The statue of Johnny Cash was lowered into position early Tuesday at the atg Pavilion in North Little Rock. All photos: Michael Hibblen
Before dawn Tuesday, a crane lifted an 8-foot-tall bronze statue of Johnny Cash — an exact replica of the one representing Arkansas in the U.S. Capitol — onto a pedestal at a newly constructed pavilion in North Little Rock.
After working with a crew to adjust its position, sculptor Kevin Kresse got on his knees to help bolt the statue in place. Among those assisting were several people who have spent years working to make the project a reality.
As the sun began to rise, the group applauded the completion of a key part of the project ahead of Friday’s grand opening of the atg Pavilion at the plaza being renamed the Argenta Music Complex.
The Cash statue will serve as an anchor on the west side of the pavilion, facing Main Street. Eventually, the pavilion will house 21 sculptures honoring 20 musicians and music industry executive Al Bell. Their work helped shape American music across genres including classical, blues, gospel, country, soul and rock.
Standing behind the statue, which features a guitar slung across Cash’s back, Kresse was asked how the setting compared with the U.S. Capitol, where the original was unveiled in September 2024.
“It’s outside, it’s in my hometown. In the Capitol, he’s up against a column, so this is actually one of my favorite views, from behind — such an iconic Johnny Cash view here. And then I love that the moon’s up above with the sunrise,” Kresse said, looking toward the sky. “This is special. Incredibly special.”
The six busts installed Tuesday were first arranged on the floor with a diagram showing how each would be secured to its pedestal.
Workers then brought out six wrapped bronze busts Kresse created of Glen Campbell, Al Green, Levon Helm, Louis Jordan, Florence Price and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, which were placed atop their pedestals. Etched on the back of each bust are the musician’s name, birth and death years, and an outline of Arkansas with a star marking the person’s hometown.
Plaques identifying the honorees are also being installed, providing visitors with information about the musicians, including those whose sculptures are not part of the first group being unveiled.
Eventually, likenesses of Big Bill Broonzy, Albert King, Jimmy Driftwood, Lefty Frizzell, Ronnie Hawkins, Scott Joplin, Charlie Rich, Granny Almeda Riddle, Pharoah Sanders, William Grant Still, Conway Twitty, Sonny Boy Williamson and Howlin’ Wolf will be added.
John Gaudin, the project’s campaign chair, said the pavilion will be an important addition to the neighborhood where he has lived and worked for years.
“I see it as a real gem in the crown in the arts district,” Gaudin said. “From an economic and tourism development perspective, that was a big deal for me to get involved in it.”
His friendship with Kresse and admiration for his work also played a role.
“I think he’s one of the top sculptors in the country, and to be able to have the ability to showcase some of his work, it was just hard to kind of pass up for me to not get involved,” Gaudin said.
At one point Tuesday, Kresse’s wife, Bridget, noted that it was Gaudin’s birthday, prompting the group to sing “Happy Birthday” to him.
John Gaudin and Greg Spradlin examine the bust of drummer and singer Levon Helm after it was placed on a pedestal Tuesday. Born in Elaine, Arkansas, Helm became best known as a member of The Band.
Kevin Kresse adjusts the placement of his bust of Louis Jordan, who was born in Brinkley and became a popular jazz and jump blues saxophonist, singer and bandleader from the 1930s through the 1950s.
Kresse traces the origins of the project to 2018, when he unveiled a bust of Helm in Marvell. That experience led him to consider how many other influential Arkansas musicians had received relatively little recognition in their home communities.
Working with musician Greg Spradlin and radio host Stephen Koch, Kresse began developing a broader effort to honor the state’s musical heritage.
An important component of the project is a plan to create duplicate bronze busts for installation in the musicians’ hometowns or communities closely associated with them.
Cash grew up in Dyess, Helm was from Marvell, Campbell was born in Billstown near Delight, and Tharpe was born in Cotton Plant. Other communities with connections to the honorees include Brinkley, Pine Bluff, Forrest City, Helena, El Dorado, Mountain View and Texarkana.
