has any one ever been to nashville

i'm considering moving there becuase i'm an artist but i'm not so country. about what percentage of the music scence down there is country?

 

nearly all country

the scene there is very competitive, and anyone with a gig does what they can to keep their gig. the scene for music there is better if you are a regional or national touring band, and can do one nighters.

I pondered moving there at one point, then I went, and thought that Austin might be cool

 

its pretty widely known that nashville is nearly all country...
i wouldnt go there unless you're a very good country artist/band

 

There are quite a few good folkies in Nashville these days. Majority of them tend to be independent or rather unknown, stamped out by "country" bands. There are quite a few good ones, but the majority of the shit that becomes mainstream, generally isn't created by what I consider to be "musicians".

You know, the ol' "Play a few chords here and there on the Takamine or just sing lead vocals while I have two or three guitarists and a huge unknown band back my shit up for me and sound good" trick. (ie: Toby Keith, Garth Brooks, etc.) There are actually good Nashville residents or Nashville related/spawned people that are excellent as far as musicianship goes. Some of them being Vince Gill, Keith Urban, John Hiatt, etc. I really don't think Vince Gill can write, but that's why I threw in John Hiatt. Ahah, John, imo, is the most underrated musician in the city and he has the most underrated power-trio in the world to back him up.

If I had the choice, I'd be in Austin, Seattle, or to a few cities in Colorado. Depends on what you're looking for and how you're looking for it.

 

Bloodshot Records does a lot of "alternative" country stuff (what they like to call Insurgent Country - it's kind of like the punk movement of country music)... they are located in Chicago...

 

The thing about Nashville is.....it is VERY commercial...i mean there is a lot of alternative country too...blue grass and christian music is a big scene there too.......did i mention nashville is real commercial??......the best tip i ever got was from a friend of mine i used to play with who had lived in nashvile for like 7 years working in studio 16, he said - when u get to nashville stop at the first gas station you see and see if you can play the guitar better than the attendant and if you cant go home....it is very competetive....if you arent country, bluegrass, or christian music, i woudl go somewhere else......if you go make sure you have money saved up, because in nashville it is all about paying your dues.........and if none of that bothers you, then go to there. but as far as anything other than country goes...there are the cities that the others already named, not to mention L.A. and New York city.....peace