Scenic Roots

Clyde Stubblefield - from the poster of “Give the Drummer Some.” (Brent Nicastro / givethedrummersomefilm.com) Clyde Stubblefield, best known as the “Funky Drummer” for James Brown, was born and raised here in Chattanooga. This weekend, as we near the end of Black Music Month, a film screening and a live concert will honor his life and legacy. This Saturday, starting at 11 AM, ArtsBuild will host...

“Give the Drummer Some” - for Chattanooga’s Clyde Stubblefield. In Dayton, a centennial season for this year’s Scopes Festival. At the Woodshop, a Concert for a Cause - for The AIM Center. As you’ll hear - and more - on this episode of “Scenic Roots.”

Call Me Spinster - outside The Continental Club in Austin, TX during this year’s SXSW. (Call Me Spinster / Facebook) From childhood “frenemies” in the Twin Cities to a folk band making harmonious music together here in Chattanooga, Call Me Spinster isn’t just a band - it’s a lifelong investment in creativity and family, forged by sisterhood. “Greater Chattanooga” from WTCI PBS follows the remarkab...

Ishmael Reed and Alison Lebovitz (WTCI PBS) For six decades, Ishmael Reed - born here in Chattanooga - has made an indelible mark on the literary world with more than 30 books of prose, poetry, plays and essays. He’s also a prolific songwriter, editor and publisher who has championed other writers through founding and co-founding several journals - both print and online. Challenging the status quo...

Inside the Chattanooga Insight Meditation Community’s Dharma Center. (Chattanooga Insight Meditation Community) The Chattanooga Insight Meditation Community is home to the teaching and practice of meditation and mindfulness in a Buddhist tradition. On Thursday, starting at 6 PM, the Community celebrates its new home - a center at 318 Talley Road. Janka Livoncova is the center’s guiding teacher - a...

Chery Jordan (Hunter Museum of American Art) “Walk This Way” is an exhibit now on display at the Hunter Museum of American Art in downtown Chattanooga. It features footwear from the Stuart Weitzman Collection of Historic Shoes, organized by the New York Historical. On Thursday, starting at 6 PM, Chery Jordan and the Runway Rebels will present a fashion show at the Hunter that’s all about the shoes...

A map of Hamilton County, TN. Here in Hamilton County, road improvements are taking place - and on the calendar. Nathan Janeway is the County’s director of development services under County Mayor Weston Wamp. Lee Helton is a Hamilton County Commissioner.

Paving the way: Hamilton County’s road improvements. “Walk This Way Through Fashion” at the Hunter Museum. The Chattanooga Insight Meditation Community’s new home. As you’ll hear - and more - on this episode of “Scenic Roots.”

The Hamilton County Courthouse in Chattanooga. (American Courthouses) The Hamilton County Commission has approved a new budget for the upcoming fiscal year. William Newlin is with Chattamatters.

Ralph McConnell of the Barnard Astronomical Society installs new digital setting circles to help finding objects faster in the historic telescope at UTC’s Clarence T. Jones Observatory. (Clarence T. Jones Observatory) Here in Chattanooga, the Clarence T. Jones Observatory - part of our campus, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga - hosts star parties during the fall and spring semesters at U...

Shane Morton - with Cheddar. (Silver Scream FX Lab) In the horror genre, Shane Morton is a creative dynamo. His work spans film, TV, music videos and special attractions - the Atlanta Zombie Apocalypse and The Silver Scream Spookshow film series, just to name a few near Chattanooga. This Saturday, Shane - an FX artist, director, actor, writer and “mad scientist” - will appear at “Culture on 4,” pr...

(Chattanooga Festivals of Black Arts and Ideas) Seven years ago, a Juneteenth festival began in Chattanooga - and at that time, it was the only event of its kind. This year, the festival is focusing on youth - as “Juniorteenth: Engaging the Next Generation” - on Thursday at The Howard School, with a financial literacy session at 10 AM and a Juneteenth Commemoration Ceremony at 5:30 PM. Ric Morris...

The Bessie Smith Cultural Center in downtown Chattanooga. (Bessie Smith Cultural Center) This year’s Juneteenth parade in Chattanooga will pass in front of the Bessie Smith Cultural Center, dedicated to this city’s African-American history and music. Elijah Cameron with The Bessie shares how the Center will commemorate Thursday’s holiday, ahead of this weekend’s Big 9 Music Fest. _____ For more, v...

