Fort Worth Weekly // March 13-19, 2024

Old-Timey Tunes

Black artists from across the country converge on Fort Worth Saturday to celebrate our musical roots.

BY STEVE STEWARD

FEATURE

The forthcoming National Juneteenth Museum has humble beginnings.

BY MADISON SIMMONS

ATE DAY8 A WEEK

There’s lots to do across North Texas this St. Paddy’s Day weekend.

BY JENNIFER BOVEE

EATS & DRINKS

Visit Atlas in SoMa for a boozy trip around the world.

BY CHRISTINA BERGER

BUCK U

Win or lose against OU, TCU’s Big Dance resume still looks good.

BY BUCK ELLIOTT

INSIDE

Celebration Day

It’s almost time for work to begin on the National Juneteenth Museum on the South Side.

By Madison Simmons

Global Sensations

There’s a trip in every tipple at Atlas in SoMa.

By Christina Berger

Hellhounds Half-Acre

With the fourth annual fest Saturday, Fort Worth can say it’s the only major U.S. city to celebrate Black traditional musics.

By Steve Steward

Dancing Shoes

By Buck D. Elliott

Cover

Anthony Mariani, Editor

Lee Newquist, Publisher

Bob Niehoff, General Manager

Ryan Burger, Art Director

Jim Erickson, Circulation Director

Emmy Smith, Proofreader

Michael Newquist, Regional Sales Director

Jennifer Bovee, Marketing Director

Stacey Hammons, Senior Account Executive

Julie Strehl, Account Executive

Tony Diaz, Account Executive

Wyatt Newquist, Digital Coordinator

Clintastic, Brand Ambassador CONTRIBUTORS

Christina Berger, E.R. Bills, Jason Brimmer, Buck D. Elliott, Juan R. Govea, Patrick Higgins,

Laurie James, Kristian Lin, Cody Neathery, Wyatt Newquist, Steve Steward, Teri Webster, Ken Wheatcroft-Pardue, Elaine Wilder, Cole Williams EDITORIAL

Laurie James, Anthony Mariani, Emmy Smith, Steve Steward

Courtesy

Home of Juneteenth

With the museum opening in 2026, Fort Worth will add to our country’s dialogue about race.

BY MADISON SIMMONS

Ground will be broken this year on the National Juneteenth Museum on the Historic South Side. A combined vision of the Grandmother of Juneteenth, Dr. Opal Lee, and community leader and museum CEO Jarred Howard, the multipurpose space will open in 2026.

The idea started with a conversation in Lee’s living room in 2018. At the time, Howard, who grew up on the South Side, was an executive with the Chamber of Commerce, and he had to deliver some bad news to his family friend: The chamber could not financially support one of Lee’s causes.

“And what about you, Jarred?” Howard recalls Lee saying. “What will you do?”

Howard shared with her a vision that he had held in his heart for years. He imagined a multipurpose campus that would serve the community not just as a museum but also as a gathering place, entertainment venue, and economic center. He said he envisioned the museum on the South Side, where Lee is also from, but he had no land.

“Look no further,” she told him. “You have the property you need,” and offered him the lot she owned on the 900 block of East Rosedale Street.

Lee had operated her own Juneteenth museum out of a house on the property. The holiday, long celebrated in Texas, commemorates the date Union troops came to Galveston in 1865, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, and freed more than 250,000 people still enslaved. The retired schoolteacher began fighting for national recognition for Juneteenth in 2016. She started a walking campaign from Fort Worth to Washington, D.C., stopping to make speeches and gather signatures on a petition along the way. In June 2021, President Joe Biden signed the bipartisan law declaring Juneteenth a federal holiday.

Lee and Howard have worked closely with each other and with the community on plans for the museum since the start. Howard said members of the Historic Southside Neighborhood Association have advised the museum board at every step of the process.

“The South Side is [filled] with historical events and figures, many of whom are no longer reflected in our textbooks and annals,” he added. “As the city of Fort Worth grows and evolves, I wanted to make sure this pocket of Fort Worth was included.”

Designed by BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) with lead designer Douglass Alligood and executive architect KAI Enterprises, the 50,000-square-foot center will hold the museum itself, a theater for lectures and performances, a food hall, a business incubator for new minority-owned businesses, and a public courtyard and greenspace. l

Howard: “The South Side is [filled] with historical events and figures, many of whom are no longer reflected in our textbooks and annals.”

Courtesy Jarred Howard

The 50,000-square-foot center will hold the museum itself, a theater for lectures and performances, a food hall, a business incubator for new minority-owned businesses, and a public courtyard and greenspace.

Courtesy Bjarke Ingels Group

The Grandmother of Juneteenth, Dr. Opal Lee, helped create the National Juneteenth Museum.

Courtesy Opal Lee

Ground

be broken this year on the National Juneteenth Museum on the Historic South Side.

Courtesy

The

Viral Me, Elmo

The timing of an unflattering video by an ex-zoo employee is

METROPOLIS

dramatic video taken at the zoo more than four months earlier on Oct 20, 2023. The reason? White has said that he was browsing through his reels and stumbled upon the footage of a musclebound gorilla barreling around a habitat with two zookeepers mistakenly inside.

