A long-time jazz duo is using its music to tell the story of the ways highways like Interstate 40 upended vibrant communities of color in Nashville and beyond.

The big picture: Greg Bryant and Paul Horton of the jazz duo Concurrence recently released their album "Indivisible" tackling an often-overlooked episode in U.S. history — the destruction of Black communities thanks to the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956.

• The President Eisenhower-era initiative displaced Black businesses and forced residents to leave homes, from the East Coast to the American South to the Southwest, without fair compensation.
• Experts say the program erased generations of Black wealth in the name of progress and moving possible nuclear weapons during the Cold War.

The intrigue: Horton, a keyboardist, tells Axios the new album came after conversations with Bryant, a bassist and a Nashville native, whose family was forced to relocate because of I-40's construction.

• "Before the interstate came through, roughly 80% to 85% of all Black-owned businesses were concentrated in this area of North Nashville," said Horton, who grew up in North Alabama.
• Bryant tells Axios that growing up in Nashville during the 1980s, he saw boarded-up buildings and heard Black elders talk about the once-bustling Jefferson Street.
• "Why was the Black side so rundown? What was the cause of that? I started asking myself these questions when I was 10 years old," Bryant said.

Zoom out: The pair conducted research, interviewed residents during other gigs and finally put it together: What happened in Nashville with I-40 happened to other Black, Latino and Native American communities.

• The same highway split through Indigenous communities in Oklahoma and Arizona and Mexican American neighborhoods in New Mexico.
• Bryant played gigs on Jefferson in front of elders.
• "It's a full circle moment to make this record because it honors our parents, our grandparents," he said. "This happened in so many different cities like Nashville."

Zoom in: "Indivisible" takes listeners on a journey through spoken word, joyful beats and reflective vibes to show what was lost and how communities fought back.

• New York-based la reserve records released the project.
• Songs like "Groovin at the Del Morroco" elicit images of a busy street of Black businesses and happiness, while "I-40 Was a Razor" invokes terror, confusion and anger.
• "The Steering Committee Blues (Ain't Lying Down)" is a call to action with a neo-soul tone and influences from the civil rights era of jazz.

Go deeper: The $1 billion push to remove highways dividing communities

Read the full story ... Listen to the album

Black Opry, the advocacy group leading the push to increase representation in country music, signed the first artist to its newly formed record label earlier this month.

Why it matters: Since its inception in 2021, Black Opry has successfully advocated for more Black artists to receive opportunities in Nashville's music ecosystem.

• Black Opry curates concerts, promotes artists and leads industry discussions about the need to improve diversity within country music.

Between the lines: Black Opry partnered with the Nashville-based company Thirty Tigers to launch the new label venture. Thirty Tigers, which has worked with artists like Jason Isbell, handles the administrative work for record labels.

• The first artist on the Black Opry label is Jett Holden, who debuted the new single "Backwood Proclamation."
• Holden's new album is due out in October.

What they're saying: "With the help of an amazing team behind the scenes, i pulled it off. I have now *officially* launched a label. We are off to the races. So proud i could cry," Black Opry founder Holly G wrote on X.

Share this story

🚗 Nashville is temporarily suspending regulated car booting due to a new state law that bans third-party booting on commercial properties. (Tennessean)

🖊️ The Nashville Songwriters Association International will give country star Alan Jackson a lifetime achievement award at a ceremony this September. (Music Row)

💰 Justin Timberlake has sold his sprawling Williamson County property of more than 127 acres. The sale took place in late May. (Nashville Business Journal, subscription)

U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn will debut the first ad of her re-election campaign during this evening's presidential debate.

State of play: Blackburn's ad touts her efforts to protect children on social media.

• Blackburn sponsored the bipartisan REPORT Act, which President Biden signed into law earlier this year, requiring tech companies to report child sex trafficking and enticement.
• She is also the sponsor of the Kids Online Safety Act, a bipartisan bill that seeks to shield minors from inappropriate content and give parents tools to report abuse.

Driving the news: In the animated ad, a narrator says, "Big Tech is spending billions to keep kids addicted to phones, but Marsha Blackburn is holding their feet to the fire."

Zoom out: Blackburn has built a fundraising advantage in her re-election campaign.

• A Democratic primary in August will determine her opponent, with state Rep. Gloria Johnson as the leading candidate.

Share this story

Harpeth Hall grads and sisters Alex and Gretchen Walsh swam their way to this summer's Paris Olympics, thanks to outstanding performances at the U.S. trials earlier this month.

Driving the news: This will be the second Olympics for Alex Walsh, who also swam for Team USA in Tokyo, where she earned a silver medal in the 200-meter individual medley.

• She qualified in the same event for Paris, which will be a family affair for the Walshes.
• Her sister Gretchen Walsh qualified for three events: the 50-meter freestyle, the 100-meter butterfly and the 4x100-meter freestyle relay.
• Gretchen heads to Paris on a hot streak. She set a new world record in the 100-butterfly during the trials in Indianapolis.

Share this story