When Gray Benko learned that the circa-1815 home she and her family had just purchased in Summerville, South Carolina, might be haunted, she knew just the fix: deck it out in color. Think, butter yellow bookshelves, a lilac and floral breakfast nook, a royal blue velvet sofa, and a baby pink piano. The photographer and interior designer embraced that whimsical aesthetic so adeptly that last year, she and her family landed their very own Magnolia Network show, Happy to Be Home with the Benkos, in which she spreads that vivid cheer to historic homes throughout the Lowcountry. Follow her on Instagram @graybenko. 

In the early 2000s, when the singer-songwriter Holly Williams would tour for her three critically acclaimed albums alongside luminaries like Jason Isbell and John Prine, she’d spend her off days perusing the home goods, clothing, and crafts she found in stores throughout the country and beyond, falling in love with designers and makers all over the world—but especially those in the South. In 2013, she opened White’s Mercantile in a renovated Nashville gas station as an upscale, one-stop homage to general stores of the past, most notably the shop run by her mother’s family more than a century ago in Mer Rouge, Louisiana. Follow her on Instagram @hollyaudreywilliams.

Alexander Smalls grew up in Spartanburg, South Carolina, surrounded by food and music, two passions he’s put to prolific use. Following an era as a professional opera singer—in which he earned both a Tony and a Grammy for the cast recording of the opera Porgy and Bess—he opened and helmed a series of renowned New York City restaurants, including Café Beulah and the Cecil, and won a James Beard Award for his cookbook Between Harlem and Heaven. His most recent endeavor has taken him from his home in Harlem to Dubai, where he launched Alkebulan, the first-ever African food hall. Follow him on Instagram @asmalls777.

The author of several outdoor guides, including The Total Outdoorsman Manual, the North Carolina–based sportsman and Garden & Gun contributing editor T. Edward Nickens most recently published The Last Wild Road, a collection of essays on adventure and the sporting life. This year marks his fourteenth appearance as a Made in the South Awards judge. Follow him on Instagram @enickens.

Before Ann and Sid Mashburn launched their eponymous clothing brands—touting smart and stylish womenswear and men’s blazers, loafers, and button-downs inspired in part by Sid’s Mississippi roots—the two had already made names for themselves in the New York fashion scene: Ann on the editorial side of the industry at Vogue and Glamour; Sid at Polo Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, and as the first ever men’s designer at J.Crew. Since opening the Sid Mashburn flagship in 2007 and the Ann Mashburn in 2010 in Atlanta, the brands have spread to Dallas, Houston, D.C., L.A., and New York. Look for their newest store opening in Nashville this fall. Follow them on Instagram @sidmashburn and @annmashburn. 

Marianne Eaves is no stranger to male-dominated spaces: She took auto shop in high school, studied chemical engineering in college, and began her career learning the ins and outs of whiskey at Brown-Forman—the masterminds behind brands like Woodford Reserve and Jack Daniel’s. Ever undaunted, in 2015, Eaves joined the team at Castle & Key Distillery, where she became the first woman in Kentucky since Prohibition to earn the title of master distiller. Now an independent spirits consultant, she and a group of partners recently debuted their own wheated bourbon, Forbidden, and last year, she launched the Eaves Foundation, which seeks to promote underrepresented communities within the spirits industry. Follow her on Instagram @mariannebmd.