The viral video captures the heart-stopping moment when a zookeeper slams a plastic tub of vegetables on the ground and flees after realizing that the zoo’s 420-pound silverback is charging in her direction from a cave. Elmo sprints across the habitat, toppling the tub

Zoo guests are heard praying aloud in the video, saying things like “God, help her.”

Although the count is still rolling, the video has over 170 million plays on White’s TikTok page alone. On Monday, White posted a Cash App link with a statement that any donations would go to “gorilla conservation.” He also asked viewers to send memes of the zoo incident.

White did not film the clip. A zoo visitor shared the video with him to help assist the zoo with its review of the incident, said Avery Elander, the Fort Worth Zoo’s director of marketing and public relations. She also explained what happened that day: “Every day, the zookeepers shift the gorilla troop into their indoor habitat so that keepers can place the animals’ lunch in their outdoor habitat. Due to keeper error, staff entered the yard unaware that the silverback was still in its habitat. The zookeepers work with and train these animals every day, and thanks to their knowledge and expertise, they navigated the situation calmly and were able to exit the yard safely.”

Elander added that White was “employed for about seven months and his last day was in February.” She also said zoo security employees are not required to sign nondisclosure agreements.

The closeness of White’s departure and the subsequent decision to release the footage is odd at best.

The video came out not long after the zoo received a flurry of accolades for the emergency delivery of a baby gorilla via c-section after the mother experienced life-threatening pregnancy complications. Both Mom Sekani and Baby Jameela are doing well. However, Jameela’s future at the zoo is in question as both Sekani and a would-be surrogate mom, Gracie, have not stepped in full-time to raise her. As we said last week, the zoo has said it wants Jameela to be raised by gorillas, not people. One of the options under consideration is moving her to another zoo if that is deemed to be in Jameela’s best interest.

If the video only received dozens of views instead of millions, would national and local media have picked it up? No chance.

Another question is the level of privacy employees and others should expect, even in a public setting. No one would enjoy having a bad day on the job filmed and played for millions of viewers. Plus, the error may not have even been the fault of the two zookeepers in the video.

Most importantly, no one, including Elmo, was hurt in what could have been a dire situation. At the end of the video, the striking 34-year-old gorilla almost seems remorseful as he picks up a bucket left behind by one of the keepers and gently carries it as he walks toward the door where they made their exit. l

This column reflects the opinions of the editorial board and not the Fort Worth Weekly. To submit a column, please email Editor Anthony Mariani at Anthony@ FWWeekly.com. He will gently edit it for clarity and concision.

Each month you’ll find something different—from performances, artist talks, and unique tours to art making, music, and films.

LETTERS Look Again

FWISD Kowtowing to Christian Nationalists?

The Fort Worth school district has adopted a sex ed curriculum that excludes Spanishspeaking families — and uses COVID relief funds inappropriately.

This is another instance of board trustees and the administration placing the concerns of non-stakeholders, particularly Christian Nationalists, above the needs of the student population, likely out of fear and from being reactive rather than responsive.

I don’t envy the trustees’ positions. I see the tremendous amount of work they do, but I cannot comprehend how a vendor lacking full Spanish translation managed to pass through the committee (other than that the law didn’t require the committee to have expertise).

This is where the board could have monitored the process and stepped in to

and brown students, yet their actions contradict this claim. They advocate for the ban of culturally relevant books and educational resources, oppose initiatives for mental health support like social-emotional learning, and protest funding for programs designed specifically for Black and brown students such as My Brother’s Keeper, My Sister’s Keeper and Girls, Inc.

Because trustees reacted to non-stakeholder concerns, they again failed in the process and our emergent bilinguals will not be supported. As long as board members continue to disregard the needs of Black and brown students, Black and brown students will continue to struggle. Early in the vetting process, the district should have stepped in and disqualified any vendor that was not fully translated.

support our emergent bilingual students. The trustees believe they didn’t have a choice. I disagree. While the law requires abstinence-centered education, it does not prevent the board from adopting a more comprehensive model with a better teaching methodology. It just has to be abstinence-forward.

Last year, FWISD purchased a sex ed curriculum that was fully translated into several languages and was abstinence-forward. ETR HealthSmart was an eight-year adoption, meaning the district would not need to purchase another curriculum for eight years. HealthSmart could have been supplemented to cover all state requirements for less money.

While the law requires the district to adopt a curriculum that covers the state requirements (TEKS), it doesn’t specify that it needs to through a singular vendor. It specifically says “curriculum materials,” plural.

The board could have balanced fiscal concerns with equity and supplemented ETR HealthSmart to cover all the TEKS for less money. Additionally, using COVIDrelief funds for a purchase that will need to happen again next year and does not serve all students as intended is inappropriate.

This decision was made reactively and in deference to our local Christian Nationalist groups. Christian Nationalists frequently assert their concern for Black

The committee was not qualified to see that problem in the first place. This is what happens when you reject expertise. While that rejection came from the state level, we need local leaders to do better.

Sabrina Ball

Tarrant County Chair, Defense of Democracy

This letter reflects the opinions and fact-gathering of the author(s) and only the author(s) and not the Fort Worth Weekly. To submit a letter, please email Editor Anthony Mariani at Anthony@FWWeekly.com. He will gently edit it for clarity and concision.

