Stratton Lawrence

2 weeks ago | matadornetwork.com | Stratton Lawrence

Belize Epic Stays Beaches and Islands by Stratton Lawrence Jun 9, 2025 The shark swimming an arm’s length away isn’t interested in me at all. But I can only think of the shark. People come to the Belize Barrier Reef to snorkel and dive with nurse sharks, rays, sea turtles, and tropical fish. I’ve come for the reef and to experience Alaia Belize, a stylish escape in the town of San Pedro on Ambergris Caye, Belize’s largest island. I can see it 600 yards away across the water, safe from the two...

4 weeks ago | charlestoncitypaper.com | Stratton Lawrence

Provided Ben Bridwell never finished high school or attended college, but he did his share of partying at the College of Charleston as a fledgling musician in his late teens. The Irmo-bred leader of Band of Horses migrated between South Carolina, Arizona, and Washington State as a young man. He wound up homeless and washing dishes in Seattle before founding the band that would bring him back to the Lowcountry as a prodigal son.

Jan 9, 2025 | charlestoncitypaper.com | Stratton Lawrence

The band’s five-song debut features deeply personal tracks and original artwork | Provided Mauricio Masáre’s English tutors were James Hetfield, Chris Cornell and Jerry Cantrell. As a kid in the coffee-growing town of Pereira, Colombia, the budding artist saw music — specifically American metal and grunge — as a window to the globe.

Dec 11, 2024 | charlestoncitypaper.com | Stratton Lawrence

Folly Beach was a very different place in 1934 when George Gershwin walked out to the waves from the wooden house behind the dunes where he summered Big band music backed beauty contests held on the pier, and the roads to the island’s ends were shady, sandy thoroughfares. The quiet aesthetic that inspired Gershwin to write the score to Porgy and Bess, including the iconic song “Summertime,” still exists at 712 West Ashley Ave.

Nov 14, 2024 | charlestoncitypaper.com | Stratton Lawrence

Grammy Award–winning ensemble, Silkroad, led by artistic director Rhiannon Giddens, presents “American Railroad” Nov. 19 at the Gaillard | David Bazemore When artistic director and composer Rhiannon Giddens brought her idea of a musical project built around the American railroad to the Grammy Award–winning musical ensemble, Silkroad, she was met with some initial skepticism.