girls’ Teams Take Different Roads to Region Semi-Finals

Scott Wallace

East Nashville makes fourth consecutive trip while Maplewood has first team in regionals The Tennessee Region 5AA girls’ semi-finals is just like a wedding. The East Nashville Lady Eagles and Cheatham County Lady Cubs, they would be considered something old. Both teams advanced to Murfreesboro for the state finals last year. For the Lady Eagles, this is their fourth consecutive trip and all four years they advanced to play in Murfreesboro. “Last week was an up and down week for us so I was glad to see our kids get together and decide to play with an overall effort,” said East Nashville head coach Missy Donaldson. We are a player led team more than a coach led team. As a coach that is good to see. The kids in the past did all that they could. This team right here we stress for them to relish every moment. They truly play with 100% effort. I am honored that I get to coach them.” The Lady Cubs defeated East Nashville last year to win the region. Both teams then won sub-state games but lost in the quarterfinals of the state finals. Head coach Jim Gibbs has a veteran team at his…

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Book Review: ‘Unmasking the Administrative State’ is the The Indispensable Guide to the Matrix

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by Glenn Ellmers   You’ve felt it your entire life, that there’s something wrong with the world. You don’t know what it is, but it’s there, like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me. Do you know what I’m talking about? ~ Morpheus, “The Matrix” Pop culture references go stale pretty quickly, so it’s usually best to avoid them. But when a movie made 20 years ago reveals a genuinely interesting and important truth, it’s worth bending the rule. In 2016, Donald Trump was elected president of the United States by millions of people who knew – or sensed – that something in American political life was deeply wrong or broken; and that Donald Trump sensed this as well and wanted to do something about it. Most of these voters couldn’t fully articulate what was wrong (neither in many cases could Trump!), but they had begun to doubt the essential truth of what they were being told. The official narrative about our government, our public life, and our culture – the story told by Washington, Hollywood, Wall Street, and Harvard – was not quite a lie, perhaps, but many had become…

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Maplewood Lady Panthers Eye Long State Playoff Run

Scott Wallace

NASHVILLE- As you walk in Maplewood High School’s gym, you can’t miss the wall behind the south end that has two panther eyes. This Friday, those eyes and the eyes of District 10 AA will be on a crucial girls’ basketball match-up between the East Nashville Lady Eagles (23-2 overall, 10-1 District 10AA) and the Maplewood Lady Panthers (15-3, 11-0). A victory by Maplewood will clinch the district for the first time and give them a season sweep of the powerful East Nashville squad in both teams’ last regular season game. “This game is very important,” said Lady Panther head coach Tristin Williams. “A win will put us in a good position for the tournament and we expect to see them again in the (district) championship. We have been focused on the task at hand all year. Our goal is to get to Murfreesboro this year. We are trying to get where they are. Coach (Missy) Donaldson does a great job. I have respect for the players and coaches over there. They work extremely hard.” Another daunting image when you walk in the gym are the banners hanging with championships on the wall. In recent years, the boys’ program coached…

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East Nashville Eagles Slide Past Stratford Spartans to Nab Top Spot as District Tournament Nears

Scott Wallace

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – The East Nashville Magnet Eagles (21-3 overall, 10-0 District 10-0) clinched the top spot in the district as they outlasted the Stratford Spartans (8-12, 3-6) 65-60 Tuesday at Stratford. The Spartans, playing without four of their top players stayed close throughout. East took a four-point lead into the half, but the Spartans started the third quarter on an 8-1 run to take a 41-38 lead with 5:20 left in the stanza. East then went on a 6-0 run to retake the lead. Stratford matched that run scoring six straight as well. The Eagles then went on a mini 4-0 run to close the quarter with the game tied at 48. “They wouldn’t let us get away from them,” said East head coach Jim Fey. “We made mistakes and missed free throws. Their effort was better than ours.” East took a five-point lead at 55-50 midway through the fourth quarter. A conventional three-point play by Startford senior guard Quanie Clendening (20 points) cut the lead to 55-53. The Eagles struggled from the free throw line but kept the Spartans at bay. With 50 seconds left, Eagle senior guard Caleb Grimes (19 points) blocked a three-point attempt by Greg…

