MyTN50 Tennessee Life, Told by Tennesseans

Tennessee Life, Told by Tennesseans

MyTN50

Stories, ideas & perspectives — thoughtfully written, beautifully told.

Never Too Late to Sing: The Tennesseans Who Found Their Voices When Life Took a Turn
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Never Too Late to Sing: The Tennesseans Who Found Their Voices When Life Took a Turn

They weren't chasing fame at twenty-two. Some were raising kids, running businesses, or just trying to get through hard years. But somewhere along the way, these Tennesseans opened their mouths and something unexpected came out. Their stories are a reminder that in a state soaked in music, it's never too late to find your part in the song.

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Latest Articles

Off the Map and Into the Real Tennessee: The Grassroots Cartographers Charting What Signs Never Told You 02
Food & Travel

Off the Map and Into the Real Tennessee: The Grassroots Cartographers Charting What Signs Never Told You

A growing crew of locals, historians, and artists across Tennessee is literally redrawing the state's rural identity—one unmarked crossroads and hidden gathering spot at a time. Their hand-drawn charts and digital overlays are turning forgotten back roads into cultural corridors worth seeking out. If you think you know Tennessee from the highway, these folks would like a word.
Pull Up a Chair: The Tennessee Towns Bringing Back the Front Porch—and Each Other 03
Music & Culture

Pull Up a Chair: The Tennessee Towns Bringing Back the Front Porch—and Each Other

Across Tennessee, something quietly radical is happening on front porches. Neighbors who barely knew each other's names are now sharing music, stories, and sweet tea in the kind of unhurried gatherings that used to define small-town life. It's low-tech, low-budget, and it might be exactly what a lot of communities didn't know they were missing.
Voices from the Gaps: The Tennessee Archivists Piecing Together Lives History Left Behind 04
Music & Culture

Voices from the Gaps: The Tennessee Archivists Piecing Together Lives History Left Behind

Across Tennessee, a quiet but determined group of librarians, genealogists, and local historians are doing something remarkable — rescuing the stories of people history never bothered to write down. From cemetery surveys in rural Appalachia to digitized church ledgers in Memphis, they're stitching together lives that official records almost erased entirely.
When the World Sleeps, They Create: Tennessee's Night Shift Artists Living Between Two Lives 05
Music & Culture

When the World Sleeps, They Create: Tennessee's Night Shift Artists Living Between Two Lives

While most of Tennessee clocks out and heads home, a quiet army of nurses, bakers, factory workers, and security guards is punching in — and somewhere between the overnight hours and the early morning light, they're making art nobody asked for and everything they needed. These are the Tennesseans who found their creative voice in the margins of the traditional workday, and they're not slowing down anytime soon.
Still Playing After All These Years: The Church Organists Keeping Tennessee's Pipe Organ Tradition Breathing 06
Music & Culture

Still Playing After All These Years: The Church Organists Keeping Tennessee's Pipe Organ Tradition Breathing

Across Tennessee, a small but fierce group of organists and music directors are showing up every Sunday to play instruments that took decades to build and could take just one budget meeting to silence. They're teaching kids, restoring pipes, and making a case that sacred music still matters — not just spiritually, but as a living piece of Tennessee's cultural identity.
Written in the Land: The Tennesseans Hunting Down Place Names History Almost Erased 07
Music & Culture

Written in the Land: The Tennesseans Hunting Down Place Names History Almost Erased

Across Tennessee, a loose-knit crew of cartographers, genealogists, and community historians are doing something quietly extraordinary — pulling vanished town names, creek names, and hollow names back from the edge of oblivion. Their work isn't just academic. It's reshaping how everyday Tennesseans understand the ground beneath their feet.
Old Bones, New Purpose: The Tennessee Architects Rebuilding Rural Life Without Bulldozing the Past 08
Music & Culture

Old Bones, New Purpose: The Tennessee Architects Rebuilding Rural Life Without Bulldozing the Past

A new wave of Tennessee architects and designers is proving that rural revival doesn't have to mean starting from scratch. From repurposed tobacco barns to front-porch-friendly housing developments, these builders are threading the needle between honoring what's always been there and making room for what comes next.
Quit the Prestige, Kept the Vision: Tennessee Creatives Who Chose Weird Over Safe 09
Music & Culture

Quit the Prestige, Kept the Vision: Tennessee Creatives Who Chose Weird Over Safe

They had the résumés, the titles, and the corner offices. Then they walked away. Meet the Tennessee artists, designers, and makers who traded institutional prestige for something smaller, stranger, and entirely their own.
Homegrown and on Film: The Tennessee Documentarians Who Refuse to Wait for Hollywood's Permission 10
Music & Culture

Homegrown and on Film: The Tennessee Documentarians Who Refuse to Wait for Hollywood's Permission

