Congrats to POP Director, Jim MacKenzie, on his Recent Ignite Win!


The POP Projects sends a hearty “Congratulations!” to our executive director, Jim MacKenzie on his recent win at Ignite Asheville 2013!

Jimmy Ignite

This year’s Ignite Asheville competition was not to be missed. Though it was not about books, POP’s director, Jim, gave a great speech that covered a seemingly wide-ranging set of topics in a concise, entertaining, and delightful way. His speech was entitled “Beam Me Up Ringo: The Fab Four’s Journey through Rock Music, the Jim Crow South, and Outer Space.”

According to Jim’s statement about the speech:

The Beatles are from the future. They changed the culture, they were civil rights advocates, and they were chosen to be Earth’s ambassadors to extraterrestrial life on NASA Spacecraft. I will speak about the Fab Four’s technique that enabled them to navigate tumultuous times. This is why their music and philosophies remain relevant today.

This year’s participants were chosen through an online vote. Jim was one of 12 speakers voted to participate in the event.

Jim placed second in the competition, again, as voted by the audience. Ignite Asheville 2013 was the second annual Ignite speaking competition to take place in Asheville, NC. Participants are given exactly five minutes and 20 slides that advance automatically, and must create a speech that fits that format.

To learn more about Ignite Asheville, click here. To see Jim’s speech, click below.