Mark Kemp

"Mark Kemp is every bit as audacious as the musicians he writes about. The story he tells here encompasses everything that is important about modern life. And he tells it beautifully, the cultural criticism and memoir blended seamlessly."—Stephen J. Dubner, Turbulent Souls: A Catholic Son's Return To His Jewish Family

"As a child of the South ... I know in my heart that Mark Kemp has told the truth about what growing up here and loving music was like. But you don't have to be a Southerner to get it... fascinating, well-written, and entertaining..."—Larry Brown, Fay

"Kemp's grace and insight into a complex cultural scenario forms a combination that's hard to beat."—Kirkus Reviews

Read more:

http://rockcritics.com/2008/07/07/sou...

http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Cont...

Listen:

http://www.ibiblio.org/wunc_archives/...

Mark Kemp is the author of Dixie Lullaby: A Story of Music, Race & New Beginnings in a New South. He has written news and features, columns, essays and reviews since the late 1980s for Option, Rolling Stone, The New York Times, The Charlotte Observer, Harp, Paste and many other publications. He has served as music editor of Rolling Stone and vice president of music editorial for MTV Networks. In 1997 he was nominated for a Grammy for his liner notes to Farewells & Fantasies, a retrospective of music by ’60s protest singer Phil Ochs. Kemp began his journalism career in the early 80s as a reporter at the Times-News of Burlington, North Carolina. In the early 90s he served as the editor of Los Angeles-based Option magazine, which chronicled the rise of post-punk independent and alternative rock and hip-hop, and also covered contemporary jazz, avant-garde, electronica as well as musical styles and trends from other countries and cultures. In 2002 Kemp returned to his home state of North Carolina, where he currently serves as senior editor at Our State magazine.