Stax Museum Free Virtual Black History Month Tour 2022
In February 2022, the Soulsville Foundation’s Stax Museum of American Soul Music and Stax Music Academy will release original, free Black History Month virtual productions that offer two distinct but complementary celebrations of Black American music and its impact on the arc of American culture. We invite you to join us and help youth all over the world experience the evolution and magnetism of American Soul Music that emanated from Memphis, Tennessee.
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
THE MAGNETIC SOUTH: All Signs Point to Soulsville USA
How did a record company that started in a North Memphis garage, and ended up in an old movie theater in South Memphis, become one of the most successful record companies of the 1960s and 70s? THE PEOPLE. The company’s founders were attracted to the music-rich legacy of what would become the Soulsville USA neighborhood, and as Stax Records grew, it created opportunities for innovators, entrepreneurs, creatives, and civic-minded artists, some from Memphis, others from far beyond the city. The Stax Museum’s 2022 Black History Month virtual tour, “The Magnetic South” looks at how four individuals – Al Bell, Bettye Crutcher, Al Jackson, Jr., and Mavis Staples – were drawn to the opportunities at Soulsville USA, how the community influenced them, what they contributed, and how their legacies continue to inform and inspire the personal and professional journeys of musicians across Memphis. These stories will be told by Memphis musicians Keia Johnson, Tonya Dyson, Terence Clark, and actor Kenon Walker. A downloadable tour companion and scheduled workshops for youth and families will complement this year’s virtual tour. Students in grades K-12 will have the opportunity to engage in in-person learning sessions, which will include a S.T.E.A.M. workshop in which participants will use their hands, minds, and soul to build, create, and share.
After you register, you’ll receive an email closer to February 1, 2022 with a link to our online event.
Click HERE for details about the Stax Museum’s in-person kick-off event.
CLICK HERE FOR A PREVIEW
Added Bonus:
Stax Music Academy
SOUL OF AMERICA: An Evolution of Black Music
Join Stax Music Academy (SMA) students as they explore the people, places, politics, economics, and culture that gave birth to Black American music that continues to be relevant decades later. After the extraordinary national/international success of SMA’s virtual programming last year, our 2022 Black History Month productions will offer even more. In this virtual celebration, SMA will perform a series of videos performing Black American music from the early sounds through today, checking in with greats like B.B. King, the Pointer Sisters, Ike & Tina Turner, Rufus Thomas, and Duke Ellington to current pop music titans like Beyonce and Janelle Monae. The videos will be filmed at special locations throughout Memphis and the South that spotlight the cradle of Black American music. Our companion study guide features home and classroom lesson plans created for elementary, middle, and high school students, plus group discussion topics for college-aged clubs and organizations. We invite you to join us as we explore Black music’s contributions to the Soul of America.
Both virtual Black History Month productions will be made available free worldwide, targeting students, schools, teachers, families, youth groups, and others.
