AUGUSTA, Ga. — For nearly 20 years, the largest concert venue in Augusta, Georgia, was named after the city’s favorite son — “Godfather of Soul” James Brown.
In recent weeks, following the demolition of the former James Brown Arena (JBA) earlier this year, the Augusta-Richmond County Coliseum Authority told members of the media that the soon-to-be-rebuilt replacement complex will be named the New Augusta Arena, but that naming rights would be available for sale. The new complex will be located in the same spot as its predecessor in downtown Augusta, a city 144 miles southeast of Atlanta. James Brown grew up in the city of 200,000 after spending his first five years in South Carolina.
In addition to several city leaders and local residents, James Brown’s oldest daughter, Dr. Deanna Brown Thomas, has publicly shared her opposition to the potential name change.
“First of all, it’s disrespectful to my father’s legacy,” Brown Thomas told Atlanta Daily World from her Augusta offices, where she serves as president of the James Brown Family Foundation…