Nashville, We Need You

While some folks are on a long, extended vacation, for many of us others, it’s back to work this morning after the Christmas holiday and thus back to reality.

For our friends in Nashville, though, it’s not that simple.

Following a Christmas morning explosion, it has been a long weekend of police investigation and what will now be an even longer cleanup period, not to mention several people dealing with the aftermath of the blast and figuring out how to get back to something even close to resembling normalcy.

The thing is, we need all those folks there.  We need to pray for them.  We need to help them.  And we need to be grateful for them.

As I said, the Christmas holiday just passed.  And a lot of us (a LOT of us) opted to listen to seasonal music.  It has also been a long year of quarantining, but one of the things that has helped us get through it is listening to music.  And similarly, the New Year’s Eve celebrations this Thursday night will also be filled with, yup, lots of music.

Sure, there are lots of music creators in other key entertainment spots in the U.S. like New York and California.  But if you asked 20 people on the street what they think of when you say one of those two places, you’d get a range of answers – not just music.  But if you asked 20 people on the street what they think of when you say Nashville, if it wasn’t unanimous, then the overwhelming majority of them would certainly say music.

Make no mistake.  I certainly realize that there are lots and lots (and lots) of creators in Manhattan and in Los Angeles, not to mention countless other areas around the country, and yes, even elsewhere in the world.  But, Nashville just oozes music.  And again, while I know that parts of California have had to deal with some real catastrophes (wildfires being just the most recent of them), that’s kind of like comparing Goliath to David.  Nashville is dwarfed in size by those other major U.S. destinations, yet is as hard working and talented when it comes to putting out the songs that we rely on to get us through so many of life’s challenges.

Only now they are being challenged again.  First it was a tornado back at the start of March.  Then it was the Coronavirus shutting down all the live music joints that people count on when they walk up and down Broadway, Printer's Alley, and other tourist spots in Music City.  Also affected were the in-person writing sessions that enable collaborations to happen in a more personal way.  And now it’s a Christmas Day explosion that prevented many there from waking up and being merry three days ago.

But Nashville, we need you.

We need the songwriters.  We need the artists who perform what gets written.  And we need the songs.

When the clock strikes midnight on Thursday night and the calendar does change over to 2021, the Coronavirus won’t have gone away.  But let’s hope that these tragedies that Nashville has had to endure will.  I’ve heard it referred to as a big small city.  They have huge talent there and we’ll be counting on seeing it all as we hope for a return to something more closely resembling normalcy.

What’s your connection to Nashville?  Tweet your thoughts and experiences to me via @NHT_tweets.  Alternatively, post them on either Facebook or LinkedIn.  For those that would rather not do social media, you can send them to me via email.  And if your new year’s resolution entails getting help with your music career, then take advantage of my more than 15 years doing management, promotion, and booking.  Go here to book a private, one-on-one online video consultation with me.