From Ray Charles To The Twist, Here’s How Florida Helped Inspire Soul Music

by James Coulter

When you think of soul music, what cities immediately come to mind? Motown? Memphis? Detroit? Harlem? You most likely envision those cities when you think of soul music, but chances are you would never consider a Florida city like Tampa.

While northern locations like Motown and Harlem are more often considered the hometowns of soul music, Florida has such a rich history and influence within the musical genre that one proffesor considers the state the unofficial “soul music capital of the U.S.”

John Capouya, professor of journalism at the University of Tampa, has been studying music for decades, and his research has allowed him to uncover many aspects about the history of soul music that often goes overlooked, especially when it involves the genre’s Floridian origins.

His research, including several interviews with Florida locals and figures within the musical industry, allowed him to write a book outlining the Sunshine State’s influences and contributions to soul music, “Florida Soul: From Ray Charles to K.C. and the Sunshine Band.”

Capouya mentioned many of his findings within his book, from the untold Floridian aspects of the lives of soul artists like Ray Charles and Sam Moore, to the origins of classic hits such as “The Twist”, during a lecture at Florida Southern College last Thursday.

From Ray Charles To KC And The Sunshine Band

When most people think of the famous soul artist, Ray Charles, they most often think of Georgia. After all, he did write and sing a song about the state, “Georgia On My Mind.” While he was indeed born in Georgia, he was raised right here in this state.

Following his birth, his family moved to Florida where he attended the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind in St. Augustine. There he gained and developed a love of music, which would develop even further after growing up and moving to Orlando and Tampa.

He resided in Florida during a time when many military service men moved there following World War II, and where many of them exercised their musical abilities following their time playing within military bands. Charles would listen and even play alongside many of these former service men in the clubs, and their influences helped “toughen him up,” Capouya said.

During his own career, Charles would even write many songs about Florida. In fact, one of the very first songs he ever recorded in 1950 was titled: “Down in St. Pete, Florida.”

Sam Moore, of the iconic duo Sam and Dave, was another soul music icon who was raised in Florida, having grown up in a neighborhood in Miami. There he became a solo singer, first in the church, and then later in the clubs, before teaming up with Dave to form their duo and record their first hit song, “Soul Man.”

Aside from hit artists, Florida was also the birthplace of many hit songs such as Chubby Checker’s “The Twist.” The titular dance itself was inspired by an artist, Hank Ballard, who observed a similar move being danced by teenage girls in the streets of Tampa. That inspired him to write the “Tampa Twist”, which was later coopted by Chubby Checker as simply “The Twist.”

Believe it or not, KC And The Sunshine Band were originally named “KC And The Sunshine Junkaroo Band.” Junkaroo was a type of music inspired by the Caribbean influences of Miami, which in turn inspired the music of KC and his band.

Soul Music And The Soul Of Black America

During its height in the 1950s and 1960s, soul music was more than simply a popular musical genre. It was an extension of the African-American experience, including their struggles for representation and equality during the Civil Rights Movement.

As such, many soul artists were staunch civil rights advocates, with many of them even writing songs promoting the civil rights movement. Many of these songs originated here in Florida. One such song was “A Change Is Going To Come”, which was performed by Sam Cooke at the memorial of Martin Luther King, Jr.

MLK himself spoke highly of soul music, and how it allowed to mend the divide between young black and white Americans by offering them a common musical language. In one speech in 1967, he called soul music “a powerful cultural bridge between black and white”, and mentioned how “school integration is easier now” because of the music’s cultural influence.

MLK had also performed much civil rights activism within the state. On June 11, 1964, he and several other activists were arrested in St. Augustine while trying to integrate a motel. His followers continued to push for integration efforts there.

Florida’s Forgotten Soul Heritage

So with all of the influences and contributions to both the musical genre and civil rights, why is Florida often overlooked within the history of soul music? Capouya postulates that the reason is due to the state not having a singular musical voice.