Happy Hour in the Kimbell Café

EVERY FRIDAY, 5–7 pm

Live music | Beer | Wine | Food Admission to the permanent collection is always free. View the full schedule of exhibitions, events, and programs at kimbellart.org

Did FWISD bow to the vocal minority?

Courtesy ETR HealthSmart

LEARNING LOCAL

Overthrowing the Demagogue Pimps and Propagandists Through Reading, Writing, and Thinking

By Bob Scranton

In the fourth chapter of Focus: Elevating the Essentials to Radically Improve Student Learning by Mike Schomokr, the author reflects on the current state-mandated curriculum and local teaching practices that damage, hinder, and impede the learning process. Students quite often fail to gain insight into the deeper stratum of knowledge presented because too much attention focuses on terminology, memorization, and testing scores. Strong evidence shows that a complete overhaul of the current English Language Arts (ELA) education practices should begin immediately.

This reorganization has its basis in historical practices existing prior to the acceptance of standardized testing. This reorganization will not, as is shown, be difficult to implement, and, in fact, it could take as little as one semester.

“Too long have we ignored our children while we patted ourselves on the back for what we took to be success when, instead, it was abuse.”

Overhauling the ELA education system by moving it toward a truly functioning method of instruction must include several key factors.

This new system will focus on frequent and diverse reading of texts, the basics of writing, and the analysis of literature for character, theme, and culture. This new system will lead to students coming to understand the many aspects of literature. This new system should also have purpose-driven prompts for reading that guide students toward a deeper understanding not only of the characters present in the novel but also as a way to link the events in the novel to actual-world issues.

Revamping the ELA curriculum so that it is substantive and valuable through these methods brings substance to the ELA

programs that make all its aspects hold value, realism, and truth instead of the current illusionary practices that value all show but no substance.

Too long have we ignored our children while we patted ourselves on the back for what we took to be success when, instead, it was abuse. Abuse of our children, abuse of our teachers, abuse of our citizens, abuse of truth, abuse of substance, and abuse of knowledge encompass much of the totality of that which is wrong in current educational trends. It was an abuse born out of fear that far too many politicians and administrators feel when challenged because far too often they have no real understanding, no substance, no knowledge of anything except perhaps doublespeak, though they are in charge, and thus they are incapable of repelling those individuals who would seek to rise beyond their station through trickery and lies–experts.

Read more at bit.ly/CatchAFallingSTAAR.

The work cited in this article is Focus: Elevating the Essentials to Radically Improve Student Learning (2nd edition) by Mike Schomoker.

Courtesy Amazon

ATE DAY8 of

While some people think that seven is a lucky number and others like three, in this column, we’re partial to eight. Just think of this as two four-leaf clovers. Along with a North Texas Top 3 headlined by a big block party in Arlington, a long-standing drinking day in Dallas, and a festival in Lewisville,

there are five great picks for Fort Worth, too. These are all alphabetical. We don’t play favorites, although I am obsessed with the Irish nachos at J. Gilligan’s. #JustSayin

North Texas Top 3

ARLINGTON

Along with the 45th annual St. Patrick’s Day Block Party at J. Gilligan’s Bar & Grill (400 E Abram St, 817-274-8561), Downtown Arlington will host various celebrations, including live music and pub crawls starting at 11am Sat. For a complete list of activities, entertainment options, and food and drink specials, visit DowntownArlington.org.

Limited-time food specials include a corned beef hash pizza at Old School Pizza

Tavern (603 W Abram St, 682-282-0886), an Irish potato cookie at Insomnia Cookies (200 E Abram St, Ste 100, 682-276-7212), a pickled-ranch grilled cheese sandwich at Sugar Bee Sweets & The Hive (201 N East St, 817-903-8661), and J. Gilligan’s famous Irish nachos, of course.

For drink specials, Ann’s Natural Grocery (101 E Abram St, Ste 140, 817-7177293) has a free beer tasting at 3pm; Cartel Taco Bar (506 E Division St, Ste 150, 817200-6364) will serve $7 Irish Car Bombs, $5 Jamos, and $3 domestic beers; Division Brewing (506 E Main St, 682-259-7011) is offering dollar-off pints if you’re wearing green; Hooligan’s Pub (310 E Abram St, Ste 150, 817-274-1232) has $3 shots and Irish drinks; and Kool Keg (207 S East St, 817461-6949) is doing $5 green beer and frozen margaritas, just to name a few places.

As part of the event, attendees can grab a punch card at any participating business with a purchase. If four or more businesses punch the card, the cardholder can find a Downtown Arlington booth in the area and receive a specialized St. Patrick’s Day pint glass and other goodies.

“We’re eager to have downtown filled with green, gold, and St. Patrick’s Day cheer,” said Maggie Campbell, president and CEO of Downtown Arlington Management Corporation. “It’s our way of bringing the continued on page 13

Courtesy Downtown Arlington

Courtesy Downtown Arlington

ATE DAY8 a week

continued from page 12

community together, engaging with businesses, and celebrating the holiday.”

DALLAS

If you’re headed to the free annual Greenville Avenue St. Patrick’s Day Parade, as much of North Texas will be on Saturday, I have two pieces of advice. Beat the crowds by going at sunrise and make DART your new best friend. You shouldn’t be drinking and driving anyway, so free public transportation is the smart move.

