BOOKING IT: John Diamond, the former chief media relations officer for the University of Arkansas, will hold a signing of his new book at Wordsworth Books in Little Rock's Heights. The book, Please Delete: How Leadership Hubris Ignited a Scandal and Tarnished a University, recounts the level of financial mismanagement discovered by senior officials at the university in 2012. Diamond is set to appear at the bookstore for an hour beginning at 5 p.m. tomorrow.
STAGE FIGHT: Dazz & Brie, a North Little Rock-based rock 'n' soul band, will compete against 15 other bands across the nation for a spot on AFROPUNK music festival's lineup set for Brooklyn in late August. The Arkansas duo -- Dazzmin Murry and Kabrelyn Boyce -- will be one of 16 groups competing during a four-day battle of the bands. The Arkansas duo performs June 22, with the finals set for July 8. Visit tinyurl.com/j4yw96s to view the duo's new single, "To the Danger," which mixes soul, rock and pop.
COUNTRY LIVIN': Meanwhile, another Arkansan, Denny Strickland is still chasing his musical dreams. Strickland was first mentioned here when, as a 21-year-old Arkansas State University student, he performed Cash's Cry! Cry! Cry! at the inaugural Johnny Cash Music Festival at ASU in Jonesboro in 2011. He spent several days at the 2016 Country Music Association's Music Festival with meet-and-greets, performances and his own Fan Fair X booth Thursday through today. His latest EP, Swerve, features four new songs and two fan favorites.
ON HIS GAME: After Baltimore Orioles pitcher T.J. McFarland was recalled recently from the Triple-A Norfolk Tides, Sherwood resident Ashur Tolliver was sent to the Tides in Norfolk, Va. Tolliver was recently called up to the Orioles from AA Bowie Baysox. Tolliver, who underwent a major labrum surgery in the spring of 2012, had a 6.75 ERA in four appearances with the Orioles and made a good first impression on Manager Buck Showalter, reports CSN.
"He's presented himself well here, like the way you'd like to see a 28-year-old guy who has gone through some challenges come up here and go: 'Listen, this might be my one shot. I'm going to let it rip and attack the strike zone,'" Showalter said. "That's the thing I was hoping to see from him, what I told him when he first got here."
After having skipped playing at the AAA level, Tolliver was effective in three of his four relief outings during his stint with the Orioles, ESPN reports.
MUSIC TO OUR EARS: East Arkansas Community College's performance schedule for the 2016-17 school year is stout. Highlights include Country Music Hall of Fame member Charley Pride on Sept. 10, gospel singer Amy Grant on March 3, comedian and singer Vicki Lawrence on Feb. 4, and 1970s rockers Three Dog Night on Jan. 21. Visit eacc.edu for more info about the Forrest City school.
Contact Linda S. Haymes at (501) 399-3636 or lhaymes@arkansasonline.com
SundayMonday on 06/12/2016