As the rural issues reporter for Capital B News, Aallyah Wright has explored topics like agriculture, internet access, and economic development across America – including in her own hometown of Clarksdale, Mississippi. So when she learned that residents there were lobbying for an exclusive screening of the Hollywood blockbuster “Sinners,” which is set in the area, the way forward was clear. Wright would cover the local activism that resulted in a rare visit from the movie’s director Ryan Coogler and star Michael B. Jordan because that kind of community engagement was deeply ingrained in her life.

“I started to realize the place that I lived was really the root of the type of storytelling that I wanted to do, just listen to people, observe, and allow that to help frame the stories that I would then start covering,” Wright told NPF Widening the Pipeline fellows Sept. 8.

The timing for the three “Sinners” screenings at the end of May seemed divinely ordered for a native daughter of Clarksdale to amplify that Mississippi Delta community. Clarksdale has a storied reputation as the “birthplace of the blues,” a cultural and musical hub featuring attractions like the Delta Blues Museum, the Ground Zero Blues Club and the historic Red’s Lounge. It’s also associated with the legend of the “Devil’s Crossroads,” where musician and songwriter Robert Johnson made a deal with the devil to gain his stellar blues guitar artistry.  

Wright said she’d thought a lot about her hometown’s blues legacy and what it means for local residents. “There is a super lucrative blues tourism industry in Clarksdale. And every year there’s multiple blues festivals that happen in Clarksdale. And those festivals are usually put on by either people who are white or people who are not from there. They may be residents there, but they’re not originally from Clarksdale.”

As a result, Wright said Black Clarksdale residents often feel like these events primarily benefit tourists and white business owners in the downtown area. Meanwhile, Black businesses like the juke joint featured in “Sinners” are barely hanging on. Wright said she’d wrestled with that story idea for years until a few encouraging conversations with her editor lit the spark.

“I did this first story about how there’s this culture in Clarksdale, and there’s juke joint owners who are struggling to survive, but the Black community in Clarksdale are trying to overcome that. They’re trying to host their own festivals and do these other interesting efforts to preserve this art form and this identity.”

Another story focused on the irony of a major Hollywood blockbuster being set in a town with no movie theater, and where the median family income is just over $35,000. Convening conversations about the cultural and economic divides in Clarksdale has convinced Wright that putting in the work of building relationships and trust with communities is worth the effort. She’s even grown comfortable with being known primarily for her “red carpet moment” these days.

“This moment isn’t by luck … it’s because of … these years of showing up even when I’m tired,” she said, adding that she intends “to not just cover the ‘negatives’ of a community, but the joy, the resilience, the culture, all of these other things that make a community special and make a community what it is.

“I always put those things at the forefront because I know there are other communities who are going through similar challenges, and it may look different, but it’s still the realities that folks are facing. And so that’s one thing I’ve really had to learn and embrace, that ensuring your identity is a part or it’s a guide to help you figure out what needs to be covered and how whose voices need to be heard.”

Access the full transcript here.

This fellowship is funded by the Evelyn Y. Davis Foundation. NPF is solely responsible for the content.