Events for the Week of January 31st

What is the cost of having a robust music scene like Nashville? Well, the quality of the music it seems. Good bands are getting undercut by hordes of low quality acts that will play for nothing but exposure. This has bands that make their living playing music deciding that they would be better off playing in other cities.

For much of Nashville, if you book low quality entertainment, your patrons won’t abandon you — think about Broadway or Midtown. All you need to do is have a functional band or DJ, serve alcohol, open your doors, and you'll be packed. Sometimes it seems like cheesy artists — who are really just playing artist dress up — draw the biggest audiences. So who's to blame here?

It’s a combination of elements: a saturated music scene, audiences that aren’t really interested in music, and people taking advantage of the large free entertainment pool.

Whatever should we do? Great question, reader. Assert yourself in the music scene, have a presence, put your money down when people deserve it, ignore the rest. Or, if you’re a media organization that has a focus on entertainment, you could partner up with a quality venue, book quality bands, invite your readers, and lay claim to some territory. More to come on this front...