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Fisk Splits with Hiwassee

Scott Wallace

NASHVILLE– The Fisk University Bulldogs split with the Hiwassee College Tigers in front of a sold-out crowd in North Nashville on Wednesday. Lady Bulldogs Run Out of Gas in Home Loss Senior guard LaShae Brown scored 27 points and frontcourt mates Andria Thomas (12 points and 18 rebounds) and Kennedi Stephens (10 points 12 rebounds) recorded double-doubles but it wasn’t enough as the Fisk Lady Bulldogs (3-15) lost their 12th straight game 86-71 to the Hiwassee Lady Tigers (17-3) in non-conference play. The first half was close as the Lady Bulldogs went into the locker room down by two points and were primed to deliver an upset. “At the end of the day, we have to learn how to keep our energy throughout games,” said Fisk coach Lauren Falohun. “We didn’t finish around the rim. We dominated them on the boards, but we didn’t take care of the ball. That really hurt us.” The Lady Tigers had four players in double figures led by Leisa Butler’s 22 points. After only being up by five to start the fourth quarter, they scored the first six points in the final stanza and never looked back. Hailey Browning added 17 points, J’Lynn Majors…

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East Boys, Maplewood Girls Top Weekly Tennessee Star Teams

Scott Wallace

  The East Nashville Magnet Eagle Boys (17-3 overall, 7-0 D10AA) and the Maplewood Lady Panthers (13-3, 7-0 D10AA) top this week’s Tennessee Star Metro Basketball poll. The Eagles, riding a 14 game winning streak, are facing their toughest challenge so far this week facing ninth-ranked Pearl-Cohn (11-7, 5-2 D10AA) at home on Tuesday and seventh-ranked Martin Luther King Academy (10-7, 3-3 D10AA) on the road on Friday. “Every game is tough for us especially in our district,” said East head coach Jim Fey. “You can’t take anyone for granted. Every team wants to beat us and seem to play their best against us. Just another tough couple of games if you ask me.” The Lady Panthers are riding high after going into East Nashville and defeating the Lady Eagles 60-58 for the second year in a row. This week the Lady Panthers will take on 17th ranked Stratford (2-11, 1-5 D10AA). Games This Week: Tuesday, January 22 (All girls’ games start at 6 pm. Boys at 7:30) Hume-Fogg @ Whites Creek Martin Luther King Jr. @ Stratford Pearl-Cohn @ East Nashville Hunters Lane @ Cane Ridge Glencliff @ Hllsboro McGavock @ Hillwood Antioch @ Overton Stem Academy @ RePublic…

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Metro Nashville Basketball: Eagles, Panthers Split Doubleheader

McKinley Young, Jr.

Girls Lady Panthers Upset Lady Eagles in a Classic (January 15, 2019) The battle of the top two teams in Metro Nashville girls’ basketball did not disappoint anyone, as it came down to the closing seconds. The number two ranked Maplewood Lady Panthers gained a huge road win against the number one ranked East Nashville Magnet Lady Eagles 60-58. The game had many ups and downs as both teams fought until the very last second. The pace of the game was up and down with each possession the defense got tighter as both teams made runs throughout the game. The Lady Panthers was led by senior forward Ye Taviea Carter who had a game-high 19 points and 11 rebounds. She was a major factor the last three minutes of the game making big shots and grabbing rebounds in clutch moments. Sophomore guard Tameia Shaw for East Nashville tried to keep her team in it throughout the game with the Eagles leading scorer London Fairs having an off night. With 22 seconds left in the game and up one point, Carter missed a free throw and teammate Zariah Cameron grabbed the rebound and scored to give Maplewood a three-point lead 59-56.…

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Father Ryan’s Adriana Batey Signs Letter of Intent to Milligan College

