Executive Director, Americana Music Association; Americana Fest + Conference; Americana Chart; Blackberry Farms Fundraisers

ACHIEVEMENTS: Three Grammy categories for Americana, Americana at Lincoln Center, “Americana” in Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Americana Fest + Conference expands to 40 venues from 32—and adds Edgefest to embrace East Nashville’s culture.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FACING THE EMERGING NASHVILLE?
Nashville is pretty hot right now. Cranes fill the skyline and the new hot restaurant is right around the corner, but that growth means some smart decisions had better be made. The city runs the risk of suffocating its greatest asset—Nashville’s integrity and heart. Nashville has always been a cultural center, a place where musicians come with a guitar and a dream. It has flourished in recent years, due in part to a brilliant strategy set forth by our prior mayor, Karl Dean, who saw Music City as a much bigger entity than just “country” music. It’s also grown in other creative areas, the culinary world being an important one—and I also hear that Nashville has supplanted Las Vegas as the #1 bridal shower destination.

In any city, gentrification is an important element for growth, but it also can push art, and artists, out. Nashville is cool today because you can practically walk into any bar and hear a great musician play. But if those artists can’t afford to live here, we have a major problem.