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April 24-26, 2026

Word of South

Prissy Elrod

Prissy Elrod is a published author and award-winning columnist for Flamingo Magazine, where her humorous “Panhandling” column has delighted readers for almost a decade. Her signature blend of wit, candor, and messy Southern charm earned her the 2025 Charlie Award for Best Column. She is the author of two acclaimed memoirs—Far Outside the Ordinary and […]

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Patavian Lewis

Tracey Patavian Lucillience Lewis was raised by her grandparents, George and Stephanie Clinton and due to her incredible intonation at a very young age, she appears on albums with granddad George and the P-Funk All-Stars at starting at age five. Patavian has been writing poetry since age seven. A lifelong artist, she joined George Clinton […]

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Yonder Mountain String Band

Yonder Mountain String Band

YMSB formed in 1998 in Nederland, Colorado, as a pioneering progressive bluegrass (“jamgrass”) group. Today, they are celebrated for blending traditional bluegrass with rock, punk, and improvisation. Inducted into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame in 2023, the band has released over 10 studio albums and is renowned for high-energy live performances featuring extended jams, […]

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Naomi Franquiz

Naomi Franquiz

Naomi “Franq” Franquiz (she/her) is a freelance illustrator and comic book artist, born and raised in Tallahassee, FL. After completing her Bachelor of Fine Arts from FSU in 2013, she has since gone on to illustrate pages for comic book series such as Misfit City (BOOM! Comics), Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (Marvel), and Proctor Valley Road […]

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Mike Matheny

Mike Matheny

Mike Matheny is a former Major League Baseball player and manager, New York Times bestselling author of The Matheny Manifesto, and one of the most respected voices on leadership in sports and business today. Over a 13-year career as a catcher, he earned four Gold Gloves and set defensive records for consistency and toughness. As […]

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Madison Hughes

Madison Hughes

A self-proclaimed late bloomer, Madison didn’t step into the spotlight until her time on The Voice. Inspired by ’70s folk-rock and modern Americana, her sound is raw, evocative, and timeless. Billboard magazine took notice, calling her “immensely talented” and “on a star-making trajectory.” With her new EP Desperate Man, Madison continues to prove what her […]

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Lee Bains III

Lee Bains

Lee Bains III is a songwriter and poet from Birmingham, Alabama, who has released four studio albums of what Rolling Stone calls “Southern Gospel punk” since 2012. His most recent album, Old-Time Folks, released by Don Giovanni Records in 2022, explored stories of People’s movements in the Deep South to acclaim from the likes of […]

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Stantawn Kendrick

Stantawn Kendrick is a saxophonist and educator from Thomson, Georgia, known for his warm tone, expressive clarity, and deep musical roots in both jazz and the church. A graduate of Valdosta State University and William Paterson University, he became a protégé of Clark Terry, touring with Terry’s big band and quintet for five years as […]

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Rhett DeVane

Rhett DeVane is the award-winning author of eight published mainstream fiction novels, one collection of short stories, middle grade fiction chapter books, and two coauthored novels. Her short fiction and poetry have appeared in numerous anthologies. Rhett pens stories to reflect the trials, joys, and humor of life in the Deep South. This past year, […]

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Michael Brodeur

Michael Brodeur

Michael Andor Brodeur is the author of “SWOLE: The Making of Men and the Meaning of Muscle” (Beacon Press) and has served as a staff critic across the arts for the Washington Post, the Boston Globe and the Boston Phoenix. He was also the founding editor of BOTH, the Boston-based literary journal and reading series. […]

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