A new generation of Tennessee-based filmmakers is turning cameras on their own communities, capturing stories that national media never bothered to tell. Armed with affordable gear, crowdfunding hustle, and a deep love for place, these storytellers are building something lasting — one hyperlocal documentary at a time.
The Quiet Keepers: How Tennessee's Small-Town Librarians Became the Heart of Main Street 11
Music & Culture

The Quiet Keepers: How Tennessee's Small-Town Librarians Became the Heart of Main Street

Across Tennessee, a new generation of public librarians is tearing up the old rulebook and turning their buildings into living, breathing community centers. From maker spaces to oral history projects, these unsung civic heroes are proving that the library isn't just surviving the digital age — it's leading the charge.
Late Bloomers, Big Moves: The Tennessee Entrepreneurs Who Built Their Best Thing After 50 12
Music & Culture

Late Bloomers, Big Moves: The Tennessee Entrepreneurs Who Built Their Best Thing After 50

Forget the myth that great ideas belong to the young. Across Tennessee, a wave of entrepreneurs in their 50s, 60s, and beyond are launching ventures that are turning heads — and turning profits. Their secret weapon? Decades of living, failing, and knowing exactly who they are.
After the Bell Rings: Tennessee Teachers Who Are Turning Forgotten Spaces Into Art Communities 13
Music & Culture

After the Bell Rings: Tennessee Teachers Who Are Turning Forgotten Spaces Into Art Communities

When the school day ends, a quietly growing movement of Tennessee educators trades lesson plans for paintbrushes — and empty storefronts for gallery walls. These teachers aren't waiting for the art world to invite them in. They're building something entirely their own.
First Bell, Then Spotlight: The Tennessee Educators Living Double Lives as Working Artists 14
Music & Culture

First Bell, Then Spotlight: The Tennessee Educators Living Double Lives as Working Artists

Across Tennessee, a quiet wave of teachers is spending their weekdays shaping young minds — and their weekends chasing something else entirely. From jazz clubs in Memphis to gallery walls in Chattanooga, these educators are proving that a life in the arts doesn't have to end when the school year begins.
Building Something Real: The Tennessee Women Who Are Writing the Rules From Scratch 15
Music & Culture

Building Something Real: The Tennessee Women Who Are Writing the Rules From Scratch

From tech startups in Nashville to grassroots nonprofits in the hollows of East Tennessee, a remarkable wave of women is reshaping what entrepreneurship looks like in this state. They're not waiting for permission, and they're definitely not doing it alone. Meet the women building legacies that go well beyond the bottom line.
Playing by Their Own Rules: Tennessee's Independent Venues Are Taking Live Music Back 16
Music & Culture

Playing by Their Own Rules: Tennessee's Independent Venues Are Taking Live Music Back

Across Tennessee, a scrappy wave of independent venue owners is pushing back against the stranglehold of mega-promoters and corporate touring machines. By betting on direct artist relationships and deeply local programming, these spaces are rewriting the rules of live entertainment — one show at a time.
When the Final Whistle Blows: Tennessee Athletes Who Found Their Second Game in the Arts 17
Music & Culture

When the Final Whistle Blows: Tennessee Athletes Who Found Their Second Game in the Arts

For some Tennessee athletes, the end of their playing days wasn't a closing door — it was an open studio. Meet the former players, collegiate stars, and weekend warriors who traded jerseys for paintbrushes, guitar straps, and clay wheels, and are building something just as compelling as any championship run.
Gates Open, Boots Welcome: How Tennessee Farm Families Are Turning Acres Into Experiences 18
Food & Travel

Gates Open, Boots Welcome: How Tennessee Farm Families Are Turning Acres Into Experiences

Across Tennessee's rolling countryside, family farms aren't just growing crops anymore — they're growing memories. From u-pick strawberry fields in the Highland Rim to glamping setups tucked between hay bales in the Cumberland Plateau, a quiet revolution is reshaping how rural communities stay alive and stay relevant.
Rooted and Rising: Fifteen Tennesseans Under 50 Who Are Changing Everything 19
Music & Culture

Rooted and Rising: Fifteen Tennesseans Under 50 Who Are Changing Everything

From a Knoxville engineer turning vacant lots into urban farms to a Memphis activist rewriting the rules on juvenile justice, Tennessee's next generation of change-makers isn't waiting for permission. These fifteen individuals — all under 50, all deeply rooted in their communities — are solving real problems, building real things, and proving that the future of this state is already here.
Spinning Stories: The Tennessee Record Shops Turning Turntables Into Town Squares 20
Music & Culture

Spinning Stories: The Tennessee Record Shops Turning Turntables Into Town Squares

Across Tennessee, independent record stores are doing a whole lot more than selling albums. From Nashville's storied crates to tucked-away shops in small towns most people drive right past, these spaces are becoming the living rooms of local music culture — and the folks running them wouldn't have it any other way.