Like many people I list Memphis, Tennessee as one of my favorite cities to visit. I have been there many times and each time I have enjoyed myself. Most people have heard of “Memphis in May” and Beale Street. I have heard that Memphis has some of the best BBQ, of course I will never be convinced that anyone’s BBQ will ever be as good as My Daddy’s, he was the BBQ Grill Master. Memphis is known for many things. On this particular visit to Memphis back in 2012, I visited a couple of historical landmarks that I think are worth a visit the next time you are in Memphis. I have strong ties to both Memphis and Nashville TN (where I earned by undergraduate degree at HBCU Tennessee State University(I had to throw that in there Yall cause I’m a proud TSU Tiger😁). This post focuses on Memphis.
The Lorraine Motel
One of my stops was the National Civic Rights Museum. The main attraction here is the Lorraine Motel. This is a very important landmark that serves as a reminder of the racism and discrimination that we as African Americans have endured in this country for many generations. This is the location of a very pivotal moment in The Civil Rights Movement. This is the motel where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated. We all know how instrumental he was in the Civic Rights Movement and how he encouraged non-violent tactics for eradiating systematic oppression. He dedicated himself to advocating for equality for black people in America. He traveled to Memphis, TN to lead a peaceful march of striking sanitation workers. He was shot and killed on April 4, 1968 as he stood on the balcony in front of Room 306. This is definitely an important part of our history. Please stop by to pay homage to Dr. King’s life and legacy the next time you are in Memphis.
Stax Records
I will forever be music lover. I am a huge fan of music and most specifically Old School R & B; anything 1960’s-1990’s. So I decided to visit Stax Records. which is now a museum. Memphis is known for being the birth place of Memphis Soul or Memphis Sound. This is a soulful, sultry southern style of music produced in the 1960’s and 1970’s at two prominent local record companies: Stax Records and Hi Records.
This record company was originally founded in 1957 as Satellite Records and later changed its named to Stax Records. This was a very commercially successful record company that over the next twenty years launched the careers of legendary recording artists like Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Isaac Hayes, The Staple Singers and The Dramatics . In 1977, the record company went bankrupt. Stax Records played a monumental role in the history of Black Soul Music. This landmark is definitely one that all music lovers will enjoy.
My Family Connection to Memphis Soul Music:
Hi Records
Hi Records was the other major soul music record located in Memphis, TN and was also started in 1957. This record company produced many hits most notably in the 1970’s. The most well known artist to record on Hi Records was Al Green. His hits on the label included, “Tired of Being Alone”, “Let’s Stay Together”, “I’m Still in Love With You” and ” Call Me”. Other notable artists on the label included: Otis Clay, Syl Johnson, Ann Peebles (my aunt) and Donald Bryant (my uncle-married to Ann Peebles).
Ann Peebles
Ann Peebles is a legendary Memphis Soul recording artist, and is also my aunt (my father’s sister). My father was born into a large family, there were eleven siblings. They were born and raised in Kinloch, located in north county St. Louis, Missouri. Kinloch is actually the first African-American city to be incorporated in the state of Missouri and is rich in history and familial bonds. Both of my parents grew up in this community and I am I am proud to say that I was also born and raised in Kinloch, and resided there until I was a young adult. Other notable celebrities that hail from Kinloch include the actress Jennifer Lewis, and Ola Rae who starred alongside Michael Jackson in the Thriller video.
The Peebles family has always been a musical family , and like many black families routinely sang in church. The musical talent abounds in the Peebles Family and there are many great singers and musicians on my family tree. Ann always had a great love for singing and eventually became a professional recording artist after being signed to a record label while on a visit to Memphis, TN. Ann is also a talented songwriter and eventually married fellow singer and songwriter Donald Bryant who wrote and co-wrote some of Ann’s most popular songs. Ann was active as a professional performer until she suffered a stroke in 2012. Her most commercially successful song was “I Can’t Stand the Rain” released in 1974, which she co-wrote with Donald Bryant. This song has been covered by many to include Tina Turner and was sampled by Missy Elliott on her song, “The Rain, Supa Dupa Fly” which was released in 1997. Another successful song recorded by Ann, was “I Pity the Fool” which was later covered by Bette Midler. The Wu Tang Clan also sampled one of Ann’s songs, “You’ve Got the Papers (I’ve Got the Man) on the song “Rules”. Ann’s song, “Until You Came Into My Life” was featured on the soundtrack from the movie, “Same Kind of Different as Me” in 2017. Most recently Ann Peebles was referenced in an episode of the first season of the popular Starz original series “P-Valley” (Episode 6, 2020).
Ann Peebles recorded ten studio albums over the course of her career. Ann was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2014 and her husband Donald Bryant was inducted in 2019 making them the first married couple to both be enshrined in the Memphis Musical Hall of Fame. Donald Bryant is an acclaimed singer and songwriter in his own right and he continues to record and perform music. He is a 2021 63rd Grammy Awards nominee for his song, “You Make Me Feel”. I am looking forward to the upcoming show and hoping that he takes home that Grammy.
Ann Peebles 
Ann Peebles 
Ann Peebles
Ann Peebles and Al Green 
Ann Peebles and Missy Elliott 
Ann Peebles and Donald Bryant