Gaudin said the first communities expected to receive sculptures are Pine Bluff and Brinkley, potentially next spring.
Spradlin said he was pleased to see this phase of the project nearing completion after years of discussions.
“It’s amazing. It’s finally happening, you know, something that Kevin’s been talking about for a long time, and we’ve been talking about for a long time,” Spradlin said. “I don’t think it could be more perfect than it is where it is right now, and that it’s finally happening. It’s a dream come true.”
Kevin Kresse positions his bust of Forrest City native Al Green on a pedestal Tuesday. Green became one of the most successful soul singers of the 1970s, writing and recording a string of hits.
Born in Little Rock, Florence Price became a pioneering classical composer and the first Black woman to have a composition performed by a major American symphony orchestra.
Spradlin said working with Kresse on the Helm memorial inspired them to find ways to honor additional legendary Arkansas musicians.
“I’ve been crawling around graveyards since I was 16 years old, following the music and the musicians, and think that Arkansas has never really acknowledged the icons that we’ve produced for the world,” Spradlin said. “The fact that they’re getting a home here, it’s tremendous.”
The approximately $3 million project broke ground May 11 and was developed through a partnership involving North Little Rock Tourism, the nonprofit Argenta Arts Foundation and private supporters.
Scott and Ruth Landers, owners of Applied Technology Group, are among the principal backers, and the pavilion is named for their company. North Little Rock Tourism funded construction of the pavilion, while private donations are paying for the sculptures.
Construction has progressed rapidly in recent months, with workers assembling an elaborate steel structure that required welding during the hottest part of the summer, when temperatures were hovering around 100 degrees.
Workers assemble the steel framework of the pavilion Sept. 6.
With the temperature around 100 degrees, a worker welds steel beams together during construction of the pavilion Sept. 6.
Kresse said his original vision for the pavilion was considerably different from the structure now standing. He initially suggested something resembling a barn to reflect the humble beginnings of many of the musicians being honored.
As the design evolved, the pavilion took on what he described as the appearance of a church or temple, with the sculptures elevated above ground level.
“To me, it’s almost a perfect metaphor for their lives, starting off very simply, humbly, in so many of these small towns in Arkansas, and [they] went out and influenced the world,” Kresse said. “And then you see their influence in so many of the musicians coming behind them.”
The structure, he said, is a fitting tribute to artists whose accomplishments have not always received the recognition they deserve in their home state.
“To put these artists on a pedestal, metaphorically, and know that they really deserve this type of honor,” Kresse said.
One mistake was discovered on the pedestal where the Cash statue was placed Tuesday. The pedestal is identical to the one in the U.S. Capitol, featuring lyrics from the song “Man in Black” on one side and a quotation on the other, but Cash’s birth year was incorrectly listed as 1935. He was born in 1932.
It’s unclear how the mistake occurred, but Kresse was unfazed, saying such errors happen.
“It will get fixed, so I’m not worried about it. Those are small potatoes in the big scheme of things,” Kresse said. “That’s fixable and, you know, it’s not like the bronze and he’s missing a hand or anything like that.”
Organizers said the error likely will not be corrected in time for Friday’s ceremony.
Kresse said initial plans called for unveiling subsequent busts in groups once a year, but they now may be installed in pairs as he completes them.
“We’ll keep adding to the menu, and then word of mouth can spread about this really cool thing that’s happening in Argenta,” Kresse said.
Duplicate castings of the initial busts have already been made for hometown installations, he said, although a second Florence Price bust is not being produced during the first round.
Kevin Kresse marks where the bust of Pike County native Glen Campbell will be secured to its pedestal. An identical bust is planned for the Delight Branch Library in Campbell’s hometown.
A bust of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, who grew up in Cotton Plant and became a pioneering gospel singer and guitarist whose music helped shape rock ‘n’ roll. An identical bust is planned for Cotton Plant.
Sculptures of Big Bill Broonzy and Albert King are at the foundry Kresse uses to cast his work, he said, while he is about halfway through creating the clay model of Howlin’ Wolf.
