Nashville, known worldwide as “Music City,” tops the charts among cities that attract both songwriters and music enthusiasts. It’s a place where people come to play, write and listen to music. But music isn’t the city’s only cultural contribution.
“Music is what draws people here,” says Kay Witt, chief sales officer at the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp. “But in recent years Nashville’s creative music scene has become a gateway for other creative pursuits to find their way to Nashville.”
Today, the city still sings, but its cultural vibe encompasses music and much more.
“From world-class art on 5th Avenue and the Wedgewood-Houston neighborhood, and a burgeoning fashion scene in neighborhoods like Marathon Village, to award-winning culinary options around every corner, there is so much that sets Nashville apart,” Witt says.
Pop Culture
When you’re talked about around the water cooler, you know you’re especially hot, as Nashville is right now given its current prominence in pop culture.
Famous Nashville residents include the Black Keys, Jack White, Kesha, Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman.
“When a Nashville-based celebrity appears on TV—such as Tim McGraw on Good Morning America—people tend to always think of Nashville,” Witt says. “Nashville celebrities and TV appearances typically go hand-in-hand.”
TV shows are also promoting interest in various destinations, including New Jersey (The Sopranos), New York (Mad Men), Portland (Portlandia), Baltimore (The Wire) and Nashville, which was recently featured in HBO’s Sonic Highways and is the setting for the ABC hit Nashville.
“Gray Line of Tennessee offers ABC Nashville tours that take visitors through the real-life filming locations featured in the show,” Witt says.
“You can see everything from where Deacon sits on the front porch in East Nashville to the Bluebird Cafe in Green Hills.”
Food & Drink
The culinary scene in Nashville is giving music a run for its money. Recent mentions in foodie publications include Food Arts magazine, which says the city’s “emerging culinary scene is putting Nashville on the gastronomic radar.”
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It’s possible the group will convene at the same time as a culinary festival, as the calendar is full of options, from February’s Bacon & Bourbon Festival to September’s Southern Artisan Cheese Festival.
There are also a number of craft beer fests, as well as tours that tap into the city’s beer scene, including Music City Brew Tours and the Nashville Brew Bus.
Walk Eat Nashville, Witt adds, is a new guided food tour through historic East Nashville.
“They can design a private food tour for your group that includes six local restaurants and food shops to enjoy,” she says.
A perfect complement to an evening of music or any fun outing is a meal at one of Nashville’s group-friendly restaurants.
“Prima and Adele’s were two of the most anticipated restaurant openings of 2014,” Witt says. “Both are run by well-known chefs, offer excellent private dining space and are known for contemporary European and American fare.”
Other standouts include Catbird Seat, Etch and Whiskey Kitchen, as well as hotel favorites such as 1808 Grille in the Hutton Hotel, dishing out Southern fare with global influences, and Kitchen Notes in the Omni Nashville, featuring traditional Southern dishes from treasured familly recipes.
Music
One might think country music is the only option in Nashville, but Witt says the city offers a diversity of music covering all genres that will appeal to the varying tastes of different groups.
“We are unique in that music is our brand as well as our product, so we strive to incorporate music into every element of the meetings hosted in Nashville,” she says. “With live music playing 24/7/365, it would be impractical for a meeting planner to not take advantage of the entertainment available. From the beginning, we often start with videotaped invitations and welcome messages sent to groups from some of Nashville’s biggest artists.”
There are many music experiences to be had once the group settles in, including visiting the recently opened Johnny Cash Museum, which offers great group tours as well as event space, or stopping by the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, which recently underwent a $100 million expansion and offers several private event spaces and group tours.
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Witt says hosting an event at these and other music-centric event venues, including the Ryman Auditorium, Grand Ole Opry House and Schermerhorn Symphony Center, offer a memorable “VIP experience.”
“We also produce a monthly radio show on Sirius/XM called Music City Connection: Heroes Behind the Hits, where we have Nashville’s hit songwriters perform their original music,” she adds. “Oftentimes, we customize these shows for our clients at little or no cost to give them a truly unique Nashville experience.”
Neighborhoods
While all of Nashville’s neighborhoods have grown and developed over the years, according to Witt, the SoBro (South of Broadway) district enjoyed a particularly bright spotlight when the highly anticipated Music City Center celebrated its grand opening in May 2013 on a 16-acre site in the heart of downtown Nashville.
Next door to the Music City Center is the 800-room Omni Nashville Hotel, which boasts more than 80,000 square feet of meeting space, and also located in SoBro is the newly opened Bell Tower, an event venue that’s housed in an 1875 historic red brick church.
Another popular hood, 12South, is filled with local eateries and shops in a family-friendly atmosphere, Witt says. She suggests wandering attendees grab a bite to eat at Josephine’s, Edley’s Bar-B-Que or Flipside before shopping for vintage and eclectic finds at places that include White’s Mercantile and Judith Bright jewelry.
“Germantown has become a foodie haven where you can find gourmet cupcakes at Cupcake Collection, meat-and-threes at Monell’s or fine dining at City House or Rolf and Daughters,” she says. “Take time to shop at Peter Nappi, where every product is made from the highest quality leather.”
Arts
Beyond music, another artsy option is the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, offering an architecture tour of its landmark building on the first and third Saturday of each month, as well as indoor and outdoor event space.
Meanwhile, Hatch Show Print, one of the country’s oldest working letterpress print shops specializing in concert posters and promotional materials for various businesses, offers group packages including a tour of the new production shop, housed in hip new digs between the Omni Nashville and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
“It concludes in the Space for Design, where the group has the opportunity to print their own keepsake piece,” Witt says.
