Memphis Going Down

Memphis, Tennessee, has long been a hub of musical innovation, producing iconic artists from W. C. Handy to B. B. King and Elvis Presley, shaping American popular music for over a century. The vibrant scene began to decline after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, leading to a significant downturn in the music industry by the mid-1970s. Despite this decline, a few contemporary figures, such as Justin Timberlake and producer Boo Mitchell, have offered glimpses of Memphis's rich musical heritage in recent years.