MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — A semester-long, Telly-award-winning project researched, produced, filmed and edited by students in Middle Tennessee State University’s College of Media and Entertainment debuts on the university’s True Blue TV television station on Friday, Aug. 2.

The nine-minute feature, “Shadow of the Killer – The Kenny Lovelace Story,” airs at 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 2. The short documentary’s title is a reference to his longtime music partner and friend rock ‘n’ roll and rockabilly legend Jerry Lee Lewis, who was nicknamed “The Killer.”

“Given that Kenny was (Lewis’) right-hand man, it was appropriate to deem him ‘the shadow’ because he was always with Jerry in his country music career,” explained executive student producer Karli Sutton.

The project focuses on Lovelace’s career as a guitarist, fiddle player and singer. The now-87-year-old is best known for his work with Lewis and also recorded with artists such as the late legendary singer-songwriter Johnny Cash and rockabilly maestro Carl Perkins.

Watch the award-winning documentary below.

“True Blue TV is delighted to share this masterful documentary celebrating the career of the talented Kenny Lovelace with our viewers,” said Ty Whitaker, senior manager of True Blue TV. “We are always proud to showcase the work of our MTSU School of Journalism and Strategic Media students at Middle Tennessee News. MTN constantly delivers True Blue TV highly creative and professional programming.”

Under the guidance and expertise of lecturer Dan Eschenfelder, students from the School of Journalism and Strategic Media, the Department of Media Arts and the Department of Recording Industry all worked together on the multimedia effort and learned how to produce a high-quality video news story, audio news story, graphic design, print news story, infographics and website design, as well as promote their work using social media. 

“I incorporated the hands of students throughout the entire College of Media and Entertainment. All of Bragg was in on it,” said Eschenfelder, who previously worked as a news photojournalist, chief videographer and news director. “They learned how to communicate and work with a large team; they learned how to schedule shoot locations and lock down interviews and conduct them. They learned how to do elaborate lighting using soft boxes, a two-camera set-up with a rack-mounted motion slider, how to edit with professional software and do some elaborate refining in post (production).” 

Besides being the executive student producer of the project, Sutton, who is a graduate student working on a master’s degree in media and communication, was responsible for most of the b-roll footage used in the piece and making the final edit. She also directed on-camera interviews and called the experience “unlike any other she’s had.”

“It will be a highlight of my career for years to come. The leadership role I took in this project truly showed me the importance of teamwork and communication,” said Sutton. “As a journalist, it’s always a priority to be a storyteller and being able to be one for sure a remarkable person like Kenny Lovelace is truly a blessing.”

Production took place over the spring semester, and students worked with Lovelace

 over the course of a week, with back-to-back filming, interview days, and phone calls.

“Mr. Lovelace truly spoiled us in how involved he was in this piece, regardless of his status,” said Sutton.

“Shadow of the Killer – The Kenny Lovelace Story” also won a student Silver Telly Award earlier this summer.

“These students are so proud of their work. They talk about it all the time: how much fun they had and the people they met. It was an honor to have met Mr. Lovelace and worked with him so extensively. He opened up his home to us, which is a musician’s museum full of memories,” Eschenfelder said.

About True Blue TV

True Blue TV launched in 1999 as an educational resource channel and is now the premier hub for video content and live event programming from Middle Tennessee State University.

Broadcasting from MTSU’s Center for Educational Media, a part of the College of Education, from studios and offices located inside the McWherter Learning Resource Center, True Blue TV is operated by MTSU’s Division of Marketing and Communications under a Murfreesboro Cable Television Commission license.

True Blue TV airs on Comcast Xfinity channel 9 and 1096 and channel 9.1 on the MTSU campus cable. We also air as channel 195 on DTC in Alexandria; digital channel 206 on United Communications in Chapel Hill; and among the PEG offerings found on channel 99 on AT&T U-verse in Middle Tennessee. True Blue TV is also available on Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV. Mobile apps for Apple and Android users are also available.

To learn more about True Blue TV and its programs, schedules, and shows, visit https://www.mtsu.edu/truebluetv/.

— DeAnn Hays (deann.hays@mtsu.edu)