Coming Soon!

Niki King and Beth Newberry are excited to soon launch The HillVille, a weekly online magazine for urban Appalachians.

And just who are urban Appalachians, anyway? Good question. We’re a diverse bunch. We are exapps, folks who grew up in the region, but moved away for school, work or whatever. Some of us are second- or third-generation exapps, born to Appalachians, but raised in cities outside the region. Others live in one of the many cities and towns actually in the mountains, like Knoxville, Tenn., and Charleston, W.Va. or cities on the edges—to the north (holla Pittsburgh), to the South (bring it Birmingham) and the mid-west (isn’t that right, Cincinnati?).

We are professionals, artists, students, all manner of people, from all different backgrounds. What we are not is Beverley Hillbillies, so check any old, worn out stereotypes at the door.

But all this difference doesn’t mean we don’t have common histories, traditions, issues and interests. And just like our tagline says, it’s that connection we want to explore.

We will publish our first issue Mon., December 12, with stories and essays considering what it means to be urban Appalachian. Following issues will cover the region’s cities, music, food, moonshine, literature, storytelling, homecomings and fine folks of interest.

We hope you’ll join us in December! We look forward to hearing from you.