Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis, Tennessee

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Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, of which it is the county seat.

Related Topics:
Shelby County, Tennessee - County seat

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As of 2005, the city had a population of 671,929 within the city limits, making it the largest city in the state of Tennessee, United States. The greater Memphis metropolitan area had a population of 1,195,977. This makes Memphis the second largest metropolitan area in Tennessee, surpassed only by metropolitan Nashville. Memphis is on the Lower Chickasaw Bluff above the Mississippi River, at the mouth of the Wolf River.

Related Topics:
Tennessee - United States - Nashville - Mississippi River - Wolf River

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The city is particularly known for being the cradle of American music. Just as Vienna was the home of great classical composers Beethoven, Haydn, and Mozart, Memphis is the home of founders and establishers of various American music genres, including Blues, Gospel, Rock n' Roll, and "sharecropper" country music (in contrast to the "rhinestone" country sound of Nashville). Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, and B. B. King were all getting their starts in Memphis in the 1950s. They are respectively dubbed the "King" of Country, Rock n' Roll, and Blues. Other famous musicians who either grew up or got their starts in the Memphis area include Aretha Franklin, Carl Perkins, John Lee Hooker, Justin Timberlake, Howlin' Wolf, Jerry Lee Lewis, Al Green, Muddy Waters, Tina Turner, Roy Orbison, Willie Mae Ford Smith, Sam Cooke, Booker T. and the MGs, Otis Redding, The Blackwood Brothers, Isaac Hayes, Rufus Thomas,Three 6 Mafia, Eightball & MJG, and "Father of the Blues" W.C. Handy. Memphis is also the home of famous radio stations and recording studios such as WDIA (which was the first American radio station programmed by African-Americans), Stax Records (e.g. Isaac Hayes, Booker T. & the MGs, and Otis Redding), Hi Records (e.g. Al Green and Bill Black), and Sun Studios.

Related Topics:
Music - Vienna - Beethoven - Haydn - Mozart - Johnny Cash - Elvis Presley - B. B. King - Aretha Franklin - Carl Perkins - John Lee Hooker - Justin Timberlake - Howlin' Wolf - Jerry Lee Lewis - Al Green - Muddy Waters - Tina Turner - Roy Orbison - Willie Mae Ford Smith - Sam Cooke - Booker T. and the MGs - Otis Redding - The Blackwood Brothers - Isaac Hayes - Rufus Thomas - Three 6 Mafia - Eightball & MJG - W.C. Handy - WDIA - Stax Records - Booker T. & the MGs - Hi Records - Bill Black - Sun Studios

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