Scott Wallace

SOUTH NASHVILLE– If you see Adriana Batey in the mall or about town, she looks like a normal teenager. Around the Father Ryan campus, she is soft-spoken and studious. When you put a shot put in her hand, she is aggressive and as her coach describes, a self-motivated technician that is intentional on fixing her smallest errors and is critical on herself but gets results. Batey accounts her aggressiveness from playing soccer at a younger age. Today that hard work paid off as she signed a letter of intent to compete in track at Milligan College, a NAIA near Johnson City, Tennessee. “We are so proud of where she is right now,” said mom Veronica Batey. “She struggled with academics when she first came to Father Ryan and now she has excelled as an A-B student. Her coach, Coach (Scott) Shaver is like family to me. We saw her start as a multi-eventer and then she decided to just throw. I am happy she picked Milligan because they cultivate the athletes well. I am so proud of her, I can’t even imagine.” Adriana has been competing in track for seven years. Her personal best is close to 34 feet in…

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Metro Nashville Basketball Round-Up

McKinley Young, Jr.

by McKinley Young Jr.   Girls Thursday 1-10-19 Bailey Leads Antioch past Republic Aniyah Bailey scored 22 points to lead the Antioch Lady Bears over the Republic Lady Blazers 60-40. Destiny Johnson had 13 points and JiKiya Morris added 10 points for the Lady Bears. Other games: Cheatham County 60- Maplewood 35 Franklin 51 – Cane Ridge 39 Friday 1-11-19 Shaw Triple-Double Helps Lead East Pass Whites Creek WHITES CREEK, Tenn.-East Nashville Lady Eagle sophomore guard Tameia Shaw recorded her second triple-double of the season with 12 points, 14 assists, and 10 steals, as the number one ranked Lady Eagles (17-1, get a district road win 73-22. Junior London Fairs lead all scorers with 29 points hitting seven three-pointers. Quentarra Mitchell notched a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. NaKiya Armstrong led Whites Creek with six points. East Nashville (73): London Fairs 29, Quentarra Mitchell 14, Tameia Shaw 12, A’Niya Young 8, Kristina Smikes 4, Jaelynn Knox 3, Mariuana Hughes 2, Zayla Jones 1 Whites Creek (22): NiKiya Armstrong 6, T. Cockrill 4, D. Boatright 4, M. Shannon 4, A. Waller 2, M. Shelton 2 McGavock Outlast Overton in a Thriller Jada Johnson scored 14 points to lead McGavock…

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East Nashville Girls Hoops Team Wins Triple Overtime Thriller

McKinley Young, Jr.

Editors Note: Tennessee Star Sports Editor Scott Wallace announced today that former Fisk University basketball and baseball player McKinley (Mac) Young Jr. will be one of the writers for the Star’s sports department. Young has a plethora of contacts and knowledge of local sports. He is currently an assistant football and baseball coach for Hillsboro High School and does sports information work for basketball at East Nashville Magnet. He is also a correspondent for Wallace Media Group. “Mac has been with me for a number of years now and has been a reliable source of sports in Nashville,” said Wallace. “He brings excitement to whatever he does. His knowledge of sports makes him a force to be reckoned with.” Young will mostly handle Nashville Metro Sports. He will also contribute from time to time with writing about other schools in the Middle Tennessee area. He will also provide a his weekly Top 19 Metro Girls’ and Boys’ teams. Metro Girls Metro’s top team gets a big game from four-year starter to prevent upset. This past Tuesday, the East Nashville Lady Eagles (16-1, 4-0 10AA) pulled out a classic three overtime road victory over the Sycamore Lady War Eagles 67-64. The…

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The Tennessee Star Names Nashville Sports Journalist Scott Wallace as Sports Editor

