Doug Woolverton has been a big piece of the live music and entertainment scene in Newport and across Rhode Island since 2004 with his involvement in Roomful of Blues, Newport Groove Merchants, The Ravers, his Tribute to Miles Davis, and much more.

For Woolverton, the time has come to head west and take the chance at launching his music career. In our conversation, Woolverton chats about his 14 years in Newport, what’s ahead for The Groove Merchants at Fifth Element, the local music scene, and a whole lot more.

Woolverton joined me for the first 30 minutes, followed by fellow musician Mark Gorman, followed by random ramblings from me.

Ryan Belmore is the owner and publisher of What's Up Newp. He took over the publication in 2012 and has grown it into a three-time Rhode Island Monthly Best Local News Blog (2018, 2019, 2020). He was named LION Publishers Member of the Year in 2020 and received the Dominique Award from the Arts & Cultural Society of Newport County the same year. He has been awarded grants for investigative and community journalism, and continues to coach and mentor new local news publications nationwide. Ryan...