Latest news with #Storytellers'
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
OpSong's return to Clayton to partner with North Country Troopers Assisting Troops
CLAYTON, N.Y. (WWTI) – Operation Song's annual visit to the Clayton area has seen tremendous growth over the last four years and the organization is only planning for bigger and better things. Operation Song will make its fourth trip to the north country for Nashville's Salute to the Trooper concert on Friday May 23 for a 7 p.m. concert. May 23: Operation Song -Salute to the Troops The event has local veterans collaborate with country music songwriters to tell stories about their lives. Some of the songs are about life in the military while others are about everyday life and experiences. This year's event will be at the bigger Clayton Opera House after having the first three shows at the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel. Moving to the bigger venue is something that makes Operation Song's Executive Director Mike Beyer happy. 'Clayton is just one of those picturesque towns and it's so exciting to see this event grow,' Beyer said.' Beyer did add that the hotel will still be plenty involved with the events this weekend. The new venue is also intriguing to songwriter Baker Grissom, who is from Little Rock, Ark. Grissom likes the Clayton Opera House to a classic country music venue. 'This place (the opera house) is kind of like Grand Ole Opry,' Grissom said. 'They have those overtones like a church.' Beyer has been with the organization for a number of years. He is a retired Army First Sergeant, OIF/OEF Veteran, musician, and songwriter. Beyer is also an alumni of Operation Song and knows the collaboration process between the songwriters and veterans. 'Our songwriters connect with the veterans,' Beyer said. 'It gets their mind going and they get excited. After talking about an hour, they loosen up.' Fort Drum BOSS volunteers make community impact Beyer added the songs range from emotional to lighthearted. He added there's a massive a catalog of songs from different perspectives of military members. Grissom said he loves having songwriting sessions with the veterans and telling their stories. 'Songwriting is the biggest therapy session in the world,' Grissom said. 'Songs are kind of a way that you can say something that you didn't know would come to you.' Next year marks the a milestone fifth trip to Northern New York for the event. Beyer said the organization already has big plans for the 2026 show. 'Year five is coming up soon and we have to up our game,' Beyer said. Performances are informal and are reminiscent of a 'songwriters round,' which is a type of live music event where several songwriters gather to perform their original songs, often in a circle with the audience surrounding them. It's like shows like VH1's 'Storytellers' and live venues like the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville. Grissom will be joined by other songwriters AJ Kross, Kelli Johnson. He said he can't wait to perform with them on Friday night. 'I know AJ and Kelli and we'll tell stories,' Grissom said. 'Talk about the song and go back and forth… we just go on down the line. You can't get anywhere else.' Tickets are available at the Clayton Opera House website or by calling 315-686-2200. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Los Angeles Times
28-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Over 25 years later, Shakira's MTV ‘Unplugged' concert is available for streaming
Shakira's beloved 1999 performance on the MTV series 'Unplugged' has been released from the vault. Paramount announced Tuesday that it added more than 50 episodes of the MTV series 'Unplugged' to its streaming platform. Each episode famously showcased live acoustic sessions by such acts as Nirvana, Mariah Carey, Lauryn Hill, which were also released as albums. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999, then only periodically until 2009. With the exception of some heavily pixelated clips shared on YouTube, most of these historic performances have not been available for viewing in more than 20 years. Episodes of VH1's 'Storytellers' and CMT's 'Crossroads' have also been added for streaming on Paramount +. After 'Unplugged' introduced rock en español acts like Maná, Los Tres and Soda Stereo to viewers in the United States, Shakira became the first Latina to perform in the series. Taped in front of a live audience at the Grand Ballroom in New York City, the red-haired Colombian singer-songwriter took the stage on Aug. 12, 1999. The album, performed completely in Spanish, was subsequently released Feb. 29, 2000. Poised to break into the domineering English music world during an era known as pop's 'Latin explosion,' Shakira was backed by her mentor and producer, Emilio Estefan. He helped her reach commercial success as a producer of her groundbreaking 1998 pop-rock album, 'Dónde Están los Ladrones?' — just as he had done with his wife, Gloria Estefan, years before in the Miami Sound Machine. Although Shakira was already working on material for her 2001 English-language crossover album, 'Laundry Service,' her episode of 'Unplugged' proved a pivotal precursor for her ascent into the mainstream. She showed off her riffs in the gloomy introduction of 'Tú,' flaunted her vibrato in 'Estoy Aquí' and triumphed in a mariachi rendition of 'Ciega, Sordomuda' featuring the Miami troupe Mora Arriaga. Shakira's powerful stage presence and authenticity hinted at her future as an international superstar. Ahead of the first Latin Grammy Awards in 2000, for which the album was twice nominated, an L.A. Times editorial read: 'Fortunately, the recording includes some of Shakira's stage chatter, proving that fame hasn't affected her down-to-earth persona.' The live album helped Shakira secure her win for Latin pop album at the 2001 Grammy Awards — making it the first Latin MTV 'Unplugged' to win the award. Despite the large volume of 'Unplugged' episodes now available on Paramount+, Shakira is the only Spanish-language act included in the mix. Other Latino artists who previously aired include Charly Garcia, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, Los Tigres del Norte, Juanes and La Ley — but those episodes have yet to become available on streaming.