Jason M. Reynolds

Veteran Nashville sports reporter Scott Wallace has been named Sports Editor of The Tennessee Star. Tennessee Star CEO and Editor-in-chief Michael Patrick Leahy praised Wallace for his credentials in sports journalism and his commitment to covering local high school and college athletes. “We are thrilled to announce that Scott Wallace has accepted our offer to serve as Sports Editor of The Tennessee Star. Since our launch almost two years ago in February 2016, we’ve been looking for the right person to fill this important position for us. Scott is the right man at the right time,” Leahy said. “Our team at The Tennessee Star has followed Scott’s career in local sports journalism for some time. We look forward to the in-depth coverage and inside details of the sports scene here in Tennessee Scott will be providing our readers,” he added. Wallace tweeted the news Tuesday, saying, “New year new opportunity Blessed & honored 2 b named sports editor for @TheTNStar Another way 2 get local athletes recognized nationally Here is a link to my 1st story https://tennesseestar.com/2018/12/22/atlanta-suburb-honors-hometown-hero-injured-tennessee-state-football-player-christion-abercrombie/ … Thanks @GillReport and @michaelpleahy for the opportunity #ItsOn.” New year new opportunity Blessed & honored 2 b named sports editor for @TheTNStar Another…

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Keith Urban Entertains 200,000 Fans on New Year’s Eve in Nashville

Bethany Bowman

Joining the lineup with 2018 CMA Entertainer of the Year winner Urban were Grammy-winning rocker Peter Frampton; Country artist Brett Young, the Academy of Country Music’s New Male Vocalist of the Year; genre-bending rock/pop band Judah & the Lion; critically-acclaimed pop rock singer/songwriter Caitlyn Smith; contemporary soul and rock artist Devon Gilfillian; and the Fisk Jubilee Singers.

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FAKE NEWS: Contrary to the New Film ‘Vice,’ Dick Cheney Was Not Evil

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by Brandon J. Weichert   Dick Cheney doesn’t have a heart. That, at least, is the intended conclusion one is supposed to draw from the recent Dick Cheney biopic, “Vice,” starring Christian Bale. In “Vice,” audiences are subjected to a torrent of subliminal messages suggesting Dick Cheney is an abnormal human being; a political Svengali, worshiping at the blood-stained altar of power. Everything Cheney did, so the story goes, was predicated upon the assumption of absolute power for power’s sake. Whatever may be the legitimate criticisms about Dick Cheney, no one should believe such an inane leftist caricature any more than one should believe the grotesque false narrative that the elites today have about Trump. In both cases, these two very different men are far more complex than the tidy elite narratives would have it. “Vice” ultimately is a work a fiction. Yes, it includes real names and comprises actual bits of the real life experiences of the people portrayed in the film, but as a substantive contribution to understanding one of the most misunderstood political figures in American history, the film falls flat. “Vice” is the latest a string of recent dramas produced by the notorious comedy director and…

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The Hero of ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’ Isn’t George Bailey

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by Eric Teachout   I think I’m not the only person that cries every time I watch “It’s a Wonderful Life.” The movie pulls our heart strings because we can all relate to George Bailey: man has dreams to see the world and do big things, but is instead given a meager life of service. Many reduce the film’s central message to a dichotomy of  selfishness vs. selflessness, for good or ill. However, it’s not the greedy capitalists or the needs of others that George is struggling against, but something much deeper. Ultimately, George is wrestling with his own destiny, and often in the midst of life’s frustrations, so are we. I try to watch “It’s a Wonderful Life” every Christmas, and after watching it this year with a friend, we noticed something new. It wasn’t the dramatic change in the protagonist, but the steadiness of his wife: the ever faithful Mary Hatch Bailey. Now we’ve all been taught—by middle school English teachers and film critics alike—that morally perfect characters are flat and boring. If this is true, then Mary Bailey should hold no sway over our hearts. Throughout the plot, Mary is seemingly flawless; about the only crime she…

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Commentary: Kurt Schlichter and America’s New ‘Militant Normals’