While many of the other famous cities from Memphis to Harlem have distinct voices, Florida does not have one such singular voice. From Pensacola to Miami, the musical cultures are as diverse as the multicultural state itself, which prevents it from standing out as prominently as other places famous for the soul music influences, Capouya explained.

“Because of the diversity of sound, Florida is not as well known for its musical voice,” he said. “Florida has a huge diversity of sounds, which is an advantage, but it has prevented it from being heard as one thing in the aggregate.”

Capouya firmly believes, through his research, that Florida deserves to be remembered and recognized for its contributions to the genre, which is why he memorialized many of these influences within his book.

“Florida has an impressive, amazing soul music heritage that is the equal of anywhere else in the United States,” he said.

This lecture was one of many within the Florida Lecture Series being hosted at Florida Southern College. The series aims to touch upon aspects of Florida’s rich history, offering informative and interesting lectures to both students and visitors within the local community.

Dr. James. M. Denham, FSC history proffesor, was especially impressed by this lecture, as it managed to touch upon a subject not often addressed.

“It is about a topic that not a lot of people do not know or appreciate,” he said. “I am really looking forward to getting into the book myself because the research is going to be significant, and it will be about Florida history in general, not just the music, but African American history and civil rights movement.”

For more information about upcoming lectures, visit their website at: https://www.flsouthern.edu/

Viva La France! Museum Honors French Culture with La Francophonie Day Celebration!

by James Coulter

Lakeland Mayor Bill Mutz has traveled to France many times. It’s one of his favorite places to visit. He especially loves the grandeur of Paris.

However, as the mayor of Lakeland, he loves returning to his home city and continues to maintain an affinity for it. To him, his city is like a diamond created from various facets, all of which come together to let its splendid beauty shine.

“The basis of a city is built from different heritages…as a diamond is made of many different facets,” he explained. “Each one of those facets, in and of themselves, are beautiful. But it is the collection of those facets, what they do in aggregate, that makes a diamond brilliant, and I think that is so true of our [local] heritage.”

As a diamond is produced from multiple components, so too is a city composed of different diverse cultures and heritages, all of which combine together within the American Melting Pot to create something awe-inspiring, he said.

On Saturday, Mayor Mutz helped celebrate the French influences that helped inspire culture within the city and throughout the rest of the world during the inagural La Francophonie Day at the Polk Museum of Art in Lakeland.

Helping to start off the event, Mayor Mutz read a proclamation recognizing that day as the La Francophonie Day celebration for the city of Lakeland, highlighting the influences that French culture had on the city and other parts of the world.

Mayor Mutz then conferred copies of the proclamation to representatives from throughout the state and the world. The event that day was represented by French dignitaries from six countries (France, Canada, Haiti, Belgium, Switzerland, and Monaco) as well as representatives from cities within the state, including Miami, Orlando, and Clearwater.

Throughout the rest of the day, these dignitaries remained at the museum to help celebrate with the other festivities that day, as well as speak and mingle with many of the guests at the museum. Many guests were local residents, while others have arrived from across the state, explained Suzanne Grossberg, Director of Arts Advancement.

“We have representatives from all over the state of Florida…So we really are the heart of this French celebration for the entire state of Florida today,” she said. “I think it is really a day to celebrate the French language and culture of many different cultures coming together to share not just their language but their ideals and their love of the French culture.”

La Francophonie Day is an international day of celebration of French language and culture. The day itself was started in 1970 by a small organization of French-speaking countries in an effort to cooperate and appreciate each other’s cultures, Grossberg said.

The day is often celebrated on March 20. The museum decided to host its own celebration last Saturday on March 23 as a fitting sendoff to the traveling exhibit of Edgar Degas, a famous French impressionist artist, that ended its three-month run at the museum the very next day.

Aside from guided tours of the exhibit, the museum celebrated French language and culture with various activities throughout the day, including pastel painting lessons, poetry recitals, and live music and ballet performances.