You could also start your day in Lower Greenville at the all-day/all-night party at Sundown at Granada (3520 Greenville Av, 214-823-8305) 10am Sat. The “bands, beats, beers, and DJs” start at noon. Vintage Pistol, Hive Mind Honey, Chancy, About You, and 57 Sauce will play on the main stage noon9pm, and on the roof, Sing Kumba & The Mystic Heights, Salamo Music, and Burning Slow perform 12:30pm-5pm. In the parking lot will be continuous DJ music. There’s no cover, but you must be 21 and up to attend.

The entire food menu will be available inside Sundown and on the roof. Only a special hand-held menu featuring pulled pork sliders, Sundown chicken strips, and more will be available for the party in the parking lot. For updates, keep an eye on Facebook. com/SundownatGranada.

At neighboring sister venue Granada Theater (3524 Greenville Av, 214-8249933), those 14 and up can come to a tribute night with The Tools playing Tool covers

and Nine Ish Nails covering NIN. Doors are at 6pm, and the show is at 8pm. Tickets start at $15 on Prekindle.com.

LEWISVILLE

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and Texas Independence Day in one event at St. Paddy’s Texas Style in Wayne Ferguson Plaza (150 W Church St, 972-219-3401) noon-7pm Sat. Admission and most activities are free, including carnival-type games, live entertainment, and mini train rides, plus face-painting sessions, food truck eats, and beer will be available for purchase.

Some delicious food options include DonutNV, Fried Ribs Mobile Food Truck, Holy Rollie Pastry Shop, Pop’s Kettle Corn, Nothing Bundt Cakes, and more. You’ll also be able to shop with many unique vendors selling CBD, gifts, and souvenirs.

Bands playing Irish folk, Celtic rock, Americana, and Texas country, including The 40 Acre Mule, Blaggards, and Kate Watson, are all on the schedule. Artist Santos Lozano will also return and create a chalk-art piece throughout the event.

Top 5 in Fort Worth

1.) As part of the 23rd annual Cowtown Goes Green festivities Saturday, old-timey string band Buttermilk Junction will perform traditional Irish music on the front lawn of the Livestock Exchange Building (131 E Exchange Av) in the Stockyards 2pm3pm. Along with the usual twice-daily cattle drives, enjoy armadillo races, cow-milking contests, dance-troupe performances, Old West gunfight shows, and other Irish music throughout the Stockyards 10am-8pm, continued on page 15

Order from the full food menu inside Sundown at Granada Saturday or from a limited handheld menu at the party in the parking lot.

Allison David Photography

ATE DAY8 a week

continued from page 13

plus a special rodeo at 1:30pm and an Irish-Western parade at 4pm. For the full schedule, visit FortWorthStockyards.com.

2.) Finn MacCool’s Pub (1700 8th Av, 817923-2121) invites you to “go luck yourself” this weekend. The pub will serve Irish whiskey paired with appetizers on Friday and an Irish brunch and dart tournament on Saturday. Then, on Sunday, there will be Irish food available all day and entertainment by Sammy & The Snakes. There is no cost to attend.

3.) Flying Saucer (111 E 3rd St, 817-3367470) is kicking off its Spring Live Music Series this weekend with the Yes Ma’am Band 9pm-midnight Fri, Justin Cashion 9pm-midnight Sat, and Caroline Grace 8pm Sun. Drink specials include $5 Peticolas Irish Fire Sales Fri-Sat and $5 Turning Point drafts and Irish cocktails Sun.

4.) McFly’s Pub (6104 LTJG Barnett Rd, 817-744-8272) will celebrate the holiday with a three-day St. Patrick’s Day Festival Fri-Sun that includes green beer, cocktails, and shots. Friday is Leprechaun Party Night with DJ Kreate 10pm-2pm and the Mission Burgers food truck on-site 5pm-11pm. On Saturday, there is a costume contest and live music by an Irish band helmed by local singer-songwriter extraordinaire Jacob Furr (8pm), the Yes Ma’am Band (4pm), and KatsüK (2:30pm), plus the Q&A Kitchens food truck will be there 2pm-10pm. Then, the St. Paddy’s Day Bash on Sunday offers classic rock bingo 5pm-8pm and the So Icy DFW food truck 4pm-9pm. There is no cost to attend.

5.) As part of its St. Patrick’s Day Party starting at 3pm Sun, Rusty Nickel IceHouse (2836 Stanley Av, 817-528-1682) will serve $3 Shiner Light Blonde green beer, $5 green tea shots, and $5 Jameson whiskey. Live music by The Dick Beldings starts at 5pm. El Compadre and Big Dawgs will be on-site for food purchases. There is no cost to attend.

By Jennifer Bovee

Traditional Irish music will ring from front of the Livestock Exchange Sunday.

Courtesy Buttermilk Junction

The 40 Acre Mule will perform at St. Paddy’s Texas Style in Lewisville Saturday.

Courtesy The 40 Acre Mule

EATS & drinks

Around the World in 80 Minutes Travel the globe without ever leaving your seat at the Atlas bar.

Noon-2am Sat-Sun, 4pm-2am Mon, Wed-Fri.

