The newsletter reissue you've been waiting for

Matthew Leimkuehler, Nashville Tennessean
·5 min read

*Taps microphone* Hello, hello ... Is this thing on? *Clears throat*

Welcome audiophiles, fevered fandoms, festival fanatics and scene-making showgoers to a new edition of The Pick — your virtual watering hole for all things music in Music City, U.S.A.

In this revamped newsletter, we'll step up to the proverbial microphone each week to dig in on behind-the-scenes stories, chat about upcoming concerts and share our take on what you're talking about — or spinning, of course — from Nashville.

I'm Matthew Leimkuehler, a Tennessean music reporter and your inbox emcee.

Consider this email your invitation as a virtual +1 to a front row seat of exclusive news, one-of-a-kind artist interviews, sought-after shows (yes, we'll be at Olivia Rodrigo's Opry House debut in a few weeks) and candid conversation about the one thing we can all depend on when the rest of the world seems to be in an unending freefall: music.

Tune in weekly, and you'll quickly learn how I'm a sucker for nearly any show at the Ryman, which John Prine song *still* sweeps dust into my eyes and why I'll take a one-night show inside a sweaty club over a week-long festival 10 times out of 10.

A lifelong Midwesterner making his way in the South, I moved to Nashville three years ago to tell stories about those chasing neon-soaked dreams with stadium-sized ambition, and not a week goes by where I don't learn something new about the people who make Nashville a one-of-a-kind music town.

But — more importantly — I'll ask occasional questions to learn a little more about you. We want to hear what you love about Nashville: Album, venue, festival, free show (Musicians Corner returns next month!), studio, museum or otherwise. Stay tuned for more.

Now that I've gone on long enough, let's get into some of what's to expect this week and onward from The Pick.

🚨 Lizzo ticket alert! 🚨

After a three-year hiatus, genre-blurring "Good As Hell" superstar Lizzo returns to Nashville — and she's graduated from the Ryman Auditorium to Bridgestone Arena.

  • Mark your calendar: Lizzo plays the downtown venue on Oct. 23, a performance that's a long time coming for some in Nashville. Bonnaroo organizers slated Lizzo to headline the festival twice in nearby Manchester, but COVID-19 in 2020 and a torrential downpour in 2021 had other plans for the Lizzo-Middle Tennessee reunion. To play off the title of her new single, it's "About Damn Time" we get another night with this incomparable star.

  • Set your alarms: Tickets to her (indoor! hopefully weather-free!) show later this year go on sale Friday at bridgestonearena.com.

Lizzo performs at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, Sept. 30, 2019.
Lizzo performs at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, Sept. 30, 2019.

What are you doing this weekend, and why isn't it seeing Jack White?

Jack White, lead conduction at Nashville creative locomotive Third Man Records and newly married guitar-slingin' songwriter, makes a long-awaited return to Nashville this week for two shows at Ascend Amphitheater.

  • Don't sleep on seeing White, if you can: I've covered two of his shows since the White Strips split — a headlining Raconteurs gig at the Ryman and a solo show in a pre-Nashville life — and both were downright electric, in-the-moment live music experiences that few others can deliver.

  • Into something a little more *classic*? The Eagles kick off two nights of "Hotel California" Thursday at Bridgestone Arena.

  • Speaking of shows: Chattanooga songwriting comedian Nick Lutsko (maybe you know him for his trilogy of Spirit Halloween songs or parodying Eminem in the vein of Talking Heads) plays Exit/In in June as one of a handful of announced gigs this year.

Festival watch

Most weeks, we'll bring you updated chatter on Bonnaroo, CMA Fest, AmericanaFest and more from the Tennessee music festival circuit. But let's give a big ICYMI shout-out today to CaveFest, a new two-night jam and bluegrass event held at the scenic Caverns venue in Grundy County. The inaugural lineup features Leftover Salmon, Infamous Stringdusters and Yonder Mountain String Band.

  • Spinning into festival season: Let's wash down our weekly pull of festival news with a must-hear tune from this year's Bonnaroo lineup. First up: Zach Bryan's heart-on-his-sleeve breakup song "From Austin," the perfect song for a windows-down car singalong as spring rolls in.

Paramore's lead singer Hayley Williams performs fans during a special show at Exit/In on May 10, 2017.
Paramore's lead singer Hayley Williams performs fans during a special show at Exit/In on May 10, 2017.

Paramore is forever, OK?

Another ICYMI: Hayley Williams, frontwoman of Nashville pop-rock mainstay Paramore, surprised fans at Coachella by resurrecting the band's once-retired banger "Misery Business" for a surprise performance with pop powerhouse Billie Eilish.

  • A Paramore-sized appreciation: Put this must-see performance in line with the band co-headlining When We Were Young — arguably the summer's most buzzed-about festival — plus the growing cohort of young artists building careers on a musical foundation built by Paramore (including last summer's Olivia Rodrigo co-writing back-and-forth), and one could argue the band's never been more beloved.

Let's end with a question

This weekend, I'm interviewing Les Claypool from Primus ahead of the band's Rush tribute concert at the Ryman in May. Have a question for the musician? Email me at mleimkuehler@tennessean.com, and I'll do my best to get a few answered ahead of next week's newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: The newsletter reissue you've been waiting for