Many of the visiting French dignitaries that day shared their own experiences from their cultural heritages with the museum guests. Clement LeClerc, Consul General of France in Miami, after mentioning how much of a relief it was not to conceal his heavy French accent, mentioned how he appreciated the museum’s embrace of his native culture and language.

French is spoken by more than three hundred million people throughout the world, and is the fourth most spoken language on the internet. However, more than simply a language spoken by people of French heritage, French is the language through which French ideals and values are spread, he said.

“Above all, it is a vehicle of shared values that the international organization of Francophonie stands for: human rights, democracy, mutual respect, cultural diversity,” he said. “This is what we are celebrating today, and I am very glad to be here in Lakeland at the Polk Museum of Art to celebrate this day of Francophonie.”

Susan Harper, Consul General of Canada, mentioned how her own country was shaped by the French language and culture, all of which helps unite her people with a common bond through common values, especially diversity.

“This is the day to celebrate the diverse Francophonie cultures of the world, and the French language that unites us,” she said. “We really enjoy that opportunity to celebrate diversity, because diversity and inclusion [are] one of the [may] great principles of our country. Diversity is a fact. Inclusion is a choice.”

St. Pete Artist Demonstrates Abstract Art At Art Talk

by James Coulter

If you throw a pebble into a pond, you can see the ripples that are created when the stone breaks the surface. These ripples create abstract patterns upon the surface, though one has to wonder what these patterns look like under the surface.

Nathan Beard has contemplated these thoughts from the patterns created on the water. He remembers thinking that way six years ago after taking his daughter to the park for an outing by the water.

Since then, he has been interpreting such abstract thought within his paintings. Many of them almost appear like ripples and waves upon the water. This ripple effect is further enhanced with smaller lines created by using tape, which is lifted away to reveal even more patterns within the paint.

Beard demonstrated the process that goes into the creation of his abstract artwork during an art talk on Wednesday evening at Curator’s Interiors in Lakeland.

During the demonstration, he used a canvas whose surface was prepared using a mix of acrylic paint and dirt to provide a rough texture. He then applied blue tape to the canvas before applying another layer of paint.

When the paint to his art piece began to dry, he took the canvas into the audience where the attendees could take turns peeling away the tape to reveal the patterns left behind in the paint. What results is a unique piece that exemplifies the human experience within a chaotic world.

“An important aspect is the balance of what we can’t control and what we can control,” he explained. “It is a metaphor for what we can control, human will, and the natural world can be random and chaotic sometimes, so all of us are trying to find that balance in our life. These processes are random and hectic, so you have to work with them.”

For the past six years, Beard has used his paintings to help explore the balance between the physical and metaphysical, showing how the abstract often blends with the unknown. One such art piece shows the edge of a pond with reeds, which, even to this day, Beard sees patterns within that he never noticed before.

“Looking at the abstraction that happens on the surface of the water, when you look at this, it is an abstract painting,” he said. “As I progressed, in the last two years, the shadows on water look like Japanese kanji or Chinese calligraphy. And so I have taken that [interpetation] to another level.”

Beard resides within St. Petersburg where he works as an assistant curator, assistant curator at the Dunedin Fine Art Center and a proprietor at the University of Tampa. His career over the past six years have produced at least three different art series, several of the art pieces of which are currently on display within Curated Interiors.

The local art gallery opened last year and recently celebrated its grand opening earlier this year with a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce. Its owner, Kim Troutman, wanted to open the gallery to help showcase the unique work of artists both local and visiting.

After viewing some of his work in St. Petersburg, Thompson decided to showcase Beard’s work at her gallery to help showcase his unique outlook to local residents. The vibrant colors and patterns especially drew her into his artwork, she explained.

“The colors and movements…is what struck me the most,” she said. “It is very vibrant and it really stood out to me. It really spoke to me…I would say, I would like the audience to take away a different expression of creativity and an appreciation for his work and what he does.”