BY CHRISTINA BERGER

“Oh, fuck. That’s good!”

It’s quite a portent when anything elicits as immediate and emphatic a response as my friend’s cocktail from Atlas did.

The bar’s newest location in North Texas is right next door to the champagne and sparkling wine lounge The Coupe off South Main

Street — and, I gotta say, the SoMa District has really taken shape, even in the few years it’s been since I worked in the area. A couple of whip-smart women from my previous job sat across from me at a small, round marble-top table in what seemed the very center of the parlor. Atlas’ tinted glass blocked out any rays of sunshine that may have dared peek through the clouds on this overcast afternoon. Though at the height of happy hour, a pencil-thick lamp with a tiny conical hat worked alone to illuminate our menus. Especially paired with the dark,

moody decor and the warm glow of dim lighting, the place skewed one’s sense of time. Little did I know, six hours later, I would still be darkening the doorsteps of several other district establishments.

At its busiest, nearly every nook of Atlas was filled. This was only a problem because a young waitress decked in black seemed to be the singular person working that evening, her long blonde locks swishing as she flitted between groups.

Atlas feels more like a private library in a stately English manor than it does a

bar. Or perhaps I’ve watched too much Downton Abbey. A crimson velvet settee wraps around the center posts, splitting the space and allowing for seating on both sides. The violet-hued patterned wallpaper and wood paneling are adorned with a large taxidermy antelope and a series of portraits featuring a woman styled in ornate attire — a striking red veil and gold halo crown in one, all florals in another. The Art Deco tiles covering the ceiling, round-top built-in shelves behind the taps, and even a globe on continued on page 19

The group all but inhaled the creamy French onion dip and perfectly crisp kettle chips.

Christina Berger

Atlas feels more like a private library in a stately English manor than it does a bar.

Christina Berger

a stand combined with a few modern touches contribute to the overall dark academia aesthetic.

Of the dozens of elixirs with inspiration and origins from around the world — hence, Atlas — the crew explored no further than the first page to make their initial selections. The menu was dense with names of obscure liqueurs, and, I confess, I stopped reading the ingredients after a while and attempted to trust my gut.

The first round nearly knocked us out. If I had to guess, it was the sheer amount of spirits mixed in each. My Pompeian Martini featured two types of gin, two more of vermouth, hopped grapefruit bitters, and an Aberfeldy 12-year scotch whisky rinse. I didn’t love the strong bitter aftertaste, but boy, did it redden my cheeks.

The concoction that evoked such acclaim, the Guadalajara, combined Altos Blanco tequila, a Dutch bitter liqueur, pineapple, lime, agave, and Peychaud’s bitters. Despite the presence of bitters, well, let’s just say I wish I had ordered it instead. The zesty drink tasted fresh and herbaceous.

Enter: the crowd-pleaser. The Nomad with vodka, coconut milk, lime juice, simple syrup, lavender bitters, and brut Champagne is why bartenders and mixologists deserve our respect — or, at the very least, a fat tip at the end of the night. I could never recreate the magic of this drink myself. It left my palate feeling wonderfully tingly from the

touch of carbonation cut by the silky coconut milk and sweet floral and citrus flavors.

To counteract the frankly ridiculous toll our first drinks took, we chowed down on two appetizers. The hummus plate disappointed with its flaccid cucumbers, soggy pita, and runny, unsalted chickpea dip. The French onion dip, both creamy and well-seasoned with the added crunch of perfectly crisp kettle chips, we all but inhaled.

Maybe I was in the mood for vegetables, because my next drink, Pepperberry Smash,

This is why bartenders and mixologists deserve our respect — or, at the very least, a fat tip at the end of the night.

contained, of all things, red bell peppers. The tumbler of Herradura Blanco tequila, Ancho Reyes chile liqueur, raspberry, and lime was topped with a skewered jalapeño slice, which I gingerly removed. The tang of the lime and sweetness of the raspberry balanced the bite of the peppers.

Having traveled the world from the comfort of our seats, the group decided to stretch our legs and bar hop. By midnight, we had stamped our passports with scrumptious bubbles at The Coupe, smoky mezcal at Bar Bagazo (within Nickel City), and an exotic delight at Tarantula Tiki Lounge. Can I blame “jet lag” for how I felt the next day?

As I write this, a German language club is thoroughly enjoying the local coffee shop’s vast outdoor patio. One member

translated “afternoon,” and a trio began singing Starland Vocal Band’s “Afternoon Delight,” complete with rising and falling “oo”s and the ensuing giggles.

It’s the simple joys that remind me that, when you’re with good people, you can have a world-class experience no matter where you are. So, bon voyage on your next adventure! And, if it happens to be to Atlas, pace yourself. l

Atlas

Pompeiian Martini $14.78

The Nomad ................................................. $12.93

Guadalajara $13.86

Pepperberry Smash $13.86

Hummus ..................................................... $11.09

French Onion Dip $10.16

In the Pepperberry Smash, the tang of the lime and sweetness of the raspberry balanced the bite of the peppers.

Christina Berger

Especially paired with the dark, moody decor and the warm glow of dim lighting, Atlas skewed one’s sense of time.

