Imagine: 14 massive concerts, which would pay multiple local artists, and benefit local nonprofits, Metro Schools, independent music venues and more. Aiming to sell 60,000 tickets per night, it would be the world’s preeminent COVID recovery concert.
At least, that’s the pitch from a non-profit called Sow Good. The group’s Mark Eatherly says he doesn’t know why the city hasn’t started planning something like it already.
“This is Music City,” Eatherly says. “Not only should we have recovery concerts, they should be the best recovery concerts in the world.”
The proposal was delivered to the city’s Event Marketing Fund for review. Each year it considers ways to spend money from hotel taxes. The idea is to fund events that would draw visitors from out of town. Past recipients include CMA Fest, Americana Fest and Live On The Green.
But the proposal is just the first step, and the pot of money is projected to be smaller because fewer people stayed in hotels during the pandemic. The committee will vote June 24 to allocate funds to different pitches. Final approval comes from the mayor’s office and the Metro director of finance.
If accepted, the concerts would start next spring.
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