Orange Mound

Mm-hmm.

And so for me to be in Orange Mound, which is such a historic Black neighborhood that has given us so many phenomenal artists like 8Ball & MJG, Topsy, Maz, DJ Zerka, so many others, man.

For, for us to be able to give back to this community, like if I can check my bo- my name on this box, I'm so excited.

Like having these artists to be able to come in here and do podcasts or to be able to come over here and record for free, um, and then looking to give them like education on like split sheets and stuff we talked about.

Yep

... to tell their story through music.

The things that, when people, when the kids look at like 8Ball & MJG, they, there's so much reverence for them because that, they know this, that they came out of Orange Mound and literally became one of the most influential, biggest hip hop groups in the world.

But a lot of people know, like recording is not free.

Right.

No matter whether it was South Memphis, Orange Mound, East Memphis, we were talking about the same thing.

And we set a goal of getting 10% reduction for 4 years, year over year, for 40% reduction in four years, and we achieved that 40% reduction in two.

Uh, when we look at-

... it's getting ready to happen.

But, uh, and I didn't make it this year.

But when you get an opportunity to go to be an Orange Mound for the homecoming, whether you go to that breakfast or the other events-

Right

Now, okay, I, I got a question y'all.

Is Orange Mound South Memphis?

No.

Absolutely not.

No. Orange Mound is Orange Mound.

Orange Mound is Orange Mound.

South Memphis is-

South Memphis is South Memphis

Grimes forced a chuckle.

Rufus drove from North Memphis down to Orange Mound.

He pulled the big Chevy into the dirt lot behind the brown derby.

The Bearcats unloaded and lugged their gear through the unlit yard, spotlighted in the high beams of other cars pulling in.

And he had a song called Rock and Roll Ruby, where he used to go and listen after school, you know, walk home, listen to his thing.

Loved it.

In the back of our property was another neighborhood, Orange Mound.

And Willie Mitchell's mother lived on Hamilton Avenue.

Hmm.

You know, if you had a Black parent in a Black neighborhood, and they felt like, "My child can get a better education," and they live in Orange Mound, but they feel like their child could get a better education, say, at White Station-

Mm-hmm

... and that's where they wanted their child to go-

You know, Macklemore and areas like that.

Orange Mound.

Orange Mound.

Hey.

They were small mountain bayous.