M3

If you spend any time in downtown Madison, you are living with the artwork of Tiffany Black. She’s a muralist who went to Hanover College almost 20 years ago, and she hit our little town like a tornado of energy and talent. Anyone who knew her then knew she was going to make her mark Read more

The annual Derby Party at Richwood on the River has a long history on the first Saturday in May, but it wasn’t always in the public eye. It began as a private affair hosted by the Boone brothers, Todd and Joe. As the years went by it grew in attendance, they started selling tickets, and Read more

Raise your hand if you’ve read the amazing book “Sex of the Midwest” by Madison’s very own resident novelist Robyn Ryle. It was on NPR’s list of Best Books of 2025 and it was featured in People magazine and the Washington Post. It’s about life in the fictional Indiana rivertown of Lanier, and it’s equal Read more

“When you go to an EDM show, there’s an opportunity to totally lose yourself in the music and the movement,” explains Tristan Fellenz. (EDM, by the way, stands for Electronic Dance Music.) “But you’re not alone on the dance floor, you are very much connected to everyone else in the room. That’s one of the Read more

This is Charlie’s Beat number 379, so suffice it to say when I go out to catch live music here in Indiana’s Music City, I’ve already done stories on virtually every local musician who’s playing. I’ll look up on the stage there’s Danny Cook, yup, did a story on him, Kerry Mefford, yup, Jordan, yup, Read more

One of the best things about living in Indiana’s Music City is the sheer diversity of music styles available to the avid music fan. We had world-class bluegrass a couple weeks ago at Red Bicycle Hall, we have classic rock and country literally every weekend at the clubs and venues, and this past weekend we Read more

Today’s story comes from a personal perspective, about a person who’s been in my life for close to 50 years. Bryant Stamford was the Fitness & Nutrition columnist for the Louisville Courier-Journal newspaper since 1976, and I’ve been reading the C-J and his column pretty much non-stop since 1979. He was also a professor at Read more

Russ Baum is one of those guys, after just a couple of minutes talking to him, you feel a little bit better about humanity. If a hard-working musician like Russ can be so doggone hopeful and optimistic, surely you can deal with whatever headwinds or uncertainties you might have in your own life. He’s just Read more

This Saturday there are two standout musical performances that I strongly place in the “must attend” category. One is at 6pm and one is at 8pm, so in theory you could go to both. But whatever you do, pick one and go! This Saturday is a prime example of why it’s so special to live Read more

It’s hard to believe Brenda and Travas Cooper took ownership of Mad Paddle Brewstillery just over a year ago. I did a story with them in those early days, but so much has changed and improved in such a short time, I thought it appropriate to take a further look. I caught up with Brenda Read more