Christina Berger

Rosa Summers

RIDGLEA THEATER

SAT 3/30 PALE PRO WRESTLING SUN 3/31 REVIVAL TODAY CHURCH EASTER SERVICE

FRI 4/5 ALEXA “SICK OF YOU”

SAT 4/6 FIGHTING WORDS BOXING, MMA & MUAY THAI

RIDGLEA ROOM

FRI 4/12 MR. TIMBERLAKE

SAT 4/27 INTRICACY DFW: WASSU

RIDGLEA LOUNGE

FRI 3/15 BLACK SAND BAY DREADLAND, SMART FELLA & MORE! WED 3/27 MATT AXTON AND BADMOON

MUSIC

Old-Timey Tunes

Black artists from across the country converge on Fort Worth Saturday to celebrate our musical roots.

BY STEVE STEWARD

I didn’t know what the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival was until I heard about it in 2014, and I was confused as to what was jazzy about it, because the lineup included Foster the People and Arcade Fire, both of which make probably the least jazzy music I could possibly imagine. This year, “Jazz Fest”’s Biggest Font notables — listed beneath the Rolling Stones, whose font, oddly, is the same as the Biggest Fonts beneath — include The Killers and HOZIER. I bring this up because on Saturday, Southside Preservation Hall will host the fourth annual Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival, an event that puts the spotlight on the building blocks of American popular music with a lineup of Black artists. FWAAMFest showcases what Jazz Fest intended to before the arrival of Vampire Weekend, Greta Van Fleet, et al.

Instead of that noise, FWAAMFest celebrates old-timey music — early blues and jazz, bluegrass, and folk — performed by contemporary Black artists.

Produced by Decolonizing the Music Room, a nonprofit that works to center Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian voices in music education and related fields, the all-ages FWAAMFest is the only major city festival in the nation focusing on AfricanAmerican roots music.

“Black musicians have been there since the beginning of this music, yet there is little to no representation in the large music festivals that cater to these genres,” said Brandi Waller-Pace, founder and executive director of Decolonizing the Music Room. “We aim to change that.”

Waller-Pace is a musician, educator, and “scholar-activist,” a singer and multi-instrumentalist (banjo, bass, guitar, piano, and ukulele), and a veteran teacher in both Fort Worth and Lake Worth school districts. She has a master’s in jazz studies from Howard University, and she is about halfway through the music education Ph.D. program at UNT. These professional backgrounds — onstage and in the classroom — drove her in 2019 to launch an educational website that would eventually become the nonprofit Decolonizing the Music Room in 2020.

“I’m a nerd on research and training,” Waller-Pace said. “I was teaching, training, doing research, doing racial equity work with FWISD, and I started playing old-timey music in my early 30s. Those things began to converge. Through my core knowledge as a Black person in the southern United States who has a degree in jazz studies … I saw that a lot of white-washed stories made their way into American music curriculum. It got to a point where I was starting to write and share out, and a couple people suggested it might be time to put all of this in one place. And that’s how the website was born.”

Decolonizing the Music Room provides training and free educational content to music educators, endeavoring to create community programming for people of all ages to build an equitable future for music education and performance across multiple underrepresented communities. Waller-Pace wanted to hold a festival highlighting Black artists working in traditional, early-20th-century roots music traditions, as well. Due to the lockdown, the inaugural event was virtual. The concert on Saturday will be its third in-person iteration.

Her inspiration for the festival came from experiencing similar events around the country. “Part of the main mission is to introduce the Fort Worth music scene to this” music.

One gathering up north included a discussion “about inclusion rather than creating its own spaces. Both need to exist, but I am more a space-creation person. … I was like, ‘I can do that in Fort Worth.’ ”

She laughed. “And, somewhat selfishly, a lot of these artists I want to see would have to come play here.”

FWAAMFest’s 2024 lineup highlights old-timey Black roots music, but many of the artists see their sounds through contemporary lenses. The headliner is Lizzie No, a New York singer-songwriter working in the Americana genre, as well as multi-instrumentalist Jerron “Blind Boy” Paxton, who draws from preWWII African-American roots traditions like ragtime and blues. FWAAMFest also includes Grammy-nominated bluesman Jontavious Willis; New York Blues Hall of Famers and roots music scholars the Piedmont Blüz Duo; up-and-coming intersectional folk singer-songwriter Crys Matthews; New Orleans-bornand-bred composer Joy Clark; Dallas-based EJ Mathews, whose “backwoods funk” and “swamp blues” are the sound of growing up in

Georgia and Texas; globetrotting West Africaninfluenced guitarist Corey Harris; New Orleans-by-way-of-Athens, Georgia, “folk rock diva” Lilli Lewis; roots musician and former The Voice contestant Stephanie Ann Lewis; and the traditionalist duo Spice Cake Blues.

While all these artists are influenced by the rhythmic and melodic hallmarks of Black roots music traditions, their respective takes on country, folk, blues, and jazz are as unique as they are compelling. For casual listeners who have never done a deep dive into the forebears of their favorite musics — specifically hip-hop, jazz, pop, rap, and rock — these songwriters might not be household names, but in the world of roots music traditionalism, they are some of the biggest artists out there. Rolling Stone called Lizzie No’s 2019 single “Narcissus” a “crisp alt-rock gem,” and Lilli Lewis’ 2021 album Americana was a favorite among the critics at R.S., NPR, and OffBeat Magazine. The Piedmont Blüz Duo and Corey Harris have played all over the world, and Taj Mahal is a big fan of Jontavious Willis. In other words, the FWAAMFest is pretty stacked.