A Juneteenth flag - in closeup. (USDA.gov) Thursday is Juneteenth, the holiday that celebrates the end of slavery - and the emancipation of African-Americans - after the Civil War ended in 1865. Among the holiday events in Chattanooga is a documentary screening that takes place at Noon at New Zion Baptist Church. Eric Atkins is with the Unity Group of Chattanooga. _____ For more, visit The Unity G...

Inside a planetarium show at UTC’s Clarence T. Jones Observatory. (Clarence T. Jones Observatory) For stargazing here in Chattanooga, the place to be is an observatory that belongs to UTC - and for the community. This past semester, Miller Richardson - a student in UTC’s Department of Communication - produced a podcast series as an intern for “Scenic Roots” here on WUTC. Here’s the second episode...

Dr. Robert Dooley, UTC’s Interim Chancellor and Dean of the Gary W. Rollins College of Business (UTC) Since the beginning of this year, we have brought you “Chatting with the Chancellor”: a series of monthly conversations with Dr. Robert Dooley, Interim Chancellor here on our campus - the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Until now, we have recorded the conversations in the podcasting space...

From the poster for “Matchmaking 2” - one of the titles in this year’s Chattanooga Jewish Film Series. (Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga) Matchmaking, the Sinai Desert and the man who found the Beatles all have their moments in this year’s Chattanooga Jewish Film Series. The series screens in person on Sundays at 4 PM from June 22nd through July 20th at the Jewish Cultural Center - paired...

(Scenic City Summit) A gathering in tech here in the Southeast is expanding to three days for its tenth year. The Scenic City Summit returns to downtown Chattanooga from Thursday, June 19th through Saturday, June 21st at various locations. This year’s summit links up eight local tech conferences to offer workshops, talks and a community hackathon for engineers, educators, students and leaders in t...

A performance by The Juba Dance Ensemble (The Juba Dance Ensemble) Katherine Dunham was known as the “matriarch and queen of Black dance.” She was a dancer and choreographer, also an anthropologist and an activist. This Saturday, the Katherine Dunham Juba Dance Festival returns to Chattanooga - part of the Chattanooga Festivals of Black Arts and Ideas. It begins with dance master classes at Annex...

(Chattanooga Lookouts & The Bessie Smith Cultural Center) A century ago, during the Jim Crow era, baseball was segregated. African-Americans barred from Major League Baseball played on teams in the Negro Leagues - including here in Chattanooga. This Friday and Saturday, the Bessie Smith Cultural Center and the Chattanooga Lookouts host this year’s Negro League Appreciation Weekend, in part...

A Southside Juneteenth Jubilee at the Bethlehem Center - with Reginald Smith II at second from right. (The Bethlehem Center) A taste of Juneteenth arrives this weekend in Southside Chattanooga, a few days before next week’s holiday. The Bethlehem Center - the faith-based nonprofit serving youth and families in the Alton Park neighborhood - hosts its annual Southside Juneteenth Jubilee on Saturday...

The Southside Juneteenth Jubilee at The Bethlehem Center. Movement amplified: The Katherine Dunham Juba Dance Festival. Ten years in tech: the Scenic City Summit in Chattanooga. As you’ll hear - and more - on this episode of “Scenic Roots.”

(UTC) A few miles from downtown Chattanooga, an observatory on North Tuxedo Drive has reached for the stars for decades. Built during the Great Depression, it is owned and operated by our campus, the University of Tennessee of Chattanooga. This past semester, Miller Richardson - a student in UTC’s Department of Communication - paid a visit for a podcast series that she produced as an intern for "S...

Eric Atkins, at right, holds the Juneteenth flag in 2022. (Unity Group of Chattanooga) Juneteenth is the holiday that marks the end of slavery - and the emancipation of African-Americans - after the end of the Civil War in 1865. Over the weekend, The Unity Group of Chattanooga began its Juneteenth Commemoration Week, a series of events in Chattanooga that continues through this year’s holiday on T...

Bryan Roof (Cook's Country) If you stopped by the National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg this spring, maybe you saw him there. Bryan Roof is executive food editor for “Cook’s Country” - and an onscreen test cook for “America’s Test Kitchen” - which airs on public television stations across the country, including on our public media partner WTCI PBS. I spoke with Bryan at WUTC on his way to...