Kresse hopes the hometown installations will encourage communities to develop additional attractions celebrating their musical connections.
“Hopefully that’s not gonna be, you know, the end-all, be-all,” he said. “It’ll hopefully just be a catalyst for more things to happen in the towns.”
He said the arrival of tourists could encourage communities to expand beyond the sculptures.
“It’s like anything, you gotta take a first step, and then I think if they see tourists coming, they’ll want to do more to accommodate that and build up.”
Organizers also envision expanding the educational aspects of the North Little Rock pavilion, potentially including programs for children and a museum devoted to Arkansas music.
“I’m just dreaming again, you know, but have a museum for Arkansas music,” Kresse said. “Really expand upon this cultural gold mine that we’ve been sitting with.”
Gaudin said fundraising continues for the pavilion, the hometown installations and the broader Arkansas Music Trail.
For Kresse, the project has grown far beyond what he initially imagined.
“It’s just so much bigger than what I was originally dreaming of,” he said. “That’s what really can catch me off guard and kind of take my breath away sometimes.”
The grand opening will be held from 3 to 7 p.m. Friday and will also mark the reopening of the Argenta Music Complex. North Little Rock Tourism says the celebration will include live music, food trucks, family-friendly activities and interactive exhibits.
Veteran reporter, editor and manager at newspapers, radio and television stations. I’m also a photographer, historian and author, having written the 2017 book Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas.
A few times a year, I sit in for my pal Flap Jones hosting Not Necessarily Nashville on Little Rock Public Radio’s KUAR 89.1. It always reminds me how good it feels to just play my favorite music on the radio. There are no firm rules about what I play, though I do try to keep it along the lines of what Flap’s incredibly loyal listeners expect: country and Americana mixed with whatever else feels good to me at the moment.
A health concern prompted Rosanne Cash to cancel her annual Sunken Lands Songwriting Circle fundraiser last month, which benefits Johnny Cash’s boyhood home in Dyess, Arkansas. She later released a statement on Sept. 24 saying she was doing better.
“I had a health scare a few weeks ago but with some rest and serious downtime I’m happy to report that all is well,” Cash wrote.
At age 80, Neil Young released his latest album last month, Second Song, and it’s quite good. He’s sounding raspy and as holy as ever. It’s great hearing new material from him.
I’ve also recently been listening to a lot of full albums by Tom T. Hall, which led me to a couple from the 1990s that I’d never heard. From Home Grown, his final studio release, I pulled one song to open the show.
AUDIO: Not Necessarily Nashville, Oct. 10, 2026 on Little Rock Public Radio’s KUAR-FM 89.1.
Not Necessarily Nashville playlist, Oct. 10, 2026
Steve Earle with the Fairfield Four — “Telephone Road” (El Corazón) Rosanne Cash — “Seventh Avenue” (The Wheel) Neil Young & the Chrome Hearts — “The Foggy Edge of Time” (Second Song) Billy Strings — “Leaning on a Travelin’ Song” (Highway Prayers) B.B. King featuring Willie Nelson — “Night Life” (Deuces Wild) Mary Gauthier — “Mercy Now” (Mercy Now) Johnny Cash — “The L&N Don’t Stop Here Anymore” (Unearthed) Bill Withers — “Grandma’s Hands” (Just as I Am) Jim Mize — “Delta Land” (Release It to the Sky) The Band — “Atlantic City” (Jericho)
Veteran reporter, editor and manager at newspapers, radio and television stations. I’m also a photographer, historian and author, having written the 2017 book Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas.
It’s always a joy filling in for Flap Jones a few times a year hosting Not Necessarily Nashville on Little Rock Public Radio’s KUAR-FM 89.1. I had a lot to talk about and music to play.
Tickets just went on sale for Hayes Carll who will play three consecutive nights at Little Rock’s White Water Tavern Monday, Nov. 9-Wednesday, Nov. 11. Los Lobos will be back in Arkansas on Sunday, Dec. 6 for a show at The Momentary in Bentonville. And after seeing BettySoo for the first time last month, I played one song from her latest album.
