GWEN DERU
TODAY…
**READ THE BIRMINGHAM TIMES. Catch up on the news!
**EVERY THURSDAY HAPPY HOUR, 5:30 – 9 p.m. at the Kappa Komplex, 45 6th Avenue South.
**KARAOKE, 5-9 p.m. at Courtyard Alabaster Bar and Grill.
**TASTEMAKER THURSDAY – Every Thursday at Blaze Ultra Lounge, 228 Roebuck Plaza Drive, 8 p.m.- 12 a.m. with DJ Ace Twon (95.7 JAMZ) in the mix hosted by Audio Life and GMC Promo.
**THIRSTY THURSDAY at Hookah 114 17th Street No.
**THIRD THURSDAY BLUES JAM, 7 p.m. at True Story Brewing.
FRIDAY…
**QUE’S BAR & GRILL GROOVIN’ on 19th Street in Ensley.
**LIT FRIDAYS WITH RIPCORD, 8 p.m. – 2 a.m. at 4501 Gary Avenue in Fairfield.
**TRIBUTE TO MAXWELL FEATURING DOMINIQUE at the Perfect Note.
**A WEEKEND WITH TRAGIC CITY (NIGHT ONE) featuring JASON GRUBBS and RESORT REALISM at The Nick.
**AFRO CARIBBEAN NIGHTS (Every Friday Night) at Ash’s on 2nd, 7 p.m. until with Reggae, Afro Beats, Dancehall and Top 40 Hits.
**EVERY THIRD FRIDAYS with DEIRDRE GADDIS at Perfect Note.
SATURDAY…
**SATURDAYS IN THE GARDENS at Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
**WINE DOWN HAPPY HOUR, 4-9 p.m. at Saferoom Lounge Bar.
**MS. JOHNNIE AND THE JAMMERS Live After Five, 7-10 p.m. at Bistro on 19th located at 109 19th St. N., Bessemer. EVERY 2nd and 4th SATURDAY!!
**TRIBUTE TO PATTI LA BELLE featuring DEDEE FRAZIER at Perfect Note.
SUNDAY…
**WORSHIP AT THE SIXTH, 9:30 a.m. at Sixth Avenue Baptist Church.
**WOODLAWN STREET MARKET, 12 p.m. at Woodlawn Street Market.
**HAPPY HOUR WITH HAM BAGBY, 5 p.m.– 7 p.m. at The Nick
MONDAY…
**REGGAE MUSIC EVERY MONDAY NIGHT with DJ DUSTY, 8 p.m. at Black Magic 2904 Lomb Avenue.
**EVERY MONDAY is MONSLAYYY – THE CARIBBEAN WAY, 8 p.m. at the Vault with TRINI and BRENT TRINI-FRESH PIERRE. FREE.
**BIRMINGHAM BANDSTAND (Open Mic) at The Nick.
TUESDAY…
**EVERY TUESDAY – TRUE STORY BREWING PRESENTS TUESDAY JAZZ SESSIONS, 7- 10 p.m., 5510 Crestwood Blvd.
**TASTY TUESDAYS at Platinum of Birmingham.
**EVERY TUESDAY LIT AND JAZZ with DAVID TALLEY AND FRIENDS, 7 p.m. at Lit on 8th, 518 Rev. Abraham Woods Blvd.
WEDNESDAY…
**INTERFAITH NOONDAY PRAYER SERVICES every Wednesday, Noon at Linn Park in Downtown Birmingham.
**WEDNESDAYS WEEKLY JAZZ JAM, 7- 10 p.m. at True Story Brewing Company, 5510 Crestwood Blvd. Food until 9 p.m. Music until 10 p.m. and Drink until 11 p.m.
**REGGAE WEDNESDAY NIGHTS, 8 p.m. at Blue Onyx.
**KARAOKE at The Nick. Free.
NEXT THURSDAY…
**READ THE BIRMINGHAM TIMES. Catch up on the news!
NEXT FRIDAY…
**QUE’S BAR & GRILL GROOVIN’ on 19th Street in Ensley.
**LIT FRIDAYS WITH RIPCORD, 8 p.m. – 2 a.m. at 4501 Gary Avenue in Fairfield.
(Photo: Comedian Karlous Miller) (Photo Credit: Provided)
**TRIBUTE TO MONICA featuring MELISSA CAMPBELL at the Perfect Note.
**84 AND A TRIBUTE TO VAN HALEN at Iron City.
NEWS TO USE…
FOR THE COMMUNITY…
**CONGRATULATIONS TO PERFECT NOTE! – Perfect Note, Our Blues and Jazz Club, is opening another location in Atlanta, Georgia. Congratulations on six years in Birmingham.
