Arts & Entertainment

Oxford Native, Cooking Enthusiast Loves to Spread Joy of Cooking With LOU Youths

Published

7 years ago

July 11, 2019

By Jackson Solari
Hottytoddy.com intern
jjsolari@go.olemiss.edu

Children of the Oxford community recently had a chance to sharpen their skills and talents in the culinary arts with FUNdamentals Cooking Class for Kids.

FUNdamentals Cooking Class, specifically designed for children ages 8-13, focuses on teaching children how to properly prepare meals in the kitchen. The class, held at the Oxford Park Commission Stone Center building, starts with a beginner class and ends with an intermediate class. The class is taught by Oxford native Elizabeth Speed who prefers “hands-on teaching/learning styles” to impact the budding chefs.

Speed (left) and students eagerly wait for a turn stirring the homemade pesto dish. Photo by Jackson Solari.

Main points of the class consist of knife safety, culinary terms and how to read a recipe.

“The goal of the class is to have the kids be curious about what they are eating, to cook with and for their families, and to have an experience that helps them to become more independent,” Speed said.

Children first began with appetizers, then moved on to soups and salads. They finished their courses with entrees (chicken pesto!) and desserts. Speed said she tries to integrate education into each class because she wants her students to enjoy the whole learning experience.

“I try to incorporate geography, science, vocabulary and sometimes literature or current events into each class so the students come away with more than just a recipe; they have a whole cooking experience,” she said.

Students happily prep their chicken to complete the pesto dish. Photo by Jackson Solari.

Speed said her passion for teaching ties into her love for cooking. The driving force behind Speed’s passion to start the FUNdamentals Cooking Class was the fact that she had the same version of the class from her mom. She knew she wanted to pass on that experience to her sons.

“My mother was a teacher and she inspired me. I wanted my sons to learn and enjoy cooking, and so it grew organically from those two influences,” she said.

Speed said she began teaching cooking classes with an after-school club while she was a FoodCorps service member with Good Food for Oxford Schools. FoodCorps is an organization that helps connect children to healthy food in school so they can live healthier lives and reach their full potential, according to its website.

After Speed’s time in the FoodCorps, she still wanted to pursue service work. She didn’t see an oppurtunity for LOU children to learn cooking outside of their homes.

“I wanted to fill that niche,” she said.

The final class of the summer ends tomorrow, July 12. Speed said she is working with OPC to schedule dates for at least two classes in the fall. For more information, please contact Elizabeth Speed at elizabethspeed74@gmail.com.

Arts & Entertainment

Gulf Coast Jam Gives Post Malone Fans a New 2026 Date to Circle

Published

6 months ago

May 6, 2026

Taylor Hodges

Gulf Coast Jam in Panama City Beach, Fla. offers Post Malone fans in Oxford an opportunity to see him concert. | Photo courtesy of Gulf Coast Jam

Last week it was announced Grammy award-winning artist Post Malone cancelled the Oxford stop that was part of his Big Ass Stadium Tour Part 2.

That concert was going to be held inside Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, giving the iconic venue an interesting, temporary environment.

But fans of Post Malone will have a chance to see the artist without having to travel across the country.

Post Malone will be a headlining act at the 2026 Gulf Coast Jam Presented by Jim Beam in Panama City Beach. Malone will cap off the four-day music festival as main performer on Sunday, May 31.

pov: you thought you missed Post Malone… but he’s still headlining in PCB on May 31 🤠

don’t miss him at Gulf Coast Jam — grab your tickets now 🎟️#posty #cancelledshow #gulfcoastjam #pcb #panamacitybeach pic.twitter.com/6P5LX6Xfwu

— Gulf Coast Jam (@GulfCoastJam) May 5, 2026

The Country On The Coast™ festival lineup also includes headliners Keith Urban, Chris Stapleton, and Riley Green, who will be joined by more than 20 artists at Frank Brown Park in beautiful Panama City Beach May 28-31, 2026. Passes are currently available at www.GulfCoastJam.com. Payment plans are available for all pass levels.

Gulf Coast Jam Presented by Jim Beam drew sellout crowds of 30,000 for the past two years. Music Festival Wizard named Gulf Coast Jam Presented by Jim Beam the number one festival in their

Top 50 Most Popular Fests in the World 2024 – Voter’s Choice poll and their Best Beach Music Festivals This Summer in 2025.

