BOOM
FirstBank Amphitheater
Swinging open the doors A slew of new venues adds a wrinkle to the live music business’ attempts to recover from the pandemic BY MEGAN SELING
ead through The Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce’s 2020 Music Industry Report and one word will come to mind: bleak. In 2019 — when “Corona” was just the name of a beer people drank on the beach — Nashville’s music industry was on the latest leg of a years-long upswing. According to the study, which included interviews with more than 100 experts and surveys of more than 2,500 people, “Nashville is third in the nation in terms of jobs in the music industry behind Los Angeles and
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New York” and was ranked “first for net job growth and growth rate” from 2009 to 2019. Then came COVID-19 and the global pandemic — with its quarantines, lockdowns and social distancing requirements — delivered a near-fatal blow to touring and live music, the most profitable branch of the music industry. Musicians quickly adapted by performing virtual concerts: The Music Industry Report noted that “while 83.9 percent of music creators surveyed did not perform any livestream concerts between March and April of 2019, 82.8 percent of music creators performed at least one livestream concert” in the same period of time in 2020. Similarly, several local venues pivoted their programming to stay afloat. The 5 Spot in East Nashville converted its showroom into a makeshift video studio, selling tickets to more than 100 virtual concerts. Others launched fundraising campaigns. Financially, these efforts amounted to barely a drop in the bucket. Nashville’s independent music venues reported an average of 90 percent revenue loss since March 15, 2020, which caused them to lay off an average 89.5 percent of their employees. In December, music industry publication Pollstar reported that the global live music industry lost an estimated $30 billion in 2020.
One wouldn’t easily guess Nashville’s live music industry is struggling as of late, though. On the surface, clubs and venues are reopening, both local and national bands are beginning to take the stages and fans are showing up. In July, The Black Crowes performed to a sold-out crowd at Ascend Amphitheater. Just days later, Luke Bryan performed to a sold-out Bridgestone Arena. Garth Brooks sold more than 70,000 tickets to a scheduled performance at Nissan Stadium, though the concert was first postponed by a strong storm and ultimately canceled due to rising COVID concerns. Another reason to be upbeat about the future: As some smaller, independent venues attempt to claw their way out 2020’s hole, Music City is experiencing the beginning stages of a venue boom. At least half a dozen new live music venues have either recently opened or been announced to open within the next couple of years. In August, the FirstBank Amphitheater in Franklin hosted its first concert. The outdoor venue, housed in a former rock quarry on Franklin’s southern fringe, has a 7,500-seat capacity and has landed both local and touring artists such as Greta Van Fleet, Maren Morris and Counting Crows. Much closer to downtown Nashville, Brooklyn Bowl
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