The Durham Record Label Where Dolly Parton Found a ‘Little Spot of Heaven’
From Dolly to Doc Watson, Sugar Hill Records shaped American roots music. The legacy its founder built lives on.
The Trill of the Chase
The World Whistlers Convention now draws hundreds of entrants to Japan every year—far from its roots in Louisburg, N.C.
How North Carolina Opera Is Beating the Odds
In recent years, companies nationwide have fought to keep opera profitable and relevant. In Raleigh, NC Opera just put on the best-selling show in company history.
A Tale of Two Six: J. Cole’s Fayetteville
A native son, a homecoming-inspired final album, and how Fayetteville—if only for a weekend—became the center of the hip-hop universe.
How Tupac Came to Rest in North Carolina
The cremated remains of the rapper, still omnipresent three decades after his death, now lie in a Lumberton grave.
‘Let Me Go ’Way From This Lonely Town’
An effort to save the Tryon house where Nina Simone was born reveals the artist’s complicated relationship with her hometown.
N.C. Folk Festival Returns to ‘Find Common Sound’
The N.C. Folk Festival will return to downtown Greensboro in September with an eclectic roster.
More Music Coverage
At the Back Table, There Are No Strangers
Back Table, a new coffee shop in Greensboro wants to be an “East Coast epicenter of music and art and expression.”
Still Searching
Nearly three months after Hurricane Helene, Yancey County musician Lenny Widawski remains one of the few whose bodies have not been found.
Life Inside the Fishbowl
After burning through the Raleigh club scene, American Aquarium frontman BJ Barham had a plan for failure. Then success and a family arrived.
Bull City Summit’s Discontents
The festival aimed to bring crowds to Durham, but some local partners say the promises didn’t add up—and now its founder is facing charges of fraud.
The Living Legacy of the Piedmont Blues
The music that grew out of Durham’s tobacco plants influenced some of the most widely recorded musicians of the last 65 years.
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