(Photo: Sonja Smith) (Provided)
(Photo Damon Treadwell) (Provided)
**BIRMINGHAM SISTER CITIES BOARD MEMBERS – appointed two new board members to the Birmingham Sister Cities Commission. Sonja Smith serves as a board member of the Birmingham City Schools serving District 8 and program manager for UAB’s Lifespan Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center. Damon Treadwell is owner of Mobile Luxury and Auto Broker. Their appointments began January 1, 2022, and will continue through January 2025, with an option to be considered for a second term. Smith and Treadwell join a roster of nine other new board members who include community leaders, educators, artists, and business leaders. They include the following: Karim Shamsi-Basha, Author, Photographer, and Journalist; Jennifer Gowers, President of GoPro Event Solutions; Shia Hendricks, Category Management Manager for the Kellogg Company; Drew Jackson, Founder and CEO of StreetMetrics; Karla Khodanian, Investor Relations for Birmingham Business Alliance; Montiqua Mathers, People Leader at Waste Management; Blair Minyard, Mechanical Engineer at B.L. Harbert International, LLC; Byron Perkins, Attorney and Managing Partner at Perkins-Law, LLC and Majd Zayzafoon, Associate Provost for International Education and Assistant Dean for International Medical Education. Birmingham Sister Cities (BSC) is dedicated to cultivating and promoting global cooperation, encouraging cultural understanding, and facilitating economic development between the Birmingham metropolitan community and cities around the world.
FOR YOUR ENTERTAINEMNT…
**PLAY – A stage play, GOD’S TRYING TO TELL YOU SOMETHING, Saturday, 7 p.m. at the BJCC Concert Hall with BEVERLY CRAWFORD, H.B. BARNUM and LE’ANDRIA JOHNSON, ELAINE MOONIE, JARRETT JJ MOONIE and TIFFANY BINION MANGUM.
**CAPRICORNS SOIREE – CHRIS COLEMAN’S BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION January 15 at Goudy Entertainment in Fairfield with the Origianl Capricorn TurnUp.
**BROADWAY COMES TO BIRMINGHAM – DEAR EVAN HANSEN, a Tony Award winning musical opens at the BJCC Concert Hall 21-22 Broadway season with seven performances Jan. 19-23. Performance schedule is: Wednesday and Thursday – 7:30 p.m., Friday 8 p.m., Saturday – 2 and 8 p.m. and Sunday – 1 and 6:30 p.m. The winner of six 2017 Tony Awards (including Best Musical) and the 2018 Grammy Award for Best musical Theater Album, DEAR EVAN HANSEN is the deeply personal and profoundly contemporary musical about life and the way we live it. DEAR EVAN HANSEN is part of the BROADWAY IS BACK IN BIRMINGHAM SERIES. The American Theatre Guild is a 501(c)(3) organization and the largest not-for-profit touring Broadway Presenter in the nation, supports Broadway seasons in 14 markets including: Birmingham, AL. The American Theatre Guild is dedicated to providing the experiencef love theater to foster passion, inspire creativity and empower youth within each community. For more, BroadwayinBirmingham.com or DearEvanHansen.com
**RESTAURANT WEEK, January 20-29 all around town.
AT SIDEWALK FESTIVAL…
(Photo: Hidden Figures) (Provided)
**ADAPTATION CLUB – Sign up for February’s club on HIDDEN FEGURES. Deadline is January 12 with the screening/discussion on February 8.
**FILMMAKER HAPPY HOUR – Join the Sidewalk Cinema every 3rd Thursday. No registration and FREE. Get to the Cinema Bar on January 20, 5-7 p.m.
**SIDEWALK CALL FOR ENTRIES – Submit your short or feature screenplay to Sidewrite. Check out FilmFreeway and submit before the next submission deadline at Sidewalkfest.com.
