Buck ‘Elvis’ Gouger performs gospel at Bojangles. He performed alongside the Georgia Gospel and Bluegrass Association. Friday, February 6, 2026. (Photo by Hannah Godel)
In a quiet home in Whiteside, Tennessee, a tapestry of Elvis Presley watches over Buck Gouger’s living room.
The walls are crowded with photos and posters of the King, boasting Presley’s handsome smirk. Among them hang pictures of Gouger’s children and grandchildren from years gone by. A photo of a soft-smiling young woman, with the handwritten caption “My Mom,” rests beside his chair. Across the room, his guitar leans not far beyond reach. It is never dusty.
For nearly sixty years, Gouger–known affectionately as Buck “Elvis”– has carried both country music and southern gospel to unlikely stages. Most recently, he performs with the Georgia Gospel and Bluegrass Association at Bojangles in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia. Friday evening, Bojangles customers might expect fried chicken and sweet tea, not Elvis Presley singing gospel in a white jumpsuit next to the soda fountain. But for the past month, that’s exactly what they’ve gotten.
Steve Grubb, president of the Chattanooga Chapter of the Barbershop Society, speaks about the Choo Choo Chorus. This is a male chorus that sings barbershop harmonies and performs melodies for the Chattanooga community by breaking out into quartets. He highlights how they are not just a barbershop harmony, but also a brotherhood.
There is a quiet, elderly community living in the alcove-like rooms at the Martin Boyd Assisted Living facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee. However, on Thursday nights at 7 p.m., the sound of brotherhood and song begins to float through the hall. The bellowing of harmonies comes from a group of men just down the hall in a community room. A sweater-vested, white-haired, sensible-sneaker ensemble is keeping an old art form alive in Chattanooga: Barbershop Quartets.
As a collective, this group practices and gathers as “The Choo Choo Chorus,” an all-male chorus born from the Barbershop Harmony Society in Nashville, TN. Officially, the chorus performs in breakout barbershop quartets, a grouping of four men who blend a cappella singing to create a sound unique to this configuration. Each person is responsible for their own part. There is no standout lead singer; it is every member building a song together.
The Choo-Choo Chorus rehearses in the Martin-Boyd Christian Home Thursday at 7:00. They are available to anyone who wants to listen to them sing in a beautifully decorated environment. Thursday, February 5, 2026 (Photo by Conner Coady).
Jimmy Tompkins, the chorus’s charming and at times stern director, keeps the men’s pace with snaps and a wistful bounce in his step. During these practices, one of the men most on beat and best developed in his singing is Paul Blazek, a tall, jolly man who has settled into the risers after serving as director for 33 years and passing the torch to Tompkins.
Kendra Norwood and her hula students hit the final pose of a dance combination. The free dance class was hosted at Studio 34 in Chattanooga by The Pop-Up Project. Monday, November 23, 2025. (Photo by Sydney Banks)
Chattanooga, Tennessee, is a blooming, bustling city in every sense of the words. Beyond its iconic natural landscapes, it thrives with a vibrant arts culture. Theater companies, music clubs, dance classes, the ballet, the symphony, and many other groups are among the most pivotal organizations in the community.
In January 2025, ArtsBuild, a private non-profit arts organization, announced a feasibility study to evaluate the need for a new performing arts center (PAC) in Chattanooga. Despite its vibrant arts scene, the city is grappling with a major issue: a lack of appropriate, flexible, mid-sized performing arts facilities. Local artists are restricted to rehearsing and performing in spaces that are unable to accommodate each type of audience; an aspect of the performing arts that is extremely important to the viewer’s experience.
This study examined the disconnect between local art groups and their individual struggles with limited space. Project manager Blake Harris, an adjunct professor at the University of Tennessee and the artistic director of the local theater company Obvious Dad, initiated the study after recognizing these issues.
Harold Jennings and Charles Breedlove play along in a jam session. Both musicians were tenured in their jam attendance by coming here for over 40 years. Monday, November 24, 2025 (Photo by Corbin Winters).
Distant acoustic harmonies and smoky voices are the only things breathing life into an otherwise dilapidated building hidden away on Sand Mountain, Georgia. Inside, the dirt-camouflaged New Home Community Center, a circle of musicians sit playing bluegrass music, and singing to their hearts’ content. Everyone is encouraged to play or sing (even if you cannot sing well). Warm coffee and pastries are nestled in the corner by those who have come to listen to the jam.
Every Monday, bluegrass music echoes out of the Community Center. For over 30 years, local bluegrass enthusiasts have come together to share their love of the music. Many play music, and many just watch the jam sessions at the New Home Community Center.
Sarah Thomas is the Co-Founder of 42E3, a K-pop dance cover group dedicated to bringing K-pop choreography’s energy, precision, and artistry to life in Chattanooga.
K-pop has been a growing global phenomenon in the past ten years; even in Chattanooga, Tennessee. 42E3 is a K-pop dance cover group that semi-frequently releases dance covers on their YouTube and Instagram pages.
Many of these dancers have experienced the rise of K-pop firsthand, having been fans themselves for over ten years. They have watched the landscape of fan interactions and song promotions shift over the years due to the rise of social media and COVID-19.
“I became a fan of K-pop in 2013, but I didn’t start dancing to K-pop until 2015, because I was kind of embarrassed to be a K-pop fan at first.” said Sarah Thomas, one of the founders of 42E3.
Marcy Paulson, a Chattanooga-based musician, was born with Leber congenital amaurosis, a degenerative eye disorder. As a child, Marcy often encountered pity from peers and strangers; one friend even expressed her concerns that Marcy would never be able to fall in love. But Marcy proved she could hear the world more vividly than most could see it. Through music, she found true joy, her husband, and a lifelong passion.
Meet the Storyteller
Clara Paulson is a Junior Communication major attending the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with minors in Brock Scholars and Creative Writing. Clara has experience writing stories and working as an assistant Photo editor for the Echo, co-hosting a podcast on the Perch, and writing poems for the Sequoya Review. After graduation, her goal is to continue storytelling. She hopes to write—whether it’s with ink or light—the unheard stories of Chattanooga and beyond. If you want her to write your story, you can reach out to her at tnq894@mocs.utc.edu.
Megan Cooper hosts an episode of Rising Rock Media Podcast where listeners can get a glance at life in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She speaks with several very different people from interviews she hosted throughout the semester.
Meet The Storyteller
Megan Cooper is a senior communication student at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, UTC, focusing on being an audio technician and editor. Megan has experience using Adobe programs to create audio content for broadcasting. Megan is a show host, promotions director, and station manager at UTC’s student-run radio station, the Perch. She is also currently working as a promotions tech at Summit Media Group in Knoxville, TN. This is Megan’s second semester in Rising Rock as an audio technician where she uses nothing but tone of voice to share people’s stories, and she built the Rising Rock radio showcase for 88.1 WUTC. When she isn’t working she is reading fantasy books and hunting down the next CD on her list. Cooper’s passion lies in music, books, radio, and using stories to bring people together. If you have a story you want to tell or want to contact Megan you can reach her at megancooper820@gmail.com.
Rising Rock is excited to showcase some of our best audio stories in a continued partnership with Scenic Roots.
Nature vs Nurture
Taryn Brooks sits with Taylor Reed, a member and volunteer of Forest Families of Chattanooga. Reed, along with her daughter, has grown alongside the organization and seen the benefits of nature firsthand.Continue reading “Rising Rock Radio Showcase”→
