It’s good to hear from you. It’s been a long time. How are things in the United Arab Emirates? How are the kids? I still occasionally look at some pictures we took of the kids the day Debi spent babysitting them and laugh - they were certainly a handful for someone like me who has so little experience dealing with young kids. I hope things are going well.

David

A couple folks told me that Tall Stacks is perceived as a “white” event. Given that the lineup was dominated with bluegrass, country, and folk, and that the classic steamboat era recalls a time that wasn’t so great for blacks, I can’t say I blame them. Meanwhile, the Fountain Square event was about the here & now. The black artists at TS were given bad slots — the opening and closing nights of the event. The black & Hispanic artists at FS were given good slots (true, IsWhat went on at 5:30, but at such a short event, going on just 2:30 before the headliner isn’t a terrible thing).

Age also plays a part. The black artists booked at TS — Blind Boys of Alabama, Buddy Guy, etc. — appeal, for the most part, to an older audience. Older folks are probably less likely to deal with the crowds on a chilly night. Talib Kweli and IsWhat, who appeared at FS, targeted younger crowds.

I get the sense that blacks in Cinti will come to an event when they’re genuinely made to feel welcome. But again, this is going off of a very small sample of informal conversations. I’m looking forward to the project. ;-)

Tall Stacks would be an intriguing event to contrast with the re-opening of Fountain Square. You described that on your blog as having a good mix…. Thoughts as to why?

As for the garbage, I confess that while I try to be good about it, there are times when I’ll leave empty cups by my feet and then forget to grab them when I leave. Notice that the garbage is heavier closer to the stage — especially for a packed show like Wilco, folks don’t want to lose their place in the crowd. But yes, it sucks to see the field littered like that.

As for why the crowd isn’t more integrated…well, now you know why I seriously considered that for my dissertation. ;-) It will be my first post-diss project. Sociocultural spaces that don’t have a reason to be so white-dominated continue to be. Informal discussion with my black friends usually goes along the lines of this: after dealing with white folks all day, we don’t necessarily want to go hang out with tens of thousands of them at Tall Stacks. I think there are some really interesting dynamics going on here. I hope no one steals the idea before I do it (although Elijah Anderson is coming very close with his new project).