At the place of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s death in 1968 in Memphis, TN, the National Civil Rights Museum is a renowned educational and cultural institution.  The Museum chronicles the American Civil Rights Movement with compelling presentations of iconic exhibits, oral histories of lesser-known civil rights foot soldiers, and visceral, in-the-moment experiences.  Visitors will learn through emotionally charged, multi-user, multi-touch interactives, and a visually engaging, contemporary exhibit design that guides you through five centuries of history.

Beale Street runs from the Mississippi River to East Street, an approximately two-mile stretch that is significant to the city of Memphis, as well as to the history of blues music.  Today, the blues clubs and restaurants that line Beale Street are major tourist attractions in Memphis. Festivals and outdoor concerts frequently bring large crowds to the street and its surrounding areas.

The three-day Beale Street Music Festival (BSMF) is the kick-off event for Memphis in May: a month-long, multi-festival event that has been running for forty years and includes events like World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest and the Great American River Run 5K and Half-Marathon.

A wide range of genres other than blues are also featured at BSMF, including metal, hard rock, soft rock, rap, folk, country, and bluegrass.  Running for nearly forty years and drawing about 100,000 attendees each spring, the festival has earned a reputation as being particularly fan-friendly, affordable, and offering one of the best lineups for any large festival.  With ticket prices consistently below $100 for a three-day pass, BSMF doesn’t sacrifice on big names in the lineup (most other festivals of comparable offerings are twice that price.)

Graceland is the home of Elvis Presley, the King of Rock 'n' Roll.  Graceland is open daily with tours of Graceland Mansion, Elvis’ custom jets and our new entertainment and exhibit complex, Elvis Presley’s Memphis.  The complex includes a new automobile museum, Presley Motors, and Elvis: The Entertainer Career Museum, the world’s largest and most comprehensive Elvis museum in the world, as well as many more exhibits, restaurants and shops.  The tour of Graceland Mansion features an interactive, iPad tour with additional enhancements including photos, video and more.  Continue your experience with the all-new Graceland Exhibition Center, which features three rotating exhibits, the TCB Food Hall and Jungle Room Bar.

Sun Studio is the place where an 18-year-old Elvis Presley recorded his first song.  It’s well-known in the music industry as "The Birthplace of Rock 'N' Roll" and the most famous recording studio in the world.  Opened by rock pioneer Sam Phillips in 1950, this national Historic Landmark is where superstar musicians like Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison and countless others started their recording careers.  Today, Sun Studio still serves as a recording studio in the evenings while hosting public tours during the daytime hours.

The Orpheum Theatre is the Mid-South home of touring Broadway productions.  The Orpheum's two venues also host performances by Ballet Memphis, various concerts, comedians, a summer movie series, a family series of educational programs, and local cultural and community events such as Memphis in May, the International Blues Challenge, and special Elvis Week events.  These performances, along with the theater's numerous educational offerings, are an integral component of the continued revitalization of downtown Memphis.  Opened in 1928, the Orpheum is located in downtown Memphis at the corner of South Main and Beale streets.  Visit orpheum-memphis.com for events, schedules and tickets.

FedExForum has come to be known as one of the premier arenas in the NBA and in North America.  It is home to the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies and the University of Memphis Tigers men’s basketball team.  In the time since FedExForum opened, the arena has presented 10 NBA playoff series, including the 2013 NBA Western Conference Finals, and has hosted major basketball tournaments such as the 2009, 2014 and 2017 NCAA Regional Men’s Basketball Tournaments, the 2014 and 2019 American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Tournaments and the 2010 NCAA South Regional Women’s Division I Basketball Tournament.

FedExForum has already played host to many concerts of chart-topping stars including AC/DC, Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, Billy Joel, Blake Shelton, Bob Seger, Bon Jovi, Bruno Mars, Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapelton, Elton John, Eric Church, Eric Clapton, the Foo Fighters, Garth Brooks, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Janet Jackson, John Mayer, Journey, Justin Bieber, Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Kenny Chesney, Michael Bublé, Miley Cyrus, Paul McCartney, Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift, and Usher among other A-List acts.

The Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum’s exhibition about the birth of rock and soul music was created by the Smithsonian Institution.  It tells the story of musical pioneers who, for the love of music, overcame racial and socio-economic barriers to create the music that shook the entire world.

Located at 191 Beale, on the corner of legendary Highway 61 and inside of the FedExForum sports and entertainment complex, the museum offers a comprehensive Memphis music experience.  It will take you from the rural field hollers and sharecroppers of the 1930s, through the explosion of Sun, Stax, and Hi Records, inside Memphis’ musical heyday in the 70s, to its global musical influence.  The museum’s digital audio tour guide is packed with over 300 minutes of information, including over 100 songs.  It takes visitors at their own pace through seven galleries featuring 3 audio visual programs, more than 30 instruments, 40 costumes, and other musical treasures.

The museum and gift shop are open daily from 10:00 a.m. - 5 p.m., accepting our final guests at 4:15 pm.  Admission is $13.00 for adults and $10.00 for youth ages 5-17.

The Burkle Estate was built in 1849 by Jacob Burkle, livestock trader and bakery owner, who opened his home to help slaves escape to freedom.  The house has 19th century furnishings, but its main feature is the secret cellar and trap doors that offered refuge to runaway slaves.  This dark cellar was their home for days as they sat silently waiting for boats that would take them to other way stations upriver on their way to freedom in the northern states.  After stepping down into the cellar and kneeling on the brick floor of this cramped room, a visitor gains a greater understanding of the slaves' plight.

The Stax Museum of American Soul Music is a 17,000 square-foot museum offering interactive exhibits, videos, vintage musical instruments used to create the Stax sound, stage costumes, photographs, records, and approximately 3,000 other items of memorabilia that tell the unique story, from beginning to present, of American soul music, particularly that of Stax Records and the Memphis Sound.  Artists highlighted include Isaac Hayes, Otis Redding, the Staple Singers, the Bar-Kays, Booker T. & the MGs, Johnnie Taylor, Little Milton, Sam & Dave, Eddie Floyd, Rufus and Carla Thomas, Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Ike & Tina Turner, James Brown, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, and hundreds of others.