AUDIO: Not Necessarily Nashville, Aug. 1, 2026 on Little Rock Public Radio’s KUAR-FM 89.1.
Not Necessarily Nashville playlist, Aug. 1, 2026
Tony Joe White — “Saturday Night In Oak Grove, Louisiana” (Homemade Ice Cream)
Sad Daddy — “Did We Turn Off The Stove” (Ozark Shine)
Gary Stewart — “One Track Mind” (One Track Mind)
Hayes Carll — “We’re Only Human” (We’re Only Human Deluxe Edition)
Asleep At The Wheel — “This ‘Ol Cowboy” (Reinventing the Wheel)
BettySoo — “Gulf Road (feat. James McMurtry)” (If You Never Go Away)
Los Lobos — “Guantanamera” (Del Este De Los Ángeles)
Suzy Bogguss — “It All Falls Down to the River” (Praying’ for Sunshine)
The Red Clay Strays — “Do Today” (Grateful)
Tom Petty — “Harry Green” (Wildflowers & All the Rest Super Deluxe Edition)
Gary P. Nunn — “London Homesick Blues” (What I Like About Texas – Greatest Hits)
Veteran reporter, editor and manager at newspapers, radio and television stations. I’m also a photographer, historian and author, having written the 2017 book Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas.
A few times a year, Flap Jones, host of Little Rock Public Radio’s Not Necessarily Nashville, will take a week off and I get the joy of filling in, playing some of my favorite music. That’s what I did last night. There were also several important things to talk about.
AUDIO: Not Necessarily Nashville, June 13, 2026, 7 p.m. on Little Rock Public Radio’s KUAR-FM 89.1.
Recording the June 13, 2026 episode of Not Necessarily Nashville at my home in North Little Rock.
Willie Nelson released a new album on May 29 called “Dream Chaser,” so I played the title track. I also opened the show by playing a song from Willie’s 1996 album “Spirit,” which was released a few days before he stopped by Glenwood, Arkansas radio station KWXI/KWXE. I wrote about the 30th anniversary of that event for a story in The Glenwood Herald, and talked about that on the show.
I also played some Lucinda Williams two weeks ahead of her performance at the Arkansas Folklife Festival in North Little Rock on Saturday, June 27 at 8:30 p.m. on The People’s Stage. Blues legend Bobby Rush is the headliner the previous night. You can find a full schedule for the three-day festival at this link.
James McMurtry returns to Little Rock at the end of the month for two nights at the White Water Tavern on June 30 and July 1. Tickets for both shows are sold out, but the White Water often makes a few tickets available in the hours before shows, so anyone looking for tickets might want to contact the venue.
Not Necessarily Nashville playlist, June 13, 2026
Willie Nelson — “Too Sick to Pray” (Spirit)
Lucinda Williams (featuring Mavis Staples) — “So Much Trouble in the World” (World’s Gone Wrong)
New Grass Revival — “Do What You Gotta Do” (Friday Night in America)
Sam Bush — “Eight More Miles to Louisville” (King of My World)
James McMurtry — “South Texas Lawman” (The Black Dog and the Wandering Boy)
Rodney Crowell — “Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight” (Acoustic Classics)
Joe Ely — “Cornbread Moon” — (Honky Tonk Masquerade)
Gary Stewart — “She’s Got a Drinking Problem” (The Essential Gary Stewart)
Merle Haggard — “I Won’t Give Up My Train” (My Love Affair With Trains)
Al Green — “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” (single)
Willie Nelson – “Dream Chaser” (Dream Chaser)
Commander Cody — “Looking at the World Through a Windshield” (We’ve Got a Live One Here!)
The first time I filled in hosting Not Necessarily Nashville for Flap was in 1990. At that time, she and I were both doing programs on Little Rock community radio station KABF-FM 88.1. She moved her show over to KUAR-FM 89.1 in 2009, shortly after I moved back to Arkansas to take a news job at the station. I’ve been her fill-in ever since. Occasionally we’ve hosted the show together or joined one another on the air during KUAR pledge drives.
