Thank YOU, thank YOU, thank YOU. Hello Again! Welcome to another wonderful collaboration between East Side Story and The Post. Let me be the first to officially, whole-heartedly welcome you to the recap and recording of the 127th epic edition of East Side Storytellin’! Like the 126, I repeat … 126, previous shows East Side Story has put together, we all decided to take a break from our busy schedules all over town in order to sit back and relax and get everyone cultured up just right in the form of a Nashville writer reading from original prose, followed by an amazing local musician performing and talking about their original music, and then a round-up creative conversation with all featured guests of this event to talk about their individual journeys and personal ties to Nashville. Without further ado, fulfilling the entertainment portion of your day, this is the recap and recording of East Side Storytellin’ 127. Let us begin, again.
The first featured artist of the night is an author, a veteran, and a friend. I first met him when he came to East Side Story and gave me the golden opportunity to promote and sell the book “The Longest War” which he had a story and hand in. He came to Nashville in 1991 for law school and simply has never figured out how or why to leave (with a few detour duties to Iraq). Beyond defending our country at home and abroad, last year I saw a mutual friend reveal the fact that our guest was once a prized participant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (with host Meredith Vieira). Another interesting and related fact to tonight, this man recently completed his Masters in English at Belmont University with a thesis entitled, “Life, Death, and Other Quantum Entanglements.” He received the Belmont English Department Writing Award while there, and was a finalist for the Iowa Review 2016 Jeff Sharlet Memorial Award for his short story “December Sand.” Enough with the accolades that I could reveal for days, let’s not waste a second with this gentleman and a scholar while we have him tonight. I was thrilled to finally introduce my friend, the talented Renaissance man by the name John Winston Heacock!
I once heard in a cult classic movie that you should never put baby in the corner. The same can be said for John Winston Heacock. There are names you can sling around, but there really are no true labels for this man and his art. He is a little bit awesome with everything he does and is. For starters, when we arrived on the scene to set up the show and do sound check, we were lucky to run into the remaining staff at The Post who had miscalculated the times and dates on the calendar for the evening. They were leaving early. That said, it worked out because John and I were good with taking the proverbial keys to the house and hosting our own house party of sorts. It kinda felt like I was back in high school again, surrounded by so many dear ol’ friends, when my grandparents asked me to house sit and we turned off the lights on the front porch, invited the entire high school, had our own bouncer at the door, eventually got everyone out of the hot tub days later, and we cleaned up the house better than it was before the party. This time around, we didn’t have a hot tub or bouncer, but John brought enough spirits for anyone partaking. It was a packed house and near perfect situation for great art to happen.
John jumped right into his set by revealing that he would be sharing a diverse line-up of poems, flash fiction, and snippets of a novel in progress. Not one to mince words or waste time, John went to work. He sat down, partly because of his knees and I believe partly because it was inviting for the audience to listen like he was talking from his back porch … porch talkin’, if you will. He started with a poem about his version of Heaven, then followed that up with a poem he wrote two weeks prior while in attendance at East Side Storytellin’ 126 while listening to the great poet Jeff Hardin. He finished the poetic trilogy with a poem that explains us all, Transplant. John dove into the semi-autobiographical flash fiction that knocked us off our feet, and then he surprised us with an excellent elegy (not eulogy) about an inspiring mathematician named Maryam Mirzakhani. John finished his time on stage by leaving his high stool behind him and going on a very cool political rant that nobody has ever heard before. Like most of the artist recaps, I’ll let you listen to the words directly from the source in the recording link below so you are able to get all the feels.
John’s entire set perfectly reflects what I love most about East Side Storytellin’, the comradery and respect for past artists, flashes of brilliant and honest personal perspectives, a history lesson of something or someone who has inspired the featured artist and in turn inspires the audience, and then a call to action for a positive present and future for days and years to come. John’s set had all of that, as you can see above and below (in the photos and the recording link).
Our featured music of the night is a mutual friend of one of our most enthusiastic East Side Storytellin’ alumnus in Ally Brown. This girl, our guest and not Ally, played folk in the Chicago area for over 5 years at venues such as The Double Door, Tonic Room, Act One Pub, and various art galleries before migrating South. Her music is mainly her sharing universal experiences and feels that come with figuring out who the hell you are, and then accepting that person you discover. She communicates this with her powerhouse voice, raw lyrics, dynamic melodies, and Danelectro. A musician with an eclectic mix of inspirations, she decided to communicate with her audience recently by taking the various elements that she loves with art and music from all genres and creating a brand new band name and concept. Currently playing the Nashville area and working on her EP, it was truly an honor to feature one of the most authentic songwriters I’ve ever met in their 20’s, Pepper Said!
