There’s no denying that Tennessee is a towering legend of musical heritage. From echoing hills to city streets, this state has grown much of the country’s most popular music, including country, bluegrass, rock, roots and more.
While Memphis and Nashville receive the lion’s share of attention, there are also top historic sites and music venues in Knoxville, Pigeon Forge, Chattanooga and Bristol as well, and all will get attendees’ toes tapping.
Grand Ole Opry/Ryman Auditorium, Nashville
Nashville’s roots as a country music city run deep, and they start with the famed Grand Ole Opry. The genesis of the Opry was a radio show in 1925, and the Opry soon became the spotlight in which hundreds of careers were launched, including Minnie Pearl, Loretta Lynn, The Gatlin Brothers, Little Jimmy Dickens and Barbara Mandrell.
Now recognized as the world’s longest running radio show, the Opry still goes out on the airwaves and groups can watch a show at the Opry House or the historic Ryman Auditorium, which was the home to the Opry during the heyday of 1940s radio. Planners can also arrange backstage tours of the facilities or rent the venue itself for a meeting, dinner or reception.
Sun Studio/Stax Museum, Memphis
Memphis was home to two of the most influential record labels in the mid-20th century: Sam Phillips’ Sun Records, which discovered Elvis Presley, and Stax Records, which introduced the U.S. to soul artists like Otis Redding and Isaac Hayes. Sun Studio is still a real recording studio; in addition to a tour, planners can also arrange for small groups to record a song as a souvenir.
The history of Stax Records forms the heart of Stax Museum of American Soul Music, along with exhibits like an actual, reconstructed country church on the grounds, plus a recreated studio from the Stax era and the Express Yourself dance floor where attendees can lay down their best moves. Both are essential sites to Memphis and the world, according to Caroline Stanfield, public relations specialist for the Memphis CVB.
“Stax Museum of American Soul Music tells the story of why Memphis is the home of the blues and soul,” she says. “Sun Studio is where rock n’ roll was born, and you can’t have rock n’ roll without Elvis Presley and Graceland.”
Graceland, Memphis
Speaking of Graceland, it remains a top attraction even after the King has been gone for nearly 40 years. In 2015, Elvis Presley’s home was voted the top musical attraction in the world by USA Today’s 10Best readers, and visitors can tour the mansion as well as step aboard one of Presley’s private jets and tour his classic car collection. Planners can even utilize on-site event consultants and create an Elvis-themed party for attendees.
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Nashville
With exhibits, demonstrations and even songwriting sessions, this attraction makes the history and legacy of country music come alive.
“The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum offers a menu of experiences that can be added on to a tour of the museum,” says Allison Duke, public relations manager for the Nashville CVB. “For example, their Legends, Lunch, and Lyrics group experience pairs a classic Southern ‘Meat ’n Three’ lunch with entertainment by some of Nashville’s most accomplished songwriters.”
The facility’s striking contemporary design brings an age-old art into the next century with exhibits on everyone from Stringbean to Blake Shelton. Not only can groups experience the music, they can deconstruct it through activities and interviews with songwriters, musicians and producers. The museum gives attendees a unique look into one of the world’s favorite genres.
The facility is located in downtown Nashville, near the Grand Ole Opry, the Johnny Cash Museum and the Hutton Hotel, which offers 13,000 square feet of meeting and event space.
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WDVX Blue Plate Special, Knoxville
The community radio station of WDVX started in the 1990s, but it’s quickly become a must-do for groups seeking great music in Knoxville. Every day, the radio station hosts a live lunchtime show called the WDVX Blue Plate Special, held daily in the Knoxville Visitor Center.
“The WDVX Blue Plate Special has a free concert Monday through Saturday at noon that you can make reservations for almost any size group,” says Erin Donovan, communications director for Visit Knoxville.
The show has hosted a number of musical acts, including Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Joan Osborne, Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, Nickel Creek and many more. The Blue Plate Special show is an excellent way to find new faves and meet classic artists.
Birthplace of Country Music Museum, Bristol
In 1927, an enterprising record executive set up shop in Bristol and recorded regional musicians with a distinctive Appalachian sound. Those were the first country music records, and those legendary Bristol Sessions are remembered at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum.
Recorded in those sessions were future stars like The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers, and the sessions themselves were noted as one of the top 50 most important recorded moments in music. High-tech, interactive exhibits and memorabilia recall the artists and technology of the Bristol Sessions.
There is also a functioning vintage radio station in the museum that broadcasts American roots music, along with regularly scheduled Radio Bristol interviews and performances in front of a live audience.
Dollywood, Pigeon Forge
In 1986, Dolly Parton came home to eastern Tennessee to build Dollywood, a theme park filled with shops, rides and, of course, music. While country music is well-represented, the folks behind Dollywood have brought in genres and artists from around the world, including traditional gypsy music, Southern gospel, bluegrass, music from the Andes, Argentina, Africa, France and even a ukulele orchestra from the United Kingdom.
Groups can sample from this musical world platter, or stick to the types of melodies that made Parton famous. The park also has a rich holiday schedule filled with Christmas music. No matter how large the group, Dollywood can accommodate it.
“There are theaters with up to 1,400 seats and an equestrian dinner theater, Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede, that seats 1,100,” says Leon Downey, executive director of the Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism. “Dollywood, of course, is great for group entertainment. Planners can arrange private meal functions and then turn attendees loose in the park to choose shows of their liking—or jump onto a roller coaster or water ride.”
Mountain Opry, Signal Mountain
A show at the Mountain Opry is bluegrass, country and gospel at its acoustic roots: live, simple, not a sequin or smoke machine in sight. At Signal Mountain near Chattanooga, the Mountain Opry plays only on Friday nights and usually runs a two- to three-hour show that’s appropriate for the whole family. There’s no admission charge, and seating is first-come, first-serve in the small, historic building, but the experience is pure hill music to lift anyone’s heart.