Curated Interiors is located at 122 W Main St, Lakeland, FL 33815. For more information about their art and upcoming events, visit their website at: https://www.curatedinteriorsfl.com/

PMI Arrico Realty & Property Management Celebrates Grand Opening

by James Coulter

Lakeland is the number one place in the country to buy a new home, according to Realtor.com. However trying to find the right home can prove difficult, which is why you should get the help of a realtor.

When it comes to finding and buying a new home, PMI Arrico Realty & Property Management Lakeland isn’t only a potential choice, it’s the only choice for property management in both Polk County and Lakeland, at least according to its website.

For nearly three years, this local PMI franchise has been providing property management for residential, commercial, and even association properties. Managing your own property is hard work, which is why a company such as theirs offers a helping hand by taking the brunt of the responsibility upon themselves, explained Shannon Cornell, PMI Broker and Owner.

“We manage properties for people,” she explained. “A lot of owners and investors do not like to manage their own properties, so that is what we do for them.”

The past three years has seen their business grow to the point where they have since had to move to a bigger and better location at their new office along Edgewood Drive, which recently celebrated its grand opening through a ribbon cutting ceremony last Wednesday.

The event was hosted by the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce, which welcomed the business to its new location and wished them good luck in expanding their business, as expressed by chamber member Gow Fields. City Commissioner Bill Read mentioned how the new business helped signify economic growth within the local area, and he in turn wished the business well is experiencing similar growth.

“We are thrilled that you are able to not only be in business but also grow your business and be able to move to another venue that is actually bigger for you and allow you to better conduct your operations,” he said. “We are ecstatic that you are creating jobs and selling houses and managing houses, which is a wonderful opportunity in Lakeland.”

Cornell decided to open the new location along Edgewood Drive as a way to gain better visibility, especially with potential customers traveling along the road from Highway 98. She managed to even receive one such customer earlier that day prior to the event.

“I think the location is perfect for us,” she said. “We are right on the corner, we can bring in more activity, we even had somebody come in because of our signs and because we were right next door. So I love it. I love this location.”

Previous customers have praised PMI Arrico Realty for offering them personable service when helping them find a new home. One such customer, in a review on Facebook, mentioned how they were finally able to own a home after renting for four years thanks to the great work of Cornell and her team.

“From first time renters 4 years ago to first time home buyers today, Shannon has always been there from day one,” she said. “She is up front on everything, she is very dependable when something needs to be done, and she is a wonderful person. This is the best company I could ever imagine to rent from or to find a future home.”

PMI Arrico Realty & Property Management is located at 2225 E Edgewood Dr Suite 4, Lakeland, Fl 33803. For more information, call 863-606-1094, or visit their website at: https://www.lakelandpropertymanagementinc.com/

Ribbon Cutting For Refurbished Lakeland Facility A Real “Treatt”

by James Coulter

If you’ve ever taken a sip from a cool, refreshing citrus beverage, or breathed in the aromatic fragrance of your favorite body wash or laundry detergent, chances are those smells and tastes were derived from products developed in a facility in Lakeland.

Utilizing more than a century’s worth of experience and expertise, Treatt USA has been creating fragrances and flavors that have proven to be a real “treatt” to the senses. The company develops more than 3,000 products from a diverse array of smells and tastes sold to customers in more than 90 countries, its website states.

Originally a U.K.-based company, Treatt opened its U.S. subsidiary, Treatt USA, in 1989, with its first facility in Haines City. In 2002, it later moved operations to a facility in Lakeland, where it has flourished and expanded ever since.

Nearly 16 years later, Treatt USA in Lakeland has since received a facelift to both its brand and facility, receiving a 65,000 square foot-expansion which includes a remodel to its office space and the construction of a new office building and manufacturing center.