Pepper Said was one person for the night, but she is also a reflection of many in the crowd. Let me explain. Whether it was the witty and candid banter in between songs that explained the emotions and experiences that led to these tunes, or if it was just the sage insight laid out in between the measures of every verse and chorus sung, Pepper Said said and sang about what it means and feels like to be in your 20’s better than I’ve ever witnessed before. I’m not joking one bit. I felt like if you were younger than 20, you were getting a sneak preview of what to expect and prepare for ahead. And if you had already lived beyond your 20’s, then listening to Pepper being so honest and open about her trials, tribulations, victories, and hardships, reaffirmed that sometimes life is tough but it all gives you just enough to get by and grow and be & feel better.
When the moment presented itself later in the show, John described Pepper Said more spot on and creatively than I did when introducing her. John said, “Pepper Said, whose sweet and supple voice layered over a fuzz box guitar was like pouring simple syrup onto strong bourbon to make an Old Fashioned.” Honestly, I can’t say it better than that. I will say, though, my favorite song was called “Misa.” Based on a term from Sweden, by way of a relationship with a Swedish man, misa (spell check?) is snuggling and cuddling (a mix of intimacy and vulnerability). That said, I loved them all.
As you can see in the image above, Pepper Said was tag-teaming off of the gesture that John made famous for letting the audience know the moment when the song/poem ends and the applause can begin. Just another one of the many similarities in actions and themes that presented themselves with this pairing on the fly. But before the music ended for the night, there were some great songs soaked in wonderful metaphors about relationships and growing pains like that in a song about soap but not about soap called Soap (you should check out the video here- www.peppersaid.com/music), a light-hearted gem called Butterflies, another tale about the “hook-up” culture that Pepper Said admits that she is part of the problem (with a fun wink, because she speaks sarcasm as fluently as John), and another tie to John’s material with her relationship elegy called Joyride in a Hearse. Overall, Pepper Said brought her A game and left me and others in awe. It was something special to behold.
And before Pepper Said could take a seat, I had John grab said seat and we were off to the races with a candid conversation about creativity and what makes these two artists tick. It was incredible. Like so many of these East Side Storytellin’ shows, the artists were honest with themselves and the crowd, answering every question with everything they are, were, and will become, and if I wasn’t such an old man I’d love to ask them to keep talking for days on end. Just like the rest of the show on this particular evening, it was perfect. By the time Chris showed up with the keys to shut down the party, the party had already found perfect closure and was heading out on the town and for home, with alcohol, good people, and spirits in tow. I’m so thankful that we recorded this one, like all of them, but I’m even more grateful that I had the chance to get to know these two beautiful souls even more than I knew them the day before. These two are some good ones.
So, because we are on a roll of showcasing and sharing the work of good people so other good friends, family, and strangers can know about them and their work too, feel free to share the following link with everyone you know everywhere you can. This is the edited recording of East Side Storytellin’ 127, the night when John Winston Heacock and Pepper Said joined forces to rid the world of negativity and expose truth and personal growth for all. As we promoted beforehand, and just for the record, this show took place on Tuesday, April 3rd, 2018, at The Post East (1701 Fatherland). And, speaking of repeating myself, it was something special. Enjoy the recording, as many times as you wish.
Before I say goodbye for this round of fun, I’d like to give a big round of thanks for John Winston Heacock & Pepper Said for sharing their stories, talents, and time with us.
You can read more about John’s work here-
You can listen to more of Pepper Said’s music here – www.peppersaid.com
You can listen to this show, edited, soon, alongside the previous shows too, on our website, www.eastsidestorytn.com, at our In Our Own Words Tab – see here – www.eastsidestorytn.com/in-our-own-words
I’ll keep the gratitude going for Tom Eizonas, my lovely wife and most talented artist in Emily Harper Beard (efharper), and everyone that came out live to support the show … and to everyone who has helped continue to spread the word and support the show online afterwards.
Also, I’d LOVE to share the love to my dear O’ friends, Jeremy and Lauren Gomez, for making us part of their rowdy Spring Break adventure through and around Tennessee and Kentucky. We need to do that again sooner than later!
Last, but certainly not least, I’d like to give one last shout out to Tonya and Chris for making The Post so welcoming and positively life-changing for the East Nashville community at large.
Our next show will be
East Side Storytellin’ 128
Tuesday, April 17th
at The Post (1701 Fatherland Street) at 7pm
reading- Casey Boyd
singing- Raymond Joseph
That said, that’s all for East Side Storytellin’ 127 and another fabulous event at The Post with East Side Story at the helm. Thanks for coming out and sharing the good word and giving some love to all of these great Nashville artists and our creative ideas. Please remember to be nice to one another out there.
Much love,
mE