News & Opinion

“Let's just be the best versions of ourselves,” Mayor Kasim Reed told protesters, encouraging them to keep on exercising their constitutional rights “in the spirit of Dr. King.”

As you plan your Thanksgiving gathering, consider helping others in your community by supporting these Atlanta organizations, either through direct food donations, financial contributions, or volunteering.

The Conjuring 3 has started filming in metro Atlanta, as is Will Packer's new series Bigger and Netflix holiday movie Holidate. Plus—a quick overview of what's going on now that Governor Kemp has signed HB 481 and how film studios are reacting.

Tiny Doors ATL is an installation art project throughout the city that consists of an ever-changing series of, well, tiny doors, flanked by miniature picket fences, bulletin boards, and other accessories.

Georgia 7th Congressional District Democratic candidate Carolyn Bourdeaux answers our questions about COVID-19, healthcare, systemic racism, and immigration.

As a session keyboardist and arranger, Greg Phillinganes's work with the Jacksons spans thirty years. He played on all of Michael Jackson's solo albums, including "Off the Wall," "Bad," and 1982's iconic "Thriller," and served as musical director for the late pop star's "Bad" and "Dangerous" tours. He serves in the same capacity for Cirque du Soleil's "Michael Jackson The Immortal World Tour," set to play Philips Arena June 29 to July 1.A lot of this show remains cloaked in mystery. What can you reveal about we might expect? Expect a very high quality show with a lot of the familiar elements of Cirque as far as dancers and acrobats but with no clowns and no fake Michael. You will definitely feel Michael in the room though.How do you set about achieving that, given that Michael Jackson was one of the most electrifying live performers in pop music history? This show started out with the vision of Jamie King, who is the writer and director of the show. Jamie had a direct working connection with Michael, starting out as a dancer for him (on Jackson's 1992 "Dangerous" tour) and then as a choreographer and now he produces all the megaconcert tours for artists including Madonna and Rihanna. He brought along Kevin Antunes who serves as the show's musical designer. Thanks to Sony Music's assistance, Kevin had the enviable job of going through all of Michael's original recordings and creating specific arrangements based on Jamie's ideas.You've spent more than three decades playing on various Jackson recordings from the Jacksons' 1978 "Destiny" album to Michael's 2009 posthumous recording "This Is It." What made you and Michael such solid collaborators? I was first brought on to work as an arranger for Michael and his brothers on the "Destiny" album. There was a kinship, a mutual respect, but most of all, it was fun. One night after a session on the album, I talked most of the brothers into going to Magic Mountain, an amusement park outside of L.A. with me. No security guards, no cops, it was just us. But this was early, early on when they were making the transition from Motown to [CBS Records].In the early 1980s, when you were in the studio with producer Quincy Jones and Michael creating "Thriller," were you aware the material had the potential to have the kind of cultural impact it ended up making? No. You can't ever know that. It's just impossible. And yet, maybe Steve Jobs knew he was going to revolutionize the world when he created the iPhone. You can't go into a studio to create music thinking that you're going to change the world. Having thoughts like that can actually get in the way of the creative process. All you can hope is that if you create something that gets you excited, a whole lot of other people will feel the same way. Quincy and Michael just wanted the best songs possible for the album. That was the goal when we went in, and it ended up becoming the game-changing event it was.When casual music fans ask you to point out one specific Greg Phillinganes musical moment on the "Thriller" album, which of your many contributions do you point them to? Probably the title track "Thriller" written by Rod Temperton. There are just layers and layers of keyboards on that. There's so much ear candy on that song. I did the synth bass part, those high-pitched synth parts, I did the Rhodes [keyboard] part and even did the pipe organ that Vincent Price does his rap over. It was crazy! When I listen to it now, I just think about all the fun we had creating all those layers in the studio.You bring a lot of credibility and a personal connection to Michael to this Cirque production. What elements of Michael t

Today, the genre is seeing a new wave of women rise to the top—and Atlanta is the epicenter. In the last two years, most of the women who have been included on the coveted XXL Freshman list have either been from Atlanta or have called it home at some point, including Latto, Flo Milli, Rubi Rose, and Lakeyah. Even artists who aren’t from the South, such as Nicki Minaj, Saweetie, and Cardi B, are making hits here.

I was 29 and struggling to make it as a freelance writer. MTV’s Jersey Shore was the hottest thing on TV. Those idiots are getting paid, I thought. Why not me and my old buddies?

Here's where some of the leading candidates running to replace Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed stand on President Donald Trump's decision and what they would do, if elected, about climate change.