I’m sitting here in my Frenchmen Street perch on a cloudy Sunday afternoon, working on this March issue. Frenchmen Street has calmed down a lot since yesterday, when there was a lot of traffic as we forever buried the ’Aints.
Frenchmen Street is quiet at this hour of the day, but there’s a huge sound outside [...]
That got your attention, right?
I don’t really, but my attitudes towards the day have sure changed over the years. Last year really stands out because of two things: Antoinette K-Doe died last year on Mardi Gras Day. The weather last year was just so perfect; everyone in my neighborhood was having a fantastic time. And [...]
Once again, it’s time for the Best of the Beat Awards on January 22 at the House of Blues, and we hope you can attend to eat great food, mingle with the music community and listen to some fabulous music (check out OffBeat.com for the latest on who’s playing). This event was created to give [...]
On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, Irvin Mayfield put together a benefit for “local musicians in need.” That event’s proceeds were distributed to their beneficiaries at an event at Ashé Arts Cultural Center last night, and the musicians’ response was heartwarming. Harmonica player J.D. Hill, who now lives in the Musicians’ Village, was severely beaten and [...]
Every morning we travel up Esplanade Avenue on our way to work, and every morning we typically stop at the light at the corner of North Rampart. There’s an historical marker there about “Faubourg Tremé” that explains how the neighborhood was the first real suburb in New Orleans and that it was the home of [...]
About a year ago, Sherri McConnell, who runs the Louisiana Economic Development’s Entertainment Office, convened a small group for a “charette” to devise ideas for what needed to be done to improve the local music industry and make things better for the community.
Everything from the continuing lack of infrastructure, downloadable music, the North Rampart Street [...]
In the 9/17/09 edition of OffBeat’s Weekly Beat e-newsletter, I recommended a combination of music and Mardi Gras:
“Last week’s Weekly Beat poll showed that 49% of our readers think that the best use for the Municipal Auditorium is for a National Jazz Museum with a performance venue; 33% said we should restore the auditorium to [...]
Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu’s World Cultural Economic Forum once again takes place in New Orleans, with panels and showcases of our local music and culture. I’m thrilled to announce that OffBeat will receive the award for Outstanding Contribution to Cultural Tourism. It’s gratifying to know that almost 25 years of work yields recognition. But the [...]
I was sitting at my desk working on this issue on a Saturday afternoon, when I heard some music coming my way. Since it was early in the day, I knew it wasn’t any of the clubs on Frenchmen, and it was moving, so I figured it was a parade. Whenever you hear a parade [...]
In the fall of 2006, a year after Katrina, Times-Picayune headlines detailed the murder of young French Quarter denizen Addie Hall, murdered by her boyfriend. Her body was found butchered and in pieces in the refrigerator and cooking pots in the couple’s French Quarter apartment. A few days after the murder, the boyfriend, 26-year-old Zackery [...]