“Each year,” Waller-Pace said, “there are some blow-your-mind people that just don’t get enough recognition in general. It’s a reclamation of our own culture. There’s so much more to recreationists, and there are people who have engaged with this music and are innovating in new ways. … This is an opportunity to spread the true history of where we come from, and these artists are working their asses off for what is core historical knowledge.”

Like every nonprofit, Decolonizing the Music Room depends on donations and fundraising.

“The fundraising and financial support is always so crucial,” she said. “There is such a disparity in resources of independent giving and grants for Black-led organizations and other organizations that center minorities, and it takes all of us working together to bridge that gap.”

And as a musician and former teacher, she knows what it’s like to make a living playing music — besides funding the logistics of Decolonizing the Music Room and FWAAMFest, she stresses the importance of paying people what they’re worth.

“We don’t want to exploit our artists and educators,” she said.

To bolster its fundraising, Decolonizing the Music Room sells merch via DecolonizingtheMusicRoom.com, where you can also find educational resources about opening up music education to people of all colors and identities as well as information about the BBIA Music Education Symposium this October, a “three-day conference for Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian people in music education and related fields to connect through community, learn collaboratively, make music, and imagine a just future.”

In its aim to provide a space for Black artists to perform traditionally Black music, FWAAMFest offers Fort Worth culture lovers the opportunity to hear old-timey sounds performed by incredibly talented artists today. Their muses come from the lived experiences that make roots music — the heritage behind just about every popular song from the past 150 years or — so sublimely powerful and wonderful. Jazz Fest is still pretty cool, but when it comes to Black roots music, FWAAMFest is where it’s at. l

The roots of Lizzie No’s genre-hopping, Americana-influenced alt-rock go deep.

Cole Nielsen

Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival

BUCK U

Teeter Totter Bubble Fodder

TCU basketball finds itself at the mercy of the selection committee after another underwhelming late-season run.

BY BUCK D. ELLIOTT

Hello darkness, my old friend. TCU basketball has grown their cache, as well as our collective expectations, tremendously since the arrival of Coach Jamie Dixon, yet as we stumble through early March and NCAA tournament selection nears, it seems like the same ol’ song and dance for TCU hoops. Can their soft non-conference schedule hold up? What credence is given to the late-season slump the Frogs often experience? Is the Big 12 really as dominant a hoops conference as everyone was led to believe at the beginning of the season? These — along with other questions — can largely not be answered by the Frogs on the court but must be asserted by the selection committee at which Frog nation is now beholden to.

The season is not completely over. By the time you read this, the purple men will have already tipped or finished their game against Oklahoma on the second day of conference tournament play in Kansas City on Wednesday. The Frogs and Sooners are seeded 8th and 9th respectively and are largely considered the last members to be selected to the big dance. Oklahoma has the better conference record by one game, but the Frogs’ head-to-head victory over the Crimson back in January gives them the slightly better seed, though it’s moot in an 8-playing-9 scenario. The winner of the scuffle receives the joy of facing top-seed and top-ranked Houston to open the tournament’s third day. The Cougars have only three losses since washing out of last year’s Sweet 16, against Kansas, Iowa State, and … TCU (by one point).

Dixon’s Frogs are likely receiving a tournament invite regardless of their outcome against Oklahoma, but a victory

on Wednesday would banish the drama from Selection Sunday. Losing four of their last six tips leading into Kansas City hasn’t helped the situation, but give credit where credit it is due: This season, along with a W against H-town, TCU has also beat conference heavies Tech and Baylor. The purple hoopers also swept bottom-dwelling West Virginia but are haunted by close home losses to Cincinnati and UCF, who are chillin’ with the Cowboys and Mountaineers in the Big 12 basement.

As the season closes, this year matches Dixon’s two best conference records and will finish .500 (9-9) in the Big 12 for the third overall time this year, a record that’s classically plenty for tournament selection and is likely the case again. Almost every bracketology prognosticator forecasts the Frogs among the field of 68 and to be the last conference

squad invited. At the risk of sounding repetitive, the sinking Frog lily pad is partially because they don’t roster a big man who can place the team squarely on his comically large back when field shooting is cold. The lack of an imposing inside presence via non-shooting forwards or centers has relegated a traditionally good defensive team to tied for 165th nationally in scoring defense, though their high-scoring conference can be partially blamed. Blocks are also nothing to brag about at 112th in the country.

Frog scoring hasn’t been a problem from the field, and their effective FG percentage is adequate at 96th in the country. Dixon’s dribblers have staked their reputation and success on the transition game and dunk on their competition as the overall leader in fastbreak points. Consequently, that also leaves TCU vulnerable to teams who cover the court well on defense and force the opposition into a slower game with fewer freestyle opportunities. The local boys are most comfortable running and gunning in full-court situations, which also tends to lead to lower overall possession time and opportunities for very high-scoring games (which reads like a nod to their football counterparts this season).