Veteran reporter, editor and manager at newspapers, radio and television stations. I’m also a photographer, historian and author, having written the 2017 book Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas.
Thirty years ago, Willie Nelson rolled into Glenwood, Ark. for an appearance on local radio combo KWXI-AM 670/KWXE-FM 104.5. A large crowd of cheering fans showed up with signs and red bandannas. Willie did not disappoint them, making the event on June 9, 1996 one of the most memorable days for the community.
Willie Nelson being escorted inside the Glenwood radio stations by Music/Programming Director Anna Donahue (right) on June 9, 1996. Photo: The Glenwood Herald
Nelson and four longtime members of his band arrived about an hour late aboard a pair of buses named Red Headed Stranger and Honeysuckle Rose III, according to a story by The Glenwood Herald. Stepping off his bus at Reggie Jones Plaza, where the radio studios were located, Nelson waved to the crowd and walked inside with harmonica player Mickey Raphael, rhythm guitarist Jody Payne and piano-playing sister Bobbie Nelson.
“We had to lock the doors, so many people were trying to come in,” former station owner Tom Nichols said this week while recalling the event.
They played live music for about 90 minutes with some banter between each song with Nichols and Music/Programming Director Anna Donahue. Afterward, Nelson ventured into the crowd and “courteously posed for pictures and stayed in the parking lot signing guitars, photographs, bandanas and anything else that was presented to him until no one was left,” the newspaper reported.
What inspired the legendary singer and songwriter to visit the city of less than 2,000 people for the promotional event was a letter from Donahue along with enthusiasm by Nelson for his new album “Spirit.” It had been released five days earlier.
“I talked it over with the band and we decided the best way to sell this album was door to door,” Nelson said on the air.
“Spirit” was his first album for British-based Island Records, which had never released an album by a country performer. It’s a stripped down acoustic record with a Spanish influence. It’s now considered a masterpiece and Nelson has said it’s his favorite album among his own recordings.
According to a story by The Glenwood Herald that ran a few days before Nelson’s visit, Donahue had written a letter the previous year to Waylon Jennings, a member of the supergroup the Highwaymen, which also included Nelson, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson. The letter was in response to an interview in which they complained that despite strong concert attendance, radio stations were not willing to play new Highwaymen recordings.
She said record labels were only providing promotional copies of CDs to about 300 radio stations. “We would play the fire out of the CDs if we had them,” she wrote, “but our station, like about 2,500 other stations in the country, is not on the right list. We miss the days when radio and artists realized they needed each other and record labels treated radio stations the same.”
She was then contacted by a representative of Nelson in the fall of 1995 to set up the visit to Glenwood the following year as the kick off of a promotional tour for the album. But not everyone was convinced the music icon was really coming. Station owner Nichols says he didn’t believe it at first. “If truth be known, I was also skeptical,” reporter Mike McCoy wrote in his follow up article for the newspaper after Nelson’s visit.
Nelson and his four bandmates first performed every song from his new album. Donahue at one point told Willie that a song he had just played was a “two-box of hankies tear jerker.”
He responded, “Yeah, it’s a real wrist slasher,” to laughter.
Then Nelson began taking requests from listeners calling in and played some of his biggest hits and took. Songs included “You Were Always On My Mind,” “Seven Spanish Angels,” “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain,” and “Georgia.”
The newspaper described how Nelson “spoke softly, politely and was so modest one would never have known that this man had written songs for Patsy Cline and Faron Young, returned to Texas and stormed the nation from the Armadillo World Headquarters rock palace in Austin, and then gone on to star in movies with such stars as Robert Redford, Jane Fonda and Dian Cannon.”
