Gwen DeRu
TODAY…
**READ THE BIRMINGHAM TIMES. Catch up on the news!
**THURSDAY NIGHT WORKOUTS with Live Females at the Blu Onyx.
**CYBERDELICS + BUGWHORE + P.O.T.I.S. at The Nick.
**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.
**TEQUILA THURSDAY at the Vibe Bar & Lounge.
**THROW BACK THURSDAY at Tha Vibe Bar & Lounge, 3801 Richard Arrington, Jr., Blvd.
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.
**SAXOPHONIST PAUL TAYLOR at Perfect Note.
**COLORS R&B ONLY at Iron City.
**MOJOTHUNDER with DREAM JACUZZI at The Nick.
**LIT FRIDAYS WITH RIPCORD, 8 p.m. – 2 a.m. at 4501 Gary Avenue in Fairfield.
**FREE HOOKAH FRIDAYS at Blu Onyx, 10 p.m.
**QUE’S BAR & GRILL GROOVIN’ on 19th Street in Ensley.
**AFRO CARIBBEAN NIGHTS (Every Friday Night) at Ash’s on 2nd, 7 p.m. until with Reggae, Afro Beats, Dancehall and Top 40 Hits.
**FIREBALL FRIDAY at Tha Vibe Bar & Lounge.
SATURDAY…
**HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE COLLECT DAY, 8 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. at the following locations: *First Baptist Church Gardendale – South, 940 Main Street, Gardendale 35071, *Classic Car Motoring, 3900 Grants Mill Road, Irondale 35210, and *City of Bessemer Public Works Laydown Yard, 1205 15th Avenue North, Bessemer, 35020.
**SPRING FLING MARKET, 1-5 p.m. at Ross Bridge
**SATURDAYS IN THE GARDENS at Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
**WINE DOWN HAPPY HOUR, 4 p.m.- 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!!
**SOLD OUT SATURDAYS at the Blu Onyx Every Saturday.
**CIROC SATURDAYS at Blu Onyx.
**ROB LEINES + THE COMANCHEROS at The Nick.
**SAXOPHONIST PAUL TAYLOR, 7 p.m. 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.
**FOODIES, BEATZ, VIBEZ, 2-9 p.m. at 604 Bar & Lounge at 604 9th St. No.
**THE ZOMBIES at Iron City.
**HAPPPY HOUR w/TAYLOR HOLLINGSWORTH AND GIRLS ROUND with ANNA HOPE at The Nick.
**2 SEXY SUNDAY at the Blu Onyx, 8- 12 p.m.
**WOW GOSPEL TRIBUTE w/ JEREMY HILL at Perfect Note.
**SUNDAY FUNDAY for the grown Folks Kickback at Tha Vibe Bar & Lounge.
MONDAY…
**EVERY MONDAY is MONSLAYYY – THE CARIBBEAN WAY, 8 p.m. at the Vault with TRINI and BRENT TRINI-FRESH PIERRE. FREE.
**RICHIE RAMONE w/ BASSAMP & DANO AND SKEPTIC? at The Nick.
TUESDAY…
**INDUSTRY NIGHT TUESDAY at Blu Onyx, 8 p.m.
**EVERY TUESDAY – TRUE STORY BREWING 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.
**FAT TUESDAY at Tha Vibe Bar & Lounge.
**BUFFALO NICHOLS w. KYLE KIMBRELL at The Nick.
WEDNESDAY…
**INTERFAITH NOONDAY PRAYER SERVICES every Wednesday, Noon at Linn Park in Downtown Birmingham.
**THE WORST w/ SKOAL! at The Nick.
**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.
**OPEN BAR WEDNESDAY, 8 p.m. at Blu Onyx.
NEXT THURSDAY…
**READ THE BIRMINGHAM TIMES. Catch up on the news!
**THURSDAY NIGHT WORKOUTS with Live Females at the Blu Onyx.
**IAN & THE COSMIC DADDIES at The Nick.
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.