Feeding into their style, the Frogs are 18th in steals this season — one of their only encouraging defensive stats — and make hay with their transition opportunities. The question is: Is TCU capable of a multifaceted style within the inevitable ebbs and flows to outlast the notoriously unforgiving tournament? Every team starts their season with the goal of cutting down the final net and wearing it on their heads as the blasphemous Christs of the hardwood, but realistically, the Frogs are looking to quench their sweet tooth by advancing to the round of 16, which has eluded our local college for the last 56 years.

This week serves as a preview — any team TCU faces in the conference tourney represents a dancing squad and an indication if Dixon’s eighth iteration possesses the energy and expertise to assert what they’re good at while minimizing and concealing where they struggle. Opposing game plans will surely center on an agonizingly slow pace, forcing the Frogs to make the absolute most of their offensive possessions and creating a tempo that is anything but fun to watch.

The purple men have failed to eclipse 80 points in 16 of their 31 games this season and have lost nine of them. In contrast, they have lost only twice in the 15 tips where they have exceeded fourscore. Pace matters for this group. They want to fly and avoid the grind. In the past, Syracuse, Gonzaga, and Arizona have represented Frog Kryptonite: With offensively and defensively talented big men, these squads are filthy in the paint, they grind tempos down, and they have sent the Frogs packing.

Those are the greatest considerations and threats when our local ballers are assigned their first-round opponent on Sunday. TCU may not possess the firepower to raise the final nets this year, but surviving until the third round would be the greatest success that any purple-loving Boomer or young’un has adjacently experienced from Frog hoops in their lifetime. l

Frog hoops has matched their best conference record in the Jamie Dixon era and enjoyed high-profile wins despite a lateseason conference slump.

Courtesy TCU Athletics

EMPLOYMENT

Progress Rail Locomotive Inc. has an available position of Director of Artificial Intelligence, Automated Train Operations (ATO) in Fort Worth, TX. Although the Director of Artificial Intelligence, ATO will work in Fort Worth, TX, the Director of Artificial Intelligence, ATO will be required to travel 25% of working time to customers & trade shows throughout North America, South America, & Australia. Position requires a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or Software Engineering or Electrical Engineering & 48 months experience as a mechanical engineer &/or software engineer &/or electrical engineer. Position also requires: Exp. must include: 1) 12 mos. exp. developing & reviewing AI/ML (Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning) models; 2) 24 mos. exp. developing software products for railroad operations; & 3) 24 mos. exp. architecting & developing train simulation software. Exp. reqs. may be met concurrently during the same time period. Job duties: Manage & direct a team of data scientists, data engineers, & ML engineers to develop & maintain infrastructure & tooling to develop & deploy AI models to the field. Direct Corporate activities in three areas: 1) Freight train operational planning; 2) Developing strategy for autonomous freight trains; & 3) Freight train physics/dynamics. Direct & architect simulation train engine that includes in-train forces, air brake, tractive effort, & braking efficiencies that serve as the lab environment for testing & to generate data to train driving AI/ML models. Use knowledge of railroad operations & in-train force dynamics to build an AI/ML model to drive freight trains in a safe & efficient way. Supervise 5 to 15 data scientists, data engineers, & software engineers, as needed. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability status. We maintain a drug-free work place & perform pre-employment substance abuse testing. Qualified applicants should e-mail resume & verification of reqs. to Ami Cerullo, HR Manager, Progress Rail Locomotive, at acerullo@progressrail.com

EMPLOYMENT

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DATA ENGINEER II, responsible for contributing to the evaluation, research, experimentation efforts with batch and streaming data engineering technologies in a lab. Bachelor’s in computer engineering, computer science or related field plus 5 years of related IT experience required. Reference DEII-DA1.

SOLUTION ARCHITECT II-DIGITAL

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All positions are hybrid office/home based. Send resume to recruitment@gmfinancial.com or by mail to Y. Castillo Valdivia, HR, 801 Cherry Street, Suite 3500, Fort Worth, TX 76102.

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SAFETY COORDINATOR

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Operations Research Analyst: Manage & collaborate with team members including developers, project managers, associates, operations analysts, account executives, & logistic coordinators to develop business. Develop methods for data collection from primary & secondary sources regarding market conditions for the procurement, transport, sorting, processing, & pricing of scrap ferrous and non-ferrous metals. Observe the current system in operation & gather & analyze information about each of the component problems, using software applications & websites such as 21CP ROM software, QuickBooks, Tableau, American Metal Market (AMM), DavisIndex, LME, COMEX etc. Require: Master’s degree in Mathematics, Computer Science, or Business Administration with concentration in Analytics or Operations Research, & 1 yr. of work exp. as an Operations Analyst, ferrous &non-ferrous metal recycling. Work exp. Should include work with Recycling Operations Management Tools: 21CP ROM Software, QuickBooks, and Tableau. Gold Star Metalex, LLC has 1 full time position in Fort Worth and Tarrant County, TX areas. Email resume to paresh@goldstarmetals.com

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The business records of the following customers of ACCESS INFORMATION MANAGEMENT (or any affiliates of ACCESS) located at 630 N. Freeway, Suite 300, Fort Worth, TX 76102 have been abandoned: CATHEDRAL

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