Post Malone, born Austin Post, is one of the most commercially successful artists of the last decade, blending hip‑hop, pop, and country influences into a style that’s made him a fixture on radio and streaming charts. He’s known for hits like Circles, Rockstar, and Sunflower, and for a touring schedule that usually packs stadiums and arenas. His shows tend to draw a wide mix of fans, which is part of why the Oxford date had been circled on the calendar for months.

Who? When?

The schedule will tell you!! Save to your phone to refer back to!

Tickets available at:https://t.co/BraelVgALX #festival #panamacitybeach #countrymusic #jimbeam #countryonthecoast pic.twitter.com/lLANeqrNsG

— Gulf Coast Jam (@GulfCoastJam) April 24, 2026

Gulf Coast Jam Presented by Jim Beam 2026 Lineup

Thursday, May 28

Keith Urban
Jessie Murph
Wyatt Flores
Cooper Alan
Walker Montgomery
Gannon Fremin & CCREV

Friday, May 29

Chris Stapleton
Marcus King
Jackson Dean
Brent Cobb
Cole Goodwin
Hueston

Saturday, May 30

Riley Green
Koe Wetzel
Ole 60
Josh Ross
Ashland Craft
Hannah McFarland

Sunday, May 31

Post Malone
Muscadine Bloodline
49 Winchester
Elizabeth Nichols
Them Dirty Roses
Skeez

Arts & Entertainment

Post Malone’s Oxford Stop Cut From Upcoming Stadium Tour

Published

6 months ago

May 2, 2026

Taylor Hodges

Post Malone has cancelled the Oxford show as well as others from his upcoming stadium tour.

Post Malone has canceled five shows on his upcoming Big Ass Stadium Tour Part 2, including the Oxford stop at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Post Malone’s summer stadium run is getting pushed back, and Oxford is among the cities losing a show. The artist announced Friday that he is canceling all May dates on his Big Ass Stadium Tour Part 2, citing the need for more time to finish his new music. In a handwritten message posted to Instagram, he told fans he wasn’t ready to launch the tour as scheduled and needed roughly three more weeks to complete the project.

The cancellations include stops in El Paso, Waco, Baton Rouge, Birmingham, Tampa, and Oxford, where Post Malone and Jelly Roll had been scheduled to perform at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on June 5. The Oxford date was one of several college‑town shows cut from the first leg of the tour.

Ole Miss Athletics notified ticketholders Friday that refunds for the Oxford show will be processed immediately. Fans who purchased through the school’s ticket office were told to expect refunds within 14 days, covering admission, parking, fees, and VIP packages. Third‑party buyers were directed to contact their ticket sellers.

While Malone emphasized that the delay is about finishing his upcoming double album, several of the canceled shows had reportedly struggled with ticket sales, with some venues offering discounts and student promotions in recent weeks. Widespread ticket availability at multiple venues was reported by Digital Music News, which cited seating charts and pricing data showing large sections unsold in the weeks leading up to the tour.

The rescheduled tour is now set to begin June 12 in Indianapolis.

Arts & Entertainment

Outdoor Dining Options Leaves Restaurant Owners and Managers Hopeful

Published

6 years ago

March 11, 2021

Andy Hodges

By AJ Norwood and Justin Claas
Journalism Students

Oxford restaurants such as The Blind Pig and Proud Larry’s are looking to make their outdoor seating areas permanent. However, they have a lot of hoops to jump through with the city in order to make that happen.

The owner of Proud Larry’s, Scott Caradine, says that the city thinks these outdoor seating options are a good thing, but some remodeling needs to be done in order for this to take place.

“Their plan is to keep them year-round, but they want to make them permanent and they want them to look nice,” Scott said.

The Blind Pig is a restaurant that didn’t originally offer an outdoor seating experience. Despite this, manager David Moore says that this is something that the Blind Pig has always been interested in pursuing.

“We have been really eager to invest in our outdoor dining to make it more worthy of the Square,” Moore said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phRKQxytrUw&ab_channel=JustinClaas

While these restaurants are still making plans to improve their outdoor dining experience, the city officials have not made a final decision on what to do. Caradine says that this is something that he hopes they can continue in the future to satisfy their customers.

“We hope they make it permanent,” Caradine said. “We look forward to them making something permanent here so we can use it because we like it. Our customers like it.”