The United States is full of cities with a personal brand name, like the Windy City, Motor City, The Big Apple, etc. But in my professional, biased opinion, my favorite one of all (so far) is the Music City: Nashville, Tennessee. During this year’s academic fall break, I ventured out of state to the music city with my best friends as a last hoorah before we all graduate in the spring. During my time there, I was unanimously voted “most likely to move here,” and was not surprised by that. My music-loving, playlist-making, expert level on guitar hero self would love nothing more. As a matter of fact, the majority of the time I thought about all the undiscovered talent up and down Broadway I got to listen to.
With that, this article will be about the artists I noticed usually playing at a bar on Downtown Broadway, day or night. While Nashville might be known for only discovering country artists and music, such as Taylor Swift and Luke Bryan, there are so many more genres the city is enlightened with. To be exact, there are six other genres (plus country) associated with the Music City: rock-n-roll, blues, soul, rockabilly, bluegrass, and gospel. During my time strolling up and down Broadway, the main genres I heard were classic rock, acoustic country, or even a light tap into rap.Â
On our first night there, my friends and I had already picked our comfort location: Jon Bon Jovi’s Bar; and our first minute there, we also discovered our favorite, most iconic band of the city: Monte and The Monsters. Monte, the lead singer, sang and created mash-ups ranging from anything like “King Kunta” by Kendrick Lamar with a transition to “Zombie” by The Cranberries. During her opening speech, it was clarified that their main genre was classic rock and she even mentioned how Nashville was just as much known for rock as country.Â
In other popular bars, such as Lainey Wilson’s Bell Bottoms-Up, or locations like Nashville’s Central Plaza, the music generally consisted of 1-2 artists singing light, acoustic covers of popular country songs such as the karaoke-classic “Before He Cheats” by Carrie Underwood. Along with these solo or duo-pair artists, there were plenty of bands that focused on classic country songs, covers, or originals. Some are even already more widely known and rooted for line-ups in country bars, such as Connor Sweet Band. On the other hand, there are bars such as Ole Red, that organize events for aspiring musicians, such as The Voice auditions where Blake Sheldon and The Voice alumni may make an appearance.Â
Mixed in with the organized, largely known bands who are scheduled to play during peak hours of nightlife in Nashville, there are also groups of musicians who may be independent but gigged together for a shift. These types of bands were primarily seen and heard during the day shows or lighter hours of Broadway. For example, on our last day in town, I noticed that a guitarist looked familiar. That’s when my friend noticed that one of the guitarists at dinner was the same guitarist from earlier in the day but with a different band in a different bar. This is another element of aspiring artists in the Music City, or any city, that piques my interest. I wondered how a guitarist, drummer, or singer can be shared and how they are found or chosen.
With some local, online digging, I found plenty of online platforms or communities focused on independent musicians looking for hire. These online forums include groups such as Facebook groups, such as the Nashville Drummer Connection group, or designated websites, like The Bash, where individuals can post for a hire with a band or group of other independent musicians. However, these musicians may not be looking for a group to play with, they could be looking for any sort of self-supporting event or gig where prices range by musician and event or hour.Â
Overall, Nashville is known for more than just country and rising artists. From my experience, you can find lots of rock and aspiring or sideline musicians performing downtown. However, the Music City is open to any type of artist or musician for any type of genre. If you haven’t visited Nashville yet, I highly recommend it if you love music and a fun night in the city; if you have been before, take this as a sign to go again and pay attention to the music on a different level.Â