Shelton, Ryman Team Up For New Venue

Folks in Tishomingo, Okla., were celebrating April 3 when it was announced that Blake Shelton and Ryman Hospitality Properties will be teaming up to open a new room, “Ole Red,” in the quaint country town.

Xcel Energy Center – Blake Shelton
Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, Minn.

The location at which “Ole Red” will sit used to belong to Shelton’s ex-wife, Miranda Lambert. The buildings housed for her Pink Pistol boutique, and residents felt a deficit in their economy once that business left.

“It left a hole here,” Shelton said. “We all saw what it did for the community, and everyone did well, because there was traffic in town.”

The venue will take up two adjacent buildings in downtown Tishomingo, and will have retail space, along with a bar, food and live music. A representative for the company confirmed with Pollstar that the 100 seated and 300 standing and is aiming to open in September.

A ceremonial groundbreaking was held April 3 and the modifications to the building are now under way.

Ryman Hospitality Properties CEO Colin Reed said in a statement that the new 5,000-square-foot venue in Tishomingo will aim to expose guests to the country lifestyle of hunting, fishing, and connectedness to the outdoors in a way that is difficult to replicate in Nashville.

“We know there are about 120 million country lifestyle consumers in the United States, and what we’re doing as a company is building sub-brands to communicate with them in different ways,” said Chairman and CEO of Ryman Hospitality Properties Colin Reed said in a statement to Pollstar. “We also see Tishomingo as a compelling opportunity because we believe it has the potential to become a tourist destination in its own right where fans can experience country living the way Blake does.”

Ryman isn’t just planning on the rural Oklahoma room, but is also working on repurposing a Ryman-owned building in Nashville to be the “headquarters” for the Ole Red brand. That project will cost approximately $20 million and should be complete by spring 2018, and will be substantially larger than the Tishomingo room, with 300 seated and 600 total over the two levels of bar and restaurant.

There are plans for Ole Reds in other markets as well, and Ryman is continuing its expansion into other markets this summer with its Grand Ole Opry City Stage in New York. The venues will all be booked by Ryman’s entertainment division.

The venue name comes from the Shelton song “Ol’ Red,” which talks about escaping from a prison farm by distracting the guard dog.