KWXI/KWXE owners Polly and Tom Nichols pose for a photo with WiIlie Nelson. Photo: Tom Nichols collection
Nelson was originally scheduled to stay overnight in the community. He was to have arrived the night before the radio appearance, staying at Rivers Edge Bed and Breakfast in Caddo Gap. He was also planning to play golf at the Glenwood Country Club. But plans fell through and he and his entourage didn’t arrive until 7:30 a.m. on that Sunday morning. They still spent time at Rivers Edge to relax on the banks of the Caddo River and have lunch.
After the event at the Glenwood radio station was over and the last autograph was signed, Nichols says one bus with Nelson and members of his entourage left for Nashville where he was to attend an awards show. The other bus with members of his band turned back toward Texas where Nelson is based.
The two radio stations, which were once the broadcasting voice of Glenwood, are no longer in the community. After being sold by Nichols, the FM 104.5 signal was moved to Hot Springs where it’s used by a religious broadcaster. The most recent owner of the AM 670 signal, a Texarkana man, ended up in bankruptcy and the station is currently off the air. It’s unclear if the license has been officially surrendered to the FCC.
Now at age 93, Nelson has outlived his contemporaries, continues touring and released his latest album “Dream Chaser” on May 29.
This story was published in the June 5, 2026 issue of The Glenwood Herald. Tom Nichols is trying to find a recording of the broadcast so that we can share that audio here.
Veteran reporter, editor and manager at newspapers, radio and television stations. I’m also a photographer, historian and author, having written the 2017 book Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas.
Sculptor Kevin Kresse speaks during a groundbreaking ceremony Monday for the atg Pavilion at Argenta Plaza in North Little Rock. Photo: Michael Hibblen
A groundbreaking ceremony was held Monday in North Little Rock for a pavilion in Argenta Plaza that will eventually house statues and busts of influential musicians who emerged from Arkansas. Artist Kevin Kresse, best known for crafting an eight-foot-tall bronze statue of Johnny Cash for the U.S. Capitol, is making the sculptures of 20 musicians who span a broad range of genres, along with Stax Records executive Al Bell.
The first group will be unveiled in September, Kresse said, and will include a replica of the Cash statue using the same mold. Others will be Levon Helm, Sister Rosetta Tharp, Al Green, Glen Campbell, Louis Jordan and Florence Price. Subsequent unveiling ceremonies will take place each year until all 21 statues or busts are on display. In addition to the busts being placed in the pavilion, a second casting will be made of each which will be placed in the hometowns of the musicians.
“It’s something that I’ve been dreaming about for so long that it’s almost surreal that this day is here,” Kresse said in an interview before the ceremony. “It’s the beginning of what I see as a longer adventure with this being the beginning of it. But I see this spreading out around the entire state eventually, hopefully moving on to educational components for kids and everything too.”
Attending the event were private financial donors, state and local tourism officials, representatives of the communities the musicians are from and some of the musicians’ family members. The pavilion is being named after Applied Technology Group, which is headquartered a few blocks away and is owned by Scott and Ruth Landers. The $3 million project is a partnership between North Little Rock Tourism and the nonprofit Argenta Arts Foundation.
“This project will move the needle on tourism not just in the Argenta Arts District, but throughout the state, as well,” said John Goudin, who is the project’s campaign chair. To the financial backers, he said “they’ve never blinked from day one on this project, so thank you all so much.”
Also at the ceremony were Glen Campbell’s youngest sister Sandi Campbell Brink and cousin Steve Campbell, who still lives in Pike County. Glen Campbell was born in the community of Billstown, near Delight, which is also where he was laid to rest in his family’s cemetery after his death in 2017.
Steve Campbell said the second cast of the statue will be placed in a room at the Delight Branch Library. In the meantime, he said in an interview that he’s painting the room and preparing materials that will be placed in there.
“The heritage of music in Arkansas is totally unbelievable. When you start looking at the people that came out of Arkansas and made it so well, it influenced the entire world of music. So Glen being part of it, it thrills us to the core. But all of the others, as well, that there are parts of it, where just the whole nucleus stretches out to the entire state.”
