Nashville’s National Museum of African American Music receives $1 million

Nashville’s future National Museum of African American Music has taken a giant step towards its ultimate fundraising goal.

On Tuesday, the museum announced it has received a joint gift of $1 million dollars from the Regions Foundation and the Mike Curb Foundation. It was news that had representatives from all three organizations literally dancing to Funkadelic’s “One Nation Under a Groove,” over-sized checks in hand.

With each foundation contributing $500,000, the museum reports it has reached nearly 75 percent of its fundraising goal of $50 million.

The museum is part of $450 million Fifth + Broadway commercial development in downtown Nashville, and is dedicated to “preserving African American music traditions and celebrating the influence African Americans have had on music.” 

The announcement was made Tuesday morning at Bridgestone Arena, which is just across the street from the museum’s future home. Museum and foundation representatives were joined by Senator Marsha Blackburn, state Sen. Brenda Gilmore and Nashville Mayor David Briley, among other officials.

There’s an enduring legend that Nashville received the “Music City” moniker after the city’s Fisk Jubilee Singers performed for the Queen of England in 1873. Mayor Briley said despite growing up in Nashville, he’d only heard that story recently.

“For Nashville to get past its history of racism and to start to move to an era where African-Americans both know and can tell their own history in our city, we have to invest in this museum.”

The 56,000 square-foot building will feature five permanent themed galleries —dedicated to gospel, blues, jazz, R&B and hip hop — a 200-seat theater and traveling exhibits.

In her remarks, Blackburn said she loved that the building would face both Broadway and the Ryman Auditorium.

“People will be able to see that linkage as they come from the Ryman to Broadway, and to understand (its) importance.”

While Tuesday’s press conference had museum renderings on display, guests could also turn around in their seats and see the real building in progress across the street. H. Beecher Hicks, III, president and CEO of NMAAM, led the audience in a round of applause for the construction.

Hicks said the project was about “inclusion,” and invited “everyone in the city” to take part.

“There’s nothing quite like music to bring people together, and there will be no place on earth that celebrates this principle embedded in the history of African-American music like the museum that you’re about to see.”:

Tuesday’s announcement also included a new opening date of “early 2020,” rather than late 2019. The museum still plans to finish construction by the end of the year. 

FIRST LOOK: Plans unveiled for African-American music museum

STAY UP TO DATE: Sign up to our music newsletter for updates on the museum and more music news

 

 

Read or Share this story: https://www.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2019/02/19/national-museum-african-american-music-receives-1-million-regions-mike-curb/2906941002/