AT THE BIRMINGHAM ZOO…
(Birmingham Zoo Glow Wild Logo)
**GLOW WILD – Glow Wild: An Animal Lantern Celebration is on select nights now through January 2022. Perfect for the entire family, guests will be captivated by jaw-dropping lantern creations of wildlife and plants of all sizes soaring up to 30 feet high! The Zoo will brilliantly sparkle to light up the night and offer something for everyone to enjoy! Take a wild ride on the Red Diamond Radiant Express Train* or go for a spin on the Protective Life Jingle Bell Carousel* (additional cost). Glow Wild is a weather-dependent event with nights being subject to cancellation. Please be aware that as a night event, Zoo animals will not be viewable during the event.
AT THE WORLD GAMES 2022…
The World Games is bringing greatness to The Magic City!
**NEWSWEEK NAMES THE WORLD GAMES ONE OF 22 GREAT THINGS IN 2022…The World Games Birmingham was named one of the 22 Great Things that will take place in 2022.
**CONDE NAST TRAVELER NAMES BIRMINGHAM ONE OF THE 22 BEST PLACES TO GO IN 2022 partially because the city is hosting The World Games 2022.
**THE WORLD GAMES 2022 BIRMINGHAM takes place from Thursday, July 7 to Sunday, July 17. This will be the 40th Anniversary of the event. There will be more than 100 countries, 3,600 athletes that will compete for gold in 34 unique, multi-disciplinary sports that include artistic sports, Bali sports, Martial Arts, precision sports, strength sports and trend sports. Tickets are available. Go to www.Twg2022.com for more.
AT IRON CITY
**FEBRUARY 18 – TODD SNIDER.
**SUNDAY DAYHIKE, Meet 1:15 p.m. at Southeastern Outings Second Sunday Dayhike in Oak Mountain State Park – DETAILS: Enjoy a moderate four-mile walk in the woodlands near Birmingham on a Sunday afternoon. This is an excellent outing for introducing your friends to Southeastern Outings and for making new friends who enjoy the outdoors. Parts of this hike may be off the color-coded trails. There will be some ups and downs. Well-behaved, properly supervised children age 8 and up able to walk the distance of about four miles and complete the hike are welcome. Bring a friend. Optional dinner after the hike. Meet at 1:15 p.m. in the Oak Mountain Park office parking lot. Plan to depart at 1:30 p.m. Bring $5/person ($2 seniors) park admission fee plus your drink. Info: Randall Adkins, 205-317-6969.
FOR ART LOVERS …
AT BIRMINGHAM MUSEUM OF ART…
**VOICES SO TRUE: NEW NATIVE AMERICAN ART from the Clyde Oyster Bequest – This exhibition is now until January 30, 2022. OT features the work of seven contemporary Native American artists: NORMAN AKERS, SHAN GOSHOM, LARRY MCNEIL, KAY WALKING STICK, WENDY RED STAR, EUGENE TAPAHE and ZOE MARIEH URNESS. They are affiliated with different tribal nations including Crow, Eastern Band Cherokee, Mohawk, Navajo, Osage, Tlingit and more. The exhibition includes photographs, prints, paintings and basketry.
**LOST REALMS OF THE MOUNDBUILDERS OF THE SOUTH AND MIDWEST explores the archaeology and history of the Mississippi Moundbuilders. If you grew up in Alabama, you may be familiar with Moundville, located just south of Tuscaloosa. These ancient builders of North America, aka the Mississippians, were one of our country’s most important Native American Cultures. According to historians, the world they created was equal to that of the Aztec, Maya or Inca. The exhibition features objects from four major Moundbuilder sites: Spiro Mounds in Oklahoma, Moundville in Alabama, Etowah Mounds in Georgia and Cahoka Mounds in East Saint Louis, Illinois. This exhibition runs until February 6, 2022. Next stop Dallas. Curated by Dr. Emily G. Hanna, Senior Curator, Arts of Africa and the Americas and Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the Birmingham Museum of Art.
COMING SOON…
**JULY 7-17, 2022 – THE WORLD GAMES are coming. Look for more!
Well, that’s it. Tell you more ‘next’ time. People, Places and Things by Gwen DeRu is a weekly column. Send comments to my emails: gwenderu@yahoo.com
