Atlanta’s new soccer team - Atlanta United FC – may not have a head coach yet, but it has tons of fans. The team has already set a new record for the most season tickets sold by an expansion team. We speak with Atlanta United Team President Darren Eales and Tara Goodwin-Rufus, the Director of Events at Terminus Legion, about the new team and soccer’s growing popularity in the South.

Newton County, Georgia made headlines this month after county officials issued a temporary moratorium which halted a Georgia imam’s plans to build a mosque and cemetery. Imam Mohammad Islam says he’s been invited by faith-based leaders and county officials to talk with residents about his faith. We hear reaction from residents of Newton County and talk with Atlanta attorney Edward Ahmed Mitchell. Mitchell is the executive Georgia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, and he says the county is violating Islam’s constitutional rights with the moratorium. Then, we look back on our conversation with Imam Mohammed Jamal Daoud of Augusta about his outreach to educate the public about Islam. 

And lastly, R.E.M. made the world listen. Formed in 1980, the quartet out of Athens, Georgia exploded the old idea of what pop music is all about. The 25th anniversary edition of the band’s iconic “Out of Time” album is set to be released in November. A 2014 MTV documentary explores the band’s Georgia roots. From hours of archival interviews with band members, it tells their story from the very beginning. We listen back to our conversation with the filmmakers of the documentary and Jordan Stepp, the writer of the Athens Music Junkie blog.