Kresse says the idea of creating a series of statues came to him in 2018 while driving back from the city of Marvell where he had unveiled a bust of Levon Helm, drummer for The Band. He said he had a list in his head of artists he wanted to honor, then began working with radio host Stephen Koch of “Arkansongs” and musician Greg Spradlin. Koch and Spradlin had been working on getting highways named for some of the musicians. But the project was put on hold when Kresse was commissioned for the Cash statue in the U.S. Capitol. Once that was unveiled on Sept. 24, 2024, he then began talking again with Goudin.
The goal, Kresse said Monday, was “for everyone in Arkansas to see the huge cultural impact that the music has had on the whole world and for them to get a real sense of pride of that.”
Also at the ceremony was Jimmy Cunningham, director of tourism development for the Pine Bluff Advertising and Promotion Commission. Compared to the neighboring states of Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana, he said Arkansas is late in promoting its musical heritage.
“Arkansas’ got such an incredible, incredible music history, with so many greats, so many giants, and so many contributions, but we haven’t curated our narrative. And so, you know, if nobody else tells the story, how is it gonna get out? We gotta do it ourselves,” Cunningham said.
“I’m excited about it because I think Arkansas needs to celebrate its music. It needs to tell the world how important that music is, and this is one way to do it.”
Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism Secretary Shea Lewis said the pavilion will become a key stop along the Arkansas Music Trail, giving travelers a place to connect to the state’s musician legacy while also boosting economic tourism.
“When visitors come here to see the 21 different busts,” he said, “they’ll stay and explore our restaurants, shops, and the riverfront that North Little Rock has to offer. It’s the power of tourism. It drives our foot traffic, supports small businesses, it strengthens our overall communities, as well as quality of life. It’s what makes Arkansas special, our creativity, our culture, the warm, welcome people that they feel when they arrive.”
Below is the complete list of artists being honored and the cities where second castings of statues and busts will be placed:
Al Bell — North Little Rock
Big Bill Broonzy — Pine Bluff
Glen Campbell — Delight
Johnny Cash –- Dyess
Jimmy Driftwood — Mountain View
Lefty Frizzell — El Dorado
Al Green — Forrest City
Ronnie Hawkins — Fayetteville
Levon Helm — Marvell
Scott Joplin — Texarkana
Louis Jordan — Brinkley
Albert King — Osceola
Florence Price — Little Rock
Charlie Rich — Colt
Granny Almeda Riddle — Heber Springs
Pharoah Sanders — North Little Rock
William Grant Still — Little Rock
Sister Rosetta Tharpe — Cotton Plant
Conway Twitty — Helena
Sonny Boy Williamson — Helena
Howlin’ Wolf — West Memphis
This story was published by Talk Business & Politics on May 11 and will run in upcoming issues of The Pine Bluff Commercial and The Glenwood Herald.
Veteran reporter, editor and manager at newspapers, radio and television stations. I’m also a photographer, historian and author, having written the 2017 book Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas.
This is the online home of Michael Hibblen, managing editor of Newsroom Ventures, which publishes six Arkansas newspapers. I've worked as a reporter, editor and manager for newspapers, radio and TV stations for more than three decades, with this website telling the story of my career. Also featured are outside interests I've researched. The views expressed here are my own and might not reflect those of my employers.
Released by Arcadia Publishing in 2017, Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas delves into the history of the railroad, which once had a huge footprint in Arkansas. The book features historic photos and tells the story of the Rock Island, which was shut down in March 1980. READ MORE ABOUT MY BOOK.
Preserving Rock Island Depot at Perry
Since 2017, I've been part of a group working to preserve the former Rock Island Depot at Perry, Arkansas. To keep it from being demolished, we raised money to move the depot to an adjacent lot, still alongside the tracks, which is now owned by the city. The building has since been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and our group has become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. LEARN MORE.
For 13 years, from May 2009 to December 2022, I worked for NPR station KUAR-FM 89.1 at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. That included 10 years as News Director while continuing to anchor and report. You can read and hear reports from that time on Little Rock Public Radio's website.
