JAZZ 91.4 WCLK, “THE LOCAL TAKE” — This week on The Local Take I speak with Deborah Scott, the Executive Director for Georgia Stand-Up. This non-partisan organization is a "Think and Act Tank for Working Communites;" they promote civic engagement and leadership. Ms. Scott speaks directly to the upcoming 2020 Census and what it means for our communities.  

She says it is all about the money.  $900 Billion dollars will be up for distribution and undercounts will mean that our communities will not receive their fair share.  Scott shares that if 1% are missed that will result in a loss between $8M - $18M if 5% are not counted the numbers increase to over $90 million in funding loss to our community.  [MORE]

THE PRESS DEMOCRAT (Santa Rosa, CA) — PianoSonoma Music Festival: Now in its sixth year at the Green Music Center’s Schroeder Hall at Sonoma State University, this festival founded by pianists Jessica and Mochael Shinn brings together current conservatory music majors/recent graduates with working musicians to collaborate on a series of Vino & Vibrato concerts on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from July 23 to Aug. 1 as well as public master classes held on July 24 and July 31. New this year, the Tuesday concerts begin with pre-concert “artist exchanges.” All events include a wine tasting beforehand featuring Cartograph wines. Tickets cost $15 for one concert, $12 for two or more concerts. pianoSonoma.org [MORE]

WXIA-11 Alive (NBC) — Do you eat, sleep and breathe esports? Do you have a passion for everything gaming — from Smite and Mario Kart, to Madden and Rocket League? Are you an amateur interested in showcasing your energetic and charismatic personality while competing for an opportunity to turn gaming into a career? If you answered yes, you're in luck! [MORE]

DALLAS OBSERVER — The real drama of DreamHack, the annual esports tournament that brings some of the world's biggest fans and players who compete for hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes, isn't just made by the pixels on the screen. It's also made in the stands like any great spectator sport.

DreamHack pits some of the world's most competitive gaming players and teams in some of the sport's most popular titles like Psyonix's octane-fueled soccer showdown Rocket League, Hidden Path and Valve's military-style first-person shooter Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and EA Sports' pro football sim Madden NFL19. [MORE]

ESPN — After blowing through the rest of the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive field, Team Liquid and ENCE finally got a shot at each other on Sunday in the grand final at DreamHack Masters Dallas. And the matchup delivered, with the two squads needing three games -- and every point they could muster -- to determine a winner. In the end, Team Liquid finished on top, taking the best-of-three match with a 16-13 win in the deciding game. [MORE]

DEXTERTO — As the Group Stages for the six-day event draw to a close, teams are competing for the best placements possible in the Arena matches for a better chance to claim the top honors in Texas.

While teams will be plenty motivated to get the lion’s share of the $250,000 pot up for grabs, they’ll be happy to see the icing on top that the champions will earn after lifting the tournament trophy. [MORE]

DALLAS MORNING NEWS, “Guide Live” — The Dallas-Fort Worth area has had a rich history with the video game industry for decades, but the metroplex has spent a recent chunk of time positioning itself as one of the hottest spots for esports in the U.S. So it makes sense that Dallas has attracted one of the biggest names in esports events overseas: DreamHack.

DreamHack’s organizers call it the “world’s largest digital festival,” and the moniker fits. It’s not just a giant tournament, although you’ll find plenty of competition there for hit games like Street Fighter V, Madden, Rocket League, Brawl Stars and Halo. The event, which will take place at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center May 31-June 2, also sports live music, art, movie screenings, student showcases, game jams and more, not to mention panels, meetups and networking opportunities for the more business-minded folks. [MORE]

ESPN — DreamHack will host an all-women Showdown tournament this summer during DreamHack Valencia in Spain, the company announced Tuesday.

The eight-team, $100,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament will be held July 5-7, featuring two invited teams and six qualifiers, with two each from Europe, North America and Asia. [MORE]

ESPORTS INSIDER — DreamHack have announced a partnership with BFGoodrich, an American tire company. They are sponsoring the Dallas leg of the DreamHack Pro Circuit for Rocket League, becoming the official tire partner. The $100,000 (£76,700) tournament will begin on May 31st and will run through June 2nd. [MOPE]

DEXERTO — The Chipotle Challenger Series will feature the first ever battle royale tournaments hosted specifically for fans at DreamHack events. Attendees at both DreamHack Dallas and DreamHack Atlanta will get the chance to compete to be the last fans standing.

DreamHack Dallas’ tournament will feature PLAYERUNKNOWN’s Battlegrounds, while DreamHack Atlanta’s lead title is yet to be announced.

Teams of two can sign up to compete in heats taking place on Friday and Saturday. Winning teams will advance to the final round taking place Sunday where the Chipotle Challenger Series Winner will be awarded.

In addition to the tournament itself, participating players will also have the chance to meet up with members of the TSM Fortnite pro team.

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ESPORTS OBSERVER — Chipotle has signed on to sponsor three major esports events this year and launch its own branded competition property, the Chipotle Challenger Series.

In deals with both Dreamhack  and ESL , sister subsidiaries of the Swedish conglomerate MTG , the fast food brand will become the official partner of Dreamhack Masters Dallas from May 31-June 2; presenting partner of Dreamhack Open Atlanta Nov. 15-17 and Intel Extreme Masters: Chicago, dates to be determined.

The Chipotle Challenger Series will be on-site amateur esports tournaments open to all attendees of the Dallas and Atlanta events. Winners will receive a trophy, free Chipotle for a year and “one-of-a-kind” Chipotle swag. Chipotle will also sponsor the players’ lounges at all three events and the Rank S Combine beginning Friday at the MGM Grand Las Vegas.

Related Article: BLAST Pro Series Adds Burger King, GFUEL, Others As Miami Tournament Partners

Chipotle manager/experiential & partnerships Scott Robinson said the deals add new depth  to the brand’s role in esports. Chipotle has sponsored OpTic Gaming and TSM in the past. “The Chipotle Challenger Series allows us to support new gamers, amateur gamers and professional gamers with an exciting addition to the event landscape,” he said.

ESL senior VP/brand partnerships Paul Brewer, who handled the deal for both properties, said the challenger series “is the very fabric of esports with DreamHack and ESL, where everyone from professional to amateur gamers can be involved.”

REV/XP, the gaming/esports agency sister agency to Chicago-based rEvolution, handled the deal for Chipotle and will manage strategy, creative design and experiential production.

Cofounder and SVP Dan Ciccone said the program is structured to give Chipotle an audience in a variety of gaming interests and reward fans that “get directly involved” in events.

ESPORTS INSIDER — DreamHack Dallas takes place over May 31st to June 2nd, and now it has been announced that it will include a Madden NFL 19 tournament.

Open to anybody who attends the event, prizes worth a total of $25,000 (£19,120.25) are up for grabs.

Michael Van Driel, Chief Product Officer of DreamHack discussed the event: “Bringing DreamHack to Dallas for the first time is going to be epic — this is such a great city with a passion for sports at its core, including the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys. Dallas is also known to be a strong breeding ground for tomorrow’s esports professionals, so it will be a tremendous experience to see what this community brings to the Madden NFL Tournament.”

This tournament is separate from the Madden NFL 19 Championship Series, the official competition for EA SPORTS’ title. Earlier in the year, ESI spoke with Matt Marco, Commissioner of EA about the title’s growth and future plans.

As well as the Madden NFL 19 tournament, DreamHack Dallas will host CORSAIR DreamHack Masters Dallas – a $250,000 (£191,222.50) CS:GO event with the likes of FaZe Clan, Fnatic, Team Liquid, Ninjas in Pyjamas, and Team Vitality in attendance.

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