**R&B VOCALIST DEIRDRE GADDIS featuring JAY LAMBERT at Perfect Note.
**SWIFT AND SOUR-A TAYLOR & OLIVIA DANCE PARTY at Iron City.
**UNTIL ROCKETS SAVIOR OF THE KNIGHT RELEASE SHOW at The Nick.
NEWS TO USE…
**GROWN MAN ISSUES – THE STAGE PLAY, through SUNDAY. This is a musical theatrical production mixed with R&B and Soul at Encore Theatre. CLARISSA KENTY is joining the cast as Nancy. Grown Man Issues features WILLIE TAYLOR, from Days24, Love & Hip Hop Hollywood, MTV’s Making the Band4 and Marriage BootCamp. MARC RABY writes it with musical direction by DEE HILL. Go to www.encorebham.org for more.
**BLOOD NEEDED BLOOD DRIVE – The American Red Cross, City of Birmingham and Birmingham Botanical Gardens are hosting a BLOOD DRIVE, WEDNESDAY, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. in Strange Auditorium at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Schedule an appointment, visit redcrossblood.org and use sponsor code “Rotary” or call 1-800-RED Cross (1-800-733-2767).
FOR THE CHILDREN…
**EASTER EGG HUNT – Birmingham Park and Recreation Easter Egg Hunt, Legion Field Stadium Soccer Field, 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Games, refreshments and fun. Free! Call 205-254-2391.
**SUMMER CAMP – Birmingham Park and Recreation Summer Camp, June 6 – July 30, ages 5 – 12. Educational enrichment, athletics, arts and crafts and more! Call 205-254-2303 for information on a camp near you.
**OPERA BIRMINGHAM CONCERT FOR CHILDREN – Opera Birmingham presents a FREE popular pop-up concert with its series, Opera Shots. The concert will take place at Railroad Park on SATURDAY, 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. Bring your own refreshments, picnic blankets and lawn chairs. Opera Shots concerts are held monthly throughout the fall and spring, as Opera Birmingham pops up at unexpected locations all across the Birmingham Metro area. Save the date for the Opera Shots Street Party on May 15 at 5 p.m. on Second Avenue South in front of The Collins Bar.
**THE SPONGE BOB MUSICAL…Theatre UAB will present “The SpongeBob Musical,” (adapted from the iconic television series), at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Shows are nightly at 7:30 p.m. April 13-16, with a matinee performance at 2 p.m. April 17, in the Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center’s Sirote Theatre. Call 205-975-2787 or visit AlysStephens.org.
IN THE COMMUNITY…
AT THE BIRMINGHAM BOTANICAL GARDENS…
**SPRING PLANT SALE 2022…Talk with Carol Payne and dozens of other expert gardeners when you shop Spring Plant Sale 2022 on tomorrow, FRIDAY (Member Shopping) and SATURDAY (Public Sale) at the Gardens. Carol, sometimes called Lavender Lady, will share info for those seeking out and tending specialty lavenders for sale.
**TIPS FOR GROWING VEGETABLES IN SMALL SPACES… Learn about the Seed Exchange at the Library at the Gardens and discover vegetable, fruit, and herb seeds on SUNDAY, 2-4 p.m. Get planting practice through hands-on time in our Enabling Garden.
**CHILDREN’S SPRINGTIME GARDEN KIT…Celebrate the bounty of the springtime garden by crafting with botanicals and your budding gardener needs to craft a pressed flower suncatcher, botanical bookmark, and handmade card. Order through Friday, April 29, for pickup May 4–6 at the Library at the Gardens. For more info, visit www.bbgardens.org/spring.
AT SIXTH AVENUE BAPTIST CHURCH
…SEE YOU AT THE SIXTH …
**EVERY MONDAY MORNING MEDITATION WITH PASTOR CANTELOW, 7:15 a.m. Contact the church at (205) 321-1136 or (205) 321-1137.
