Any Travels

Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, of which it is the county seat. As of 2006, the city of Memphis had an estimated population of 680,768, making it the largest city in the state of Tennessee and the 18th largest in the United States. The greater Memphis metropolitan area has a population of 1,230,303. This makes Memphis the second largest metropolitan area in Tennessee, surpassed only by metropolitan Nashville. Even though Memphis is the state's largest city, it is the youngest of all of Tennessee's major cities especially its Big Four. Over the years of the state's history, Memphis has never served as state capital primarily because of its western location. Memphis is on the Lower Chickasaw Bluff above the Mississippi River, at the mouth of the Wolf River.

Memphis isn't so much a place as it is a feeling, a sound, a taste. It's the muggy warmth of a southern summer evening. It's the slow moan of a blues song or the eternal sounds of Elvis. It's the taste of barbecue, cornbread, and black-eye peas.
To come to Memphis is to achieve these feelings. Certainly, almost everyone who goes there goes to Graceland, the much-toured home of the King of Rock and Roll. They also tour Sun Studios, where he cut his first records, or down the road to Tupelo, Mississippi, where he was born.

But Memphis is more than Elvis. Take a walk down historic Beale Street and take in some live blues. Go to one of 100 barbecue joints and pitch in on an age-old argument: Which is best? Take a steamboat ride on the Mississippi River, or go to nearby casinos in Tunica, Mississippi. Baseball fans should not, under any circumstances, miss seeing the Memphis Redbirds (AAA affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals) play at AutoZone Park. AutoZone Park is considered one of the finest minor league baseball stadiums in the United States, and is a "must see" during the season.


For two or three days, Memphis can offer the most worldly of visitors a taste of the South. Beyond that, if you're still there, then you'll know you've got that old Memphis feeling.

Cultural events and fairs

One of the largest celebrations in Memphis is Memphis in May. The month-long series of events promotes Memphis' heritage and outreach of its people far beyond the city's borders. Each year, Memphis in May honors a different country, highlighting various aspects of the honored nation's history and culture. Since its founding, the economic and educational impact of Memphis in May has given a significant boost to the city each spring. The celebration includes a diverse mix, beginning during the first weekend of the month at Tom Lee Park, the site of the Beale Street Music Festival. During International Week, the city focuses on its honored country, part of a larger program in coordination with area schools to broaden cultural awareness among students. Other signature events of Memphis in May include the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest, the FedEx St. Jude Classic (a PGA Tour golf tournament), and the closing event of the month — a performance of the Sunset Symphony.

Carnival Memphis (formerly known as the Memphis Cotton Carnival), is a series of parties and festivities staged every year by the Carnival Memphis Association and its member krewes (similar to that of Mardi Gras) during the early summer. Carnival salutes various aspects of Memphis and its industries, and is reigned over by the current year's secretly selected King & Queen of Carnival. Fall brings the Mid-South Fair to the city each year.

In the Cooper-Young district of Midtown Memphis, the Cooper-Young Festival, an art festival which is also held annually on the intersection of Cooper Street/Young Street, and draws in artists from all over North America, and includes art sales, contests, and displays. In its ninteenth year, this event has grown into one of Memphis' most anticipated events. This year over 50,000 guests will enjoy an appealing mix of art, music and crafts presented by over 300 artisans from around the country. This Festival is a true celebration of the arts, people, culture and Memphis heritage. In addition to art, the festival includes sales of clothing, jewelry, live music, and gay novelty items.

As a result of Hurricane Katrina's impact on New Orleans in August 2005, Memphis became the first city to co-host the Voodoo Music Experience, a gathering of musicians that typically is a centerpiece of New Orleans' Halloween festivities. Performers gathered both in New Orleans' Riverview Park and in Memphis' Auto Zone Park in late October 2005. Plans announced regarding the 2006 event, set for the final weekend in October, thus far only includes performances in New Orleans.

The Arts

Memphis is the home of founders and establishers of various American music genres, including Blues, Gospel, Rock n' Roll, and "sharecropper" country music (in contrast to the "rhinestone" country sound of Nashville). Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, and B. B. King were all getting their starts in Memphis in the 1950s. They are respectively dubbed the "King" of Country, Rock n' Roll, and Blues. Other famous musicians who either grew up or got their starts in the Memphis area include the Box Tops, the Gentrys, the Grifters, Aretha Franklin, Carl Perkins, John Lee Hooker, Justin Timberlake, Howlin' Wolf, Jerry Lee Lewis,Lucero (band) , Al Green, Muddy Waters, Big Star, Tina Turner, Roy Orbison, Willie Mae Ford Smith, Sam Cooke, Booker T. and the MGs, Otis Redding, The Blackwood Brothers, Isaac Hayes, Rufus Thomas, Three 6 Mafia, Eightball & MJG, Shawn Lane, The Sylvers, Anita Ward and "Father of the Blues" W.C. Handy.

Memphis is also a literary mecca. Tennessee Williams had his first play written and performed in Memphis (on Snowden Street and Glenview Street respectively).

Memphis has also had a significant impact in the world of photography, William Eggleston, the pioneer of color photography as a serious artistic medium and considered one of the greatest photographers of all time, still lives and works in Memphis. A number of younger photographers, including Huger Foote, are Memphians. Some other notable Memphis photographers are fashion photographer Jack Robinson and civil rights-era artist Ernest C. Withers.

In the last decade, the art scene in Memphis has exploded. The independent art scene has centered primarily in South Main, located in downtown Memphis on the trolley line. More than a dozen art galleries have moved into the neighborhood, fueling a redevelopment boom that has expanded into new residential construction. Perhaps the most interesting conversion has been the Power House, a former power plant near Central Station that has been transformed into contemporary art space. The Cooper-Young neighborhood in Midtown is also home to several art galleries. The Edge is a nascent arts neighborhood, located at the edge of downtown near Madison Avenue, Marshall, and Union Avenue. The Edge is home to Memphis' Black Repertory Theater, world-famous Sun Studios, and Delta Axis, among others.