Bill Supporting Live Music Fund Passes Tennessee State Legislature

Tennessee’s state Senate and House of Representatives passed a bill creating a statewide Live Music Fund, the legislation now on its way to Gov. Bill Lee’s desk. The law does not fund any action for the fiscal year but does provide a foundation for the state to be able to support music venues, promoters and performers via grants in the future.

“After months of hard work and advocacy, we are so excited to share that the Tennessee General Assembly just passed a bill (with overwhelming bipartisan support) to create a new Live Music & Performance Venue Fund,” Music Venue Alliance of Nashville (MVAN) shared in a statement on social media. “This is a historic and massive step towards truly supporting independent venues, promoters and performers, and we couldn’t be more proud to have been a part of it. Now we have to go find the revenue streams to sustainably fund it, but today we raise a glass filled with hope for the future of growth of independent venues in Nashville!”

The bill, expected to be signed by Lee, was introduced as a collaboration between the Music Venue Alliance Nashville, the National Independent Venue Association and the Broadway Entertainment Association. 

Individuals and private companies will be able to make donations to the fund, which will then be administered by the Tennessee Entertainment Commission. Within the pair of bills includes codified definitions in state law for specific elements of the live industry intended to make the process of allocating funds and grants easier.

“I’m proud to share that our efforts have created a Live Music Fund that will support creators, venues, promoters and festivals,” MVAN’s Chris Cobb said in a statement. “Tennessee is only the second state in the country to do so. Now the real work begins as we create funding mechanisms to ensure real, longterm support for those who need it most.”