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April 23-25, 2027

Word of South

The Jerry Thigpen Trio

In 2013 North Florida regional favorites Jerry Thigpen, Pete Winter, and Jimmy Bone combined their talent and experience toward creating a new musical synergy. Their self-titled debut album was released in 2016 with an encore album anticipated in late spring 2018. Known for their engaging live performances, the Trio’s straight-forward and relatable songwriting showcases strong […]

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Byron Stripling

Since his Carnegie Hall debut with Skitch Henderson and the New York Pops, Byron Stripling has become a pops orchestra favorite, soloing with the Boston Pops, the National Symphony, the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Cincinnati Pops, the Seattle Symphony, the Baltimore Symphony, the Dallas Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Detroit Symphony, the Vancouver Symphony, the Toronto […]

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Tallahassee Symphony Jazz Orchestra

The Tallahassee Symphony Jazz Orchestra is pleased to join forces with trumpeter Byron Stripling for an afternoon of “Gospel, Blues, and All that Jazz” at this year’s Word of South Festival! The set list includes Alexander’s Ragtime Band, Hoochie Coochie Man, Saint Louis Blues, Go Tell It On The Mountain, He’s Got The Whole World […]

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Nic Stone

Nic Stone was born and raised in a suburb of Atlanta, GA, and the only thing she loves more than an adventure is a good story about one. After graduating from Spelman College, she worked extensively in teen mentoring and lived in Israel for a few years before returning to the US to write full-time. […]

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Kent Spriggs

Kent Spriggs has been a civil rights lawyer for more than five decades. He specialized in large class actions seeking to vindicate employment rights of blacks and women. He authored the critically acclaimed two-volume Representing Plaintiffs in Title VII Actions (2d Edition Panel Publications 1998), and most recently edited Voices of Civil Rights Lawyers: Reflections […]

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Bob Shacochis

Bob Shacochis is one of America’s most provocative and accomplished writers. His story collection Easy in the Islands won the National Book Award, and his novel Swimming in the Volcano was a National Book Award finalist. His most recent novel, The Woman Who Lost Her Soul, was the winner of the Dayton International Literary Peace […]

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