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Explore Tennessee’s Diverse Music Genres
Visit the music sites of Tennessee's seven music genres by traveling the Tennessee Music Pathways.
December 3, 2024
The Music Scenes of Tennessee
The Music Scenes of Tennessee
Tennessee is home to seven genres of music - Rockabilly, Rock 'n' Roll, Blues, Soul, Country, Gospel and Bluegrass. From the Appalachian Mountains to the Mississippi River, you'll find a wide variety of music scenes. Memphis is home to the blues, soul and rock 'n' roll. Hear it in the music venues that line Beale Street, on stages in intimate venues and in grandiose theaters. Nutbush, Tennessee is the hometown of Queen of Rock 'n' Roll Tina Turner. You can see her illustrious music career memorabilia and costumes at the Tina Turner Museum at Flagg Grove School. Carl Perkins, W.S. Holland and Sonny Boy Williamson I came from Jackson, Tennessee and were legends in blues, rockabilly and rock 'n' roll. In Nashville, fondly named Music City, you'll find country music, Americana, rock, jazz and blues floating from the famous music venues like Ryman Auditorium and Grand Ole Opry as well as intimate concert halls Station Inn. As you make your way to East Tennessee, you'll find country music and singer-songwriters in Knoxville, Bristol, Johnson City, Gatlinburg and Chattanooga. And that's just the major cities. Follow the Tennessee Music Pathways to experience Tennessee's music culture in every corner of the state.
The Tennessee Music Pathways offers a rewarding journey across Tennessee to the heart of American music. Nearly every city and town – from Memphis to Mountain City – has a story to tell. Pick up a passport from any Tennessee Welcome Center to use as a road map. Collect enough stamps, and you can cash in your passport for a fun souvenir. Five stamps will get you a commemorative Hatch Show Print poster, 15 an autographed book. Hit all 22 stops and you’ll earn the ultimate reward: a Tennessee Music Pathways branded guitar.
Tennessee's Country Music Scene
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Grand Ole Opry is country music's famous stage, home to legends and rising stars. The Opry is the world's longest running radio show with 100 years of broadcasting history.
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Ryman Auditorium is known as the “Mother Church of Country Music" and has hosted a myriad of artists including Johnny Cash and June Carter, Paul Simon and Bob Dylan.
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Bluebird Cafe has been a backdrop in both movies and TV shows, continue to be a haven for both legends and up-and-coming artists.
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Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum honors country music’s diversity, from the Carter Family to Charley Pride to Gram Parsons.
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In Bristol, the Birthplace of Country Music Museum celebrates the first recordings of the genre there in 1927, with the Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion offering up the music’s living legacy every September.
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Visit Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Hurricane Mills for an in-depth look at the life and career of famous country music star Loretta Lynn.
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Dolly Parton’s Dollywood in Pigeon Forge honors the world-famous artist with the expansive The Dolly Parton Experience, featuring a number of interactive elements to get you up close and personal from Parton's humble beginnings to worldwide stages. Your Dollywood ticket includes entry into the immersive museum.
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Sun Studio in Memphis is undoubtedly ground zero for rock ’n’ roll. Visitors can see the room, still preserved, where Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis made their magic.
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Elvis fans must see Graceland, which offers a home tour, Elvis Presley's Memphis which includes over 200,000-square-feet of the King of Rock 'n' Roll's costumes, vehicles and gold records as well as a live music venue that hosts concerts and special events regularly.
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The Smithsonian’s Memphis Rock ’N’ Soul Museum shares a comprehensive music experience from the 1930s to the 1970s and the artists that made Memphis' music influence known worldwide.
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Marvel at the Queen of Rock 'n' Roll Tina Turner's life and career in Brownsville, a few miles outside of her hometown of Nutbush, Tennessee. Step inside her childhood, one-room schoolhouse to see her performance outfits, records and other memorabilia pieces at Tina Turner Museum and Flagg Grove School on the grounds of the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center.
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Tennessee's official theater, the Tennessee Theatre in Knoxville hosts acts that rock the stage frequently, as well as touring Broadway shows, comedians and more.
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The Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum in Nashville is the only museum in the world that honors the talented musicians behind your favorite songs.
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Blues players from around the world flock to Beale Street, where the songs of those who honed their craft there, like Memphis Minnie, Robert Johnson or Howlin’ Wolf, still fill the air every night.
