Only in Nashville

A normal weekend for many young single adults in Nashville means that they will be seen at many of Nashville's bars with live music. Whether it is downtown for some country cover band music (a friend of mine from Denver thought "cover band" meant that he had to pay a cover to get in) or Demumbreun Street for a variety of 80s and 90s music in addition to country, or Karaoke at one of Nashville's many shameless karaoke bars, or any one of the multiple live music venues where new bands are trying to be seen.

The people that frequent these hot spots are the every day college student, young adult or dirty old man. But most of them are down to Earth and just having a good time with friends.

2 weeks ago, after seeing Darryl Worley at Second Fiddle, I was proud of the bar patrons for not going crazy over seeing him in the bar. I am proud once again of Nashvillians for being calm and collected when star quarterback for the Denver Broncos, Jay Cutler, was at the Tin Roof on Friday night. According to various sources, he frequents the bar often.

One reason why people like Jay Cutler go to the every day bars like the Tin Roof is because Nashville is one of the most friendliest cities. Jay didn't have a group of girls around him like some football payers may, he just had his good old college friends out with him, and nobody bothered him.

Nashville doesn't need people like Pacman Jones, who goes to strip clubs all the time. We're proud of who comes out of our city, people like Jay Cutler and Darryl Worley.

Who ya with?

One thing that Nashville lacks is the support for local college sports. It is unfortunate that everyone and their brother is a University of Tennessee fan.

I've had this conversation many times in the past. Many Vanderbilt fans live inside the 440 and Briley Pkwy corridors. The Hillsboro Village and West End areas are pedestrian friendly and fans can walk to Memorial Gym, the football stadium or the baseball stadium. People on the outskirts of Davidson County, and the people who do not live in Davidson County at all, can't experience the excitement of a college game day.

We can't forget other, smaller programs such as Belmont and Lipsomb. These programs all have great histories and tend to be a little more territorial as well. Tonight, Lipscomb takes on Belmont for Battle of the Boulevard. People who love Nashville should at least know this game is being played, even if you don't attend. Chances are, Vince Gill knows it is going on...

Be sure to tune into ESPN on Tuesday night to watch Vanderbilt remain unbeaten at Memorial Gym this year when their cross state rival, the University of Tennessee comes to town. Join your favorite Vanderbilt fan and cheer for the team in your fine city!

(this leads into another blog coming soon "Why Davidson County is superior to Williamson County")

Bells Bend

For years, Charlotte Pike has been the armpit of Nashville. Similar to Nolensville Road, Charlotte Pike has been referred to as Little Mexico. I'm referring from the section that begins downtown and continues West until it turns into Hwy 70. (for those of you familiar with the street, that is the entire road.)

Charlotte Pike is filled with car repair stores, used tire shops, Mexican restaurants and Mexican grocery stores. Recently, the addition of the Nashville West shopping center has been added to increase the quality of people in the area.

However, Tony Giarratana and his people think that Charlotte Pike and West Nashville is the new Cool Springs of Nashville. The Bells Bend area is under review for a new $4 BILLION development to lure new business to Nashville. Apparently Davidson County was jealous of Williamson County for landing the Nissan North America headquarters.

Although it seems as though everything Tony G puts his hands on turns to gold, I'm skeptical that he can turn farmland into a thriving metropolis in West Nashville.

According to the Nashville Business Journal: "The 1,500-acre site, dubbed the May Town Center, will be a new office district for Nashville, with at least 5 million square feet of office space, four major corporate campuses, a central core of retail-and-office, and condominium homes, Giarratana says. The 984 acres will connect to Bells Bend Park, creating the largest land mass in Metro's park system."

The project ultimately needs a bridge crossing the Cumberland River. The bridge would connect the Nashville West shopping center to the Bells Bend area and the May Town Center. If approved, construction will not begin until 2010.

There are many projects currently under proposal such as the new Convention Center and a new baseball stadium. Can Nashville support this project? Does Nashville need this project?

Single in the City

Every year, Nashville Lifestyles comes out with its "Single in the City" issue, and every year, I am not in the issue. But I think this is a good thing. Some notable people who made the issue are Tennessee Titans players Cortland Finnegan, Chris Hope and Donnie Nickey. Some other people who made the issue include a kindergarten teacher, singer/songwriter and a Winery manager. The average age of these singles is about 31 years old. It looks like I've got a few years if I want instant stardom.

Unfortunately for the guys, Carrie Underwood was not listed as one of the most eligible singles in Nashville this year.

If you want to take part in this year's Single in the City party, you can go to Bound'ry on Tuesday, Februay 26 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $40 and it includes complimentary drinks and appetizers. You can also bid on the 2008 "singles." Visit Nashville Lifestyles for more information.

Nashville is the new L.A.

Real World Nashville will be a blog dedicated to posting about Nashville, Tennessee. It will cover local music, local sports, local business information and anything that might be unique to Nashville.



I am a Nashville native who is proud of the city. I will be critical of Nashville if it is necessary and I will applaud Nashville when it is due.

Upcoming posts may or may not include information about the naked statue, high school and college sports, new condo developments, Fred Thompson, new hot spots and random famous people sightings.

Real World Nashville will even have a "Best Of" series where readers can vote on their favorite restaurant, bar, new skyline building, country star and other topics.

The idea is to write about anything that might interest the people of Real World MTV. Nashville has not yet been a city on Real World and it is way past due.

Only in Nashville

Only in Nashville will be a recurring post on Real World Nashville because things happen in Nashville that just don't happen in other cities. The topic will cover personal experiences I have had in Nashville.

For example, this past weekend, I was at Second Fiddle on Broadway in Downtown Nashville. It was a typical Saturday night, the Nashville Predators game had just finished and Broadway was filled with hockey fans, music fans, tourists and anyone else that had a reason for going downtown.

Saturday night however, was a little different. After my friend and I walked in, a tall, long haired guy walked in with a huge posse of people. Everyone instantly started taking pictures (I will start to bring my camera out more often). Country star Darryl Worley came into the bar and all the old ladies with big hair started taking pictures. You may know him from one of his most famous hits "Have You Forgotten."

The best part about this is that most country stars people see in Nashville are down to Earth and go to the Honky Tonks with the rest of us. Other stars and bands I've seen at the bars include Blues Traveler, Big & Rich and Bon Jovi.

Do you have an "Only in Nashville" story?