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by Julie Kelly   Kurt Schlichter is funny. Really funny. Unlike so many commentators on the Right—especially those staid NeverTrump harpies—Schlichter has a wry, cutting sense of humor that animates his radio and television interviews, his Townhall columns, and his latest book, Militant Normals. The book expands on what Schlichter—a retired Army colonel and California-based trial attorney—has been saying about the Trump era for more than three years: The election of Donald Trump was as much about an uprising by the “normals” against the ruling elite as it was about the man himself. In Trump, millions of Americans found a leader who, for the first time in years, actually spoke to their deep concerns about the current condition of the country they fiercely love. “The Normals chose Trump. And it was not okay with the Smart Set.” While Republicans and Democrats spent the past decade jockeying for props on global issues like climate change and peddling the myth of unbounded “free trade” between nations, working-class voters became increasingly nervous about the rise of illegal immigration; the unseen and ignored toll of international trade agreements; a deadly tide of illicit drugs; a fixation on unwinnable foreign conflicts; and the breakdown of trusted institutions from trade unions…

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Atlanta Suburb Honors Hometown Hero, Injured Tennessee State Football Player Christion Abercrombie

Scott Wallace

SOUTH FULTON, Georgia – Cheerleaders, students and football players recently filled Westlake High School’s gymnasium for a pep rally, but there was no football game. School leaders welcomed back injured Tennessee State University football player Christion Abercrombie, a Westlake graduate. It’s the first time Abercrombie has made a public appearance since being injured during the TSU game against cross-town rival Vanderbilt University. He suffered a life-threatening head injury during his team’s 31-27 loss. He collapsed on the sideline. The team knew it was serious, but had no idea he would have emergency surgery on his skull that night and many more ahead. “He understands some days and some days he doesn’t. (It) depends on his mood,” said mom Staci Abercrombie. After several surgeries and lots of prayer, Abercrombie is moving quickly on the road to recovery. “Christion is an inspiration to all of us,” said South Fulton Mayor Bill Edwards. “He has persevered through his head injury. In football sometimes, the other team will recover a fumble. Christion has recovered his own fumble and is still on the road to recovery. Today, December 19, 2018 from now on will be known as Christion Abercrombie Day in the City of South…

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Book Review: The Mental State of the Ruling Class

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by Christopher Roach   In some ways, Todd Henderson is living the dream. He has worked as an engineer, a management consultant, a practicing lawyer, and ended up as a professor at his alma mater, the University of Chicago Law School, focusing on business regulation and securities law. Now he can add mystery novelist to his curriculum vitae with his debut thriller, Mental State. The story, as well as the publication’s reception, sheds light on the sometimes toxic culture of our elite and their institutions. For all the talk of “engagement with ideas” and “encouraging critical thinking,” elite universities are more rigid and conformist today than perhaps any previous time in our history—yes, including the dreaded 1950s. Henderson’s thoughts echo those of another University of Chicago professor who some 30 years ago noted we were experiencing the Closing of the American Mind. By Chicago’s standards, Henderson is a man of the Right. In reality, he is more in keeping with the law school’s traditions of law and economics and libertarianism, made famous by two prolific and influential emeritus professors, Richard Posner and Richard Epstein. Unfortunately, Chicago is now becoming less distinguishable from peer institutions, not least in its demand for…

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Alison Krauss and Other Guests to Join Keith and Kristyn Getty for ‘Sing! An Irish Christmas’ at Schermerhorn Symphony Center on December 21

Bethany Bowman

Modern hymn-writers Keith and Kristyn Getty will bring their seventh annual Sing! An Irish Christmas tour to Schermerhorn Symphony Center on Friday, December 21, at 7:30 p.m. The duo will revisit popular hymns and Christmas carols during a performance that will include appearances by Alison Krauss, Phil Keaggy and Scott Mulvahill.