**HEART HEALTH, MONDAY, 6:30 p.m. with Ann Heard-Nesbitt.
**SAVE THE DATE – COUPLES VIRTUAL SEMINAR, KEEP THE HOME FIRES BURNING, April 30, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. on Zoom.
AT SPACE ONE ELEVEN…
**PAINTING THE FIGURE WITH DAVID BAIRD – SPACE ONE ELEVEN is enrolling participants in the Painting the Figure class on Tuesdays, May 3- May 24, 6 – 8 p.m. The focus of this class will be developing paintings in oil from a live model, with an emphasis on color mixing. Baird began his training at the Ryder Studio School in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He went on to attend classes at Studio Escalier (Argenton Chateau/Paris, France), and The Jerusalem Studio School (Jerusalem, Israel), as well as benefitting from extensive exposure to some of Europe’s greatest museums and works of art. For more, info@spaceoneeleven.org.
**SPOKEN WORD POETRY SALON WITH DALAAM GREEN – SPACE ONE ELEVEN is hosting its Seriously, Unserious Spoken Word Poetry Salon on Sundays, May 1 – May 29, 1 – 3 p.m. There is a community gathering on Sunday June 5, 5-7 p.m. ALL are welcome. Spoken word tells a story using rhythm, repetition, improvisation, and wordplay. It also can focus on issues of social change. There will be a spoken word gathering following the five-week class highlighting the healing power of our work and words. Green is a certified practitioner and trainer for the Kellogg Foundation’s Truth Racial Healing & Transformation process, a former Reimagining Justice and Women’s Policy Fellow, and a Community Village awardee for gender justice work in the south. Salaam Green is an award winning Poet, Writer, Master Healer, creator of What Black Women Want You to Know, and founder of Literary Healing Arts, LLC, where she supports individuals and organizations in using writing, poetry, and storytelling to reclaim their voices and transform their lives. For more, info@spaceoneeleven.org.
**DOCUMENTARIES: If you love documentaries — and especially if you love free, high-quality documentaries that you can watch in their entirety on YouTube with no ad breaks — then you should check out Indebted to All Women (En Deuda con Todas) directed by María Lobo and Roi Guitián. It offers a sobering look into El Salvador’s draconian abortion ban and the legion of impoverished women who end up behind bars simply for suffering miscarriages and stillbirths. The heart-wrenching doc just won the Leslie J. Sacks Best Documentary Feature prize at the Women’s Voices Now film festival. Pro-tip — non-Spanish speakers can hit the CC button for very accurate subtitles.
FOR FOOD LOVERS AND MORE…
**CCDN FOOD HUBWEDNESDAY, Every Wednesday of each month in Fountain Heights Old Sardis Baptist Church, 1240 4th Street North, 10 – noon. For more, www.communitycaredn.org.
**ROSS BRIDGE FARMERS MARKET, May 13, 4 p.m.
(Look for more about plants, gardening, food, environment and Mother Earth.)
FOR MUSIC LOVERS, SPOKEN WORD AND COMEDY…
**WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL, April 23 featuring BIG FITZ THE POET, POETICALLY EMBODIED, MOTORCITY FATTS, CASH, FREANKNALDO, COMEDIAN EUGENE and GLENWOOD URBZ at A Place to Remember Event Center, 202 By Williams Sr., Dr. in Midfield, 7 p.m.
**FRIDAY NIGHT RAP, Every 1st and 3rd Friday at Crescent Cultural Center, 1121 Tuscaloosa Avenue, W.
**SAXOPHONIST GERALD ALBRIGHT, April 16, 6 p.m. at Perfect Note with 2 shows.
**DOMINIQUE HAMMONS, April 16, with 2 shows at Square’s on 27th Street North.
**KEITH SWEAT, MONICA, TAMAR BRAXTON, GINUWINE and SILK, June 5 at Legacy Arena. This is Birmingham R&B Music Experience.