These new refurbishments were officially commemorated through a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce on Thursday afternoon. Lakeland Mayor Bill Mutz not only attended to help cut the ribbon, but to also commented on how much of a real “treatt” the new facility was.

Mutz mentioned how the company has been a long-time employer within the community since moving there more than a decade ago. Not only has the facility provided employment to many local residents, but the employment it has provided has trained many residents who now work in other sectors. He even mentioned how one of his own staff members previously worked for the company before later returning to work for the company once again.

The expansion to the facility itself signifies overall economic expansion, not only to Treatt USA itself, but also to the local economy. Mutz hopes that these refurbishments will encourage more people to consider working within the city, and in turn, moving and living there as well.

“What we have happening here in Lakeland and throughout Polk County is so wonderful, and we are at a cusp in time where it will grow dramatically even faster,” he said. “So having this presence, having the ability to draw employees here, being able to improve the educational opportunities in our area, all make this a place where you will be glad you made an investment in.”

Douglas Rash, Group Vice President of Global Sales, echoed the mayor’s sentiments by highlighting the growth that led to the facility’s expansion and refurbishment. Treatt USA has experienced nine years of record growth, and is on track to enter its tenth consecutive year, he said.

“As a result today, we supply the leading goods company in the world with the largest brand,” he said. “We have outgrown our footprint. We now need more expansion. We have the ability to continue supply and develop new business with new customers. We have the footprint to follow demand and exceed customer expectations.”

This growth has been spurred by his company’s commitment to people, which includes providing an upbeat, energetic workplace that inspires its employees to give their all, he said. Such an upbeat attitude is one he sees every day when he and his sales team walk into the building each morning, and it is this attitude that will keep their company moving forward, he said.

“So as we look forward, we look into the future with confidence and enthusiasm,” he said. “We had the products, we have the footprint, and now we have the extra capacity. But more importantly, we have the people. So let’s make this year number ten and really take the business to the next level.”

Tim Jones, Chairman of the Board, elucidated on his company’s commitment towards people. Ever since it was founded in 1886, Treatt has thrived due to maintaining connections with customers and clients, fostering lasting relationship that has allowed the company to continue on for more than 130 years.

“There has been constant change, but our company has stayed true to its core values, and have thus continued to grow,” he said. “So much so, two-thirds of global profit comes from people. It is Treatt USA that makes that possible…Everybody in Team Treatt USA, you are all fantastic.”

Treatt USA is located at 4900 Lakeland Commerce Pkwy, Lakeland, FL 33805. For more information, call 863-668-9500, or visit their website at: https://www.treatt.com/

Truck-Motorcycle Crash in Lakeland Claims The Life of a 21-Year-Old Man

On Tuesday, March 26, 2019, at about 1:34 a.m., deputies from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office responded to a two vehicle crash at the intersection of Southside Frontage Road and Kraft Road in west Lakeland. Upon arrival, 21-year-old Evan Stawicki, the driver of a black 2007 Harley Davidson motorcycle, was found unresponsive with significant trauma. He was transported to Lakeland Regional Health as a trauma alert, but was pronounced deceased at the hospital.

The other vehicle involved, a white 1992 Ford F150 pickup truck, was driven by 59-year-old Willis Thomas of of Lakeland. His passengers were 60-year-old Levone Thomas of of Lakeland, and 59-year-old Zona Mason of Lakeland. Mason was transported to Lakeland Regional with minor injuries, while the other two occupants of the truck refused transport.

According to the preliminary investigation, the truck was travelling westbound on Frontage Road, attempting to make a left turn onto southbound Kraft Road. The truck crossed into the path of the motorcycle, which was traveling east on Frontage Road. The motorcycle struck the right front of the truck, causing Stawicki to be ejected.

Mr. Stawicki was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.

Impairment, excessive speed, and distracted driving are not suspected as being a factor in the crash, at this time. Any charges are pending completion of the investigation, which is ongoing.

Southside Frontage Road was completely closed for approximately four hours for the investigation.