Tierinii Jackson and Tikyra “Tk” Jackson, the sisters at the core of Memphis blues/soul outfit Southern Avenue, kicked off the festivities at Saturday’s NBA playoff matchup between the Memphis Grizzlies and the Utah Jazz with a national anthem performance at FedEx Forum.
The Southern Avenue national anthem performance came as large audiences continue to creep back into the picture at sporting events after a year of empty stands. The Saturday playoff bout welcomed nearly 10,000 in-person fans—roughly 55% of the arena’s full capacity—making it the most-attended Grizzlies home game since prior to the pandemic.
Watch the performance below.
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After a long lockdown, Southern Avenue has started wading back into the waters of live performances. Earlier this month, the Grammy-nominated band performed its first hometown headlining show since the pandemic began at Radians Amphitheatre at the Memphis Botanic Garden.
While in-person gigs were few and far between in 2020, Southern Avenue has stayed busy throughout the past year, signing a new record deal with Renew Records/BMG and playing an assortment of home livestream appearances. Watch the band’s full performance from virtual festival Justice Comes Alive here.
Tikyra “Tk” Jackson, who plays drums in Southern Avenue, also released her debut solo single, “No More Fear“, in August of 2020, and was elected Governor for the Recording Academy‘s Memphis chapter a few months prior.
The band has a slew of tour dates on the schedule for the summer. For a full list of upcoming Southern Avenue tour dates, head here.
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