FOR OUTDOORS LOVERS…
**SUNDAY DAYHIKE– Meet 1:45 p.m. with Southeastern Outings Second Sunday Dayhike in Oak Mountain State Park – DETAILS: Enjoy a moderate four to five-mile walk in the woodlands near Birmingham on a Sunday afternoon. There will be some ups and downs. Well-behaved, properly supervised children age 8 and up able to walk without complaining are welcome. Meet at 1:45 p.m. in the Oak Mountain Park office parking lot. Depart at 2 p.m.Bring $5/person ($2 seniors) park admission fee plus your drink. Info. and Trip Leader: Randall Adkins, 205/317-6969.
**WEDNESDAY WEEKDAY HIKE, Meet 9 a.m. at Beeswax Creek Park, Lay Lake, Wilsonville, Alabama– DETAILS: Beeswax Creek Park, bordered by Beeswax Creek to its north and Lay Lake (Coosa River) to its east, is located in the Columbiana/Wilsonville area. Beeswax Creek Park has many amenities. Alabama Power Company, through its “The Preserves” program, has added a boardwalk, a bridge to the trail system, created a pollinator plot with interpretive signs, and built two gazebos overlooking Lay Lake. Meet at 9 a.m. at the Publix in Lee Branch. Depart at 9:15 a.m. FREE. Info. and trip Leader: Francis Rushton, 205-290-5557.
FOR SPORTS LOVERS…
(Photo: TSSW Riley Green) (Provided)
AT TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY… KLĒNSKIN will serve as the official sponsor of KLĒNSKIN Pole Qualifying on Saturday, 10 a.m., April 23, to determine the starting lineup for the GEICO 500 NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday, April 24. Every driver will take one timed lap around the 2.66-mile tri-oval. The top 10 will transfer to the final round for one timed lap determining the pole winner and starting grid for Sunday’s GEICO 500 (2 p.m. CDT start). The Ag-Pro 300 follows the General Tire 200 ARCA Menards Series race at 12 Noon CDT, for the NASCAR Xfinity Series at 3 p.m. CDT. Saturday’s activities continue with the traditional Saturday Night Infield Concert taking place at the intersection of Eastaboga and Talladega Blvd(s) featuring country music artist and Alabama native RILEY GREEN. Call 1-877-Go2-DEGA or visit www.talladegasuperspeedway.com for more.
AT BARBER’S MOTORSPORTS…
**RACING FOR CHILDREN’S IS CHARITY PARTNER OF HONDA INDY GRAND PRIX OF ALABAMA – Racing for Children’s returns as the official charity partner of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. The race provides a platform for Racing for Children’s to tell their stories to the community throughout the weekend on April 29 – May 1. Racing for Children’s raises funds and awareness for the Alabama Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s, which treats more than 90 percent of Alabama children diagnosed with cancer or blood disorders.
**USFL PRODUCES THE SERIES UNITED BY FOOTBALL: A SEASON IN THE USFL – The United By Football: A Season in the USFL, is a 13-episode behind-the- scenes capturing the athlete personalities as they pursue their dreams. The one-hour series premiere airs Saturday, April 16 at 6:30 p.m. ET on FOX pitting the New Jersey Generals against the Birmingham Stallions at 7:30 p.m. The 12 episodes following the season premiere every Saturday or Sunday for 30-minutes on FOX, preceding most USFL on FOX pregame or game coverage.
AT THE WORLD GAMES 2022… (Keeping it right here!!! Look for more!)
The World Games is bringing greatness to The Magic City!
**TWG MEDALS ARE HERE – Check them out on the www.twg2022.com site.
**TWG T-SHIRTS – Get your TWG2022 T-Shirts at the www.twg2022.com.
**TWG TAG – Get your TWG2022 Tag at the www.twg2022.com.
**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.
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 and thelewisgroup@birminghamtimes.com.