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Music Spotlight: Stephanie Owens Talks Family, Faith, and Country Music

Bethany Bowman

Nashville, TN — Stephanie Owens grew up in a musical family. Her dad was a high school choral director and her mom was a classical organist. She knew from a young age that performing was what she born to do. “I had an old turkey-baster for a microphone and ran around the couch for my stage,” she said. When Stephanie was 19 years old  and attending Liberty University in Lynchburg, she gained experience in front of the camera and in the studio. She made her film debut when she was chosen to play the starring role of Faith Garrett in Finding Faith the movie, co-starring Erik Estrada. The movie was released nationally in 2014 on Netflix and at Wal-Mart and other retailers. The movie soundtrack includes Stephanie singing a featured song and a lullaby which she composed for the film. (Read more here.) Even though she is a talented actress, she always knew she wanted to pursue the singing route more because “you can be more you as opposed to being a character.” Because there is definitely a spiritual element to her songs, I wondered why she chose to pursue country music as opposed to Christian music. Stephanie stated that she…

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Brett Young to Receive ASCAP’s Songwriter-Artist of the Year Award

Bethany Bowman

Fueling momentum from his Platinum debut album and four consecutive No. 1 singles, Brett Young has now been named the 2018 ASCAP Country Songwriter-Artist of the Year. Young will be celebrated at the 56th Annual ASCAP Country Music Awards on Monday, November 12 in Nashville. The Songwriter-Artist of the Year Award is earned by the songwriter who has written and recorded at least two songs that, collectively, have amassed the greatest airplay during a predetermined time period. The Big Machine Music writer’s chart-topping singles, “In Case You Didn’t Know” (3X platinum) and “Like I Loved You” (platinum), will be among the most-performed songs honored at the awards event. Young commented on the impressive accolade: “I have been with ASCAP from the very beginning, and they have always made me feel like a part of the family, especially ASCAP’s Michael Martin and Robert Filhart. I also want to give a huge thank you to everyone in the songwriting community and in country music who welcomed me right away. I moved to Nashville to be a songwriter and it was a happy accident that I also became an artist. I’ve gotten better because I am lucky enough to get into rooms with incredible…

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Make Halloween Spooky Again with a Visit to These Real-Life Haunts

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As we come to the end of summer and begin the season of winter, one hundred and seventy-nine million Americans will celebrate the season with urban legends, scary bonfire stories, and armies of children carrying candy up and down the streets of in what was once referred to as Samhain, All Hallows Eve and All Saints Day in the early Middle Ages and marks itself as a “cross-quarter” day acknowledging the end of the harvesting season and the beginning of winter. Early civilizations were big observers of the sky.  A cross-quarter day is a day more or less a midway marker between an equinox (when the sun sets due west) and a solstice (when the sun sets at its most northern or southern point on the horizon). October thirty-first is an approximately middle point between the autumn equinox and winter solstice, for those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere. The United States is home to many haunted farms, abandoned insane asylums, historic mansions now turned museums, and old spirit infested bridges.  We’ve found a few that may very well be hidden in your own backyard. Whether you believe in ghosts, goblins, demonic possessions and or spirits, one thing is for…

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‘The Man in the High Castle’ and the History That Never Was… Yet

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by Luis Pablo De La Horra   The United States, 1962. It’s been 15 years since the Nazis dropped an atomic bomb on Washington D.C., forcing the US government to surrender to the Axis powers. The United States is now divided into two vast provinces, each of which is controlled by the two world-ruling empires: the Greater Nazi Reich and the Japanese Empire. This is the starting point of The Man in the High Castle, a TV series that just released its new season on Amazon Prime. Based on a novel by Philip K. Dick, The Man in the High Castle places the viewer in a dystopian world where totalitarianism has replaced freedom and democracy all over the world. The story revolves around Juliana Crain, an American living in the Japanese Pacific States. Juliana gets involved with the Resistance (an underground movement that fights the Japanese and the Nazis alike) after the secret police kill Trudy, her only sister. Before dying, Trudy gives Juliana a mysterious film that contains a newsreel of the Allies winning the war, something that never happened in Juliana’s reality. After that, Juliana is dragged into a war that she didn’t want to fight; a war that leads her…

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