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Just off Beale is the Blues Foundation's Blues Hall of Fame Museum honors blues musicians through 10 individualized galleries with interactive touchscreen displays where you can hear music, watch videos and read stories of each inductee. Marvel at memorabilia like Stevie Ray Vaughan's performance kimono, Pee Wee Craton's Fender Stratocaster guitar and Bettye LaVette's Kennedy Center Honors performance outfit.
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There are blues venues in nearly every Tennessee city like B.B. King’s Blues Club in Memphis that serves dance-worthy live music and mouth-watering Southern classics like barbecue and fried chicken.
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Bourbon Street Blues & Boogie Bar in Nashville’s famed Printers Alley is a good time, welcoming thousands of musicians on their stage over 25 years including legends like James Brown and B.B. King. Fill your soul with music that floats down the block and your stomach with Cajun & Creole food, signature cocktails and cold beer.
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Open Chord Music in Knoxville hosts an array of bands who play blues, rock, folk, soul and more.
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Chattanooga has the Bessie Smith Cultural Center, which boasts both a performance hall and a museum – as is only fitting for the birthplace of the Empress of the Blues.
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In Kodak, you'll find the home of the Dumplin Valley Bluegrass Festival and the Dunlap Coke Ovens Bluegrass Festival in Dunlap that occurs every June.
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Enjoy a weekly bluegrass show performed live from the stage at the T.B. Sutton General Store in Granville, broadcasted on more than 20 radio stations in the U.S. and Europe. A delicious dinner is included at every show.
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Visit The Museum of Appalachia where you'll find a Hall of Fame dedicated to the legends of bluegrass as well as country and old-time music like Uncle Dave Macon, The Carter Family and Chet Atkins. It features an extensive collection of musical instruments like banjos, fiddles, dobros and guitars as well as creative music instrument fashions like banjos made from hubcaps and ham cans and a fiddle made from the jawbone of a mule.
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Several legendary clubs there serve up the bluegrass sound, including The Station Inn and Layla’s Honky Tonk in Nashville.
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Mr. “Blue Suede Shoes” himself, Carl Perkins, had a home in Jackson for many years and is honored at the The Legends of Tennessee Music Museum.
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Nearby Selmer pays tribute to the high-spirited genre with its Rockabilly Murals, photorealistic images painted by McNairy County native Brian Tull.
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The Rockabilly Highway Revival Festival, held every June, tips a hat to the name bestowed on that stretch of U.S. Highway 45. The festival features music on multiple stages and the McNairy County Music Hall of Fame inductions.
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Hernando’s Hideaway in Memphis is a legendary club that also showcases country and rock – not to mention burgers and beer.
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Take in a show at Crockett Theatre in Lawrenceburg for artists of all genres including rockabilly.
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The Stax Museum of American Soul Music presents the story of Stax, from early hits like Booker T. & the MG’s “Green Onions” to Isaac Hayes’ “Shaft” in the 1970s. Next door is Stax Music Academy, where students learn about soul and tour the world playing it.
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Royal Studios is where current soul artists like Bruno Mars cut his “Uptown Funk” hit, and where the 2014 film “Take Me to the River” paired classic soul singers with hip-hop artists.
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In Nashville, the National Museum of African American Music pays tribute to the genre, highlighting the African Americans who pioneered the sound.
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The Rev. Al Green, who’s recorded as many gospel records as pop hits, still preaches and sings at his Full Gospel Tabernacle in Memphis.
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Nashville has long produced notable gospel artists such as The Fairfield Four, who began entertaining audiences a century ago. Fisk University’s Jubilee Singers have sang spirituals around the world for more than 150 years. They were inducted into Nashville’s Gospel Music Association’s Hall of Fame in 2000.
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Check out The Hideaway Farm in Bon Aqua, a unique museum filled with gospel connections. It's housed in an old general store that Johnny Cash would frequent.
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Visit Lawrenceburg’s James D. Vaughan Gospel Music Museum, which honors the “father of Southern gospel music.”
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At Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, you can also hear Southern gospel performances during the Harvest Festival presented by Humana.
Explore these and more music heritage sites throughout Tennessee. Map your route on the Tennessee Music Pathways.
Explore the Dive Bar Scene in Nashville
Pull up a barstool at one of Nashville's treasured dive bars where locals and travelers alike gather for games and karaoke, cheap drinks and a good time.
