Greater Nashville Music Census reveals first results, see what they discovered

On Monday, the Greater Nashville Music Census went public with some of its initial findings and data, announcing a record-breaking amount of participation compared to sister cities.

In January, Nashville joined a cohort of cities hoping to find data-driven solutions to fuel their music industries, announcing a census that opened in March and ended in April.

Other cities participating in the census project, deemed "Music Friendly Cities," include Minneapolis, MN, New Orleans, LA, Chattanooga, TN and Charlotte, NC.

More:Music City launches Greater Nashville Music Census, collects data to support industry

Nashville's census set a national record with 4,265 people filling out the census. Originally, Austin, TX held the throne in city-wide participation.

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Nashville also broke records in eight additional categories, leading with the percentage of individuals working in the music industry, the average income earned from music, the average annual events per venue and the total annual events.  

Participants were also able to voice their main concerns as well, of which initial analysis showed citizens are most worried about how the current state of parking costs and policies impact the city's music industry.

“From incredibly expensive private lots and garages to new street parking policies that actively work against musicians, venues, and fans, participants voiced their concerns loud and clear,” said Chris Cobb, the Board President of the Music Venue Alliance Nashville.

He added that it is important to find solutions to these parking issues in order to make downtown more friendly to the music community and local fans.

The census' team continues to sift through thousands of survey entries and stories, preparing to go public with its full findings in early September.

From there, the census will have an unveiling event to show the public a new data dashboard alongside video and infographics. Afterwards, the census plans to have a variety of community engagement sessions.

Parters who made the census possible include the Community Foundation of Middle TN, Music Venue Alliance of Nashville, Visit Music City, CMA, AMA, the TN Entertainment Commission and over 100 other community engagement partners.

In order to stay up to date with music census findings, visit musiccitycensus.com. 

Audrey Gibbs is a reporter at The Tennessean. You can reach her at agibbs@tennessean.com.