Nashville is "America's new party town" (high school, rural)

[bspray]

Originally Posted by JMT

Agree 100%. I want no part of the ThugBA, and I am perfectly fine with AAA baseball. Plus, having both the NFL and NHL right downtown really helps with Nashville's image as a party town. Ever been downtown before a hockey game? The place is rocking. The NFL didn't need to do much of anything to win over fans, but for Nashville to become such a hot market for the NHL is saying something. Nashville is also a very popular away game for other NHL fans, and many stay an extra day or two just to experience Nashville.

The NHL experience in Nashville is very different from other NHL cities, and I'm convinced it's one reason Nashville has become such a party town. Here's how the NY Times described it:

NASHVILLE — Seven o’clock on a Tuesday, and the gold-clad, goose-calling, Tim McGraw-crooning fans of the Nashville Predators are offering an updated primer in Southern hospitality.

One by one, the starters for the Predators’ victim on this night, the Colorado Avalanche, are announced, and one by one, each is advised by the frothing crowd that — in somewhat more colorful language — he is not good at his job, not good at all. The Avalanche’s coach, Patrick Roy, is then introduced, and he is told the same, with a bit more fervor.

Bridgestone Arena, where the Predators skate, is a spaceship of a building perched on a stretch of Broadway downtown that evokes a hillbilly Bourbon Street — all boot joints and neon guitars and honky-tonks. By the opening face-off, all that energy is sucked inside, creating a rowdy atmosphere for a rowdy team, the N.H.L.’s unlikely juggernaut...

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/02/sp...ller.html?_r=0

And from the Toronto Star:

NASHVILLE, TENN.—Ken Hitchcock, coach of the St. Louis Blues, is fond of saying no NHL team should expect to go into Nashville and come out with a win.

“It’s like the Colosseum in Rome.”

Why? Well, the team is good — even great, maybe — but the fans are better.

“They’re all dressed in one colour. It’s a very bright colour,” Hitchcock says of the Preds’ home gold jersey. “I don’t know why, but the seats are full for the start of the game. It’s obviously not a corporate crowd in the lower bowl. It’s very intimidating . . . because the building is full before the puck drops. Everybody is in their seat and it’s like they’re waiting for you.”

Christians, meet the lions...

“What a great place to go,” adds Leafs coach Peter Horachek. “You stay downtown. You walk to the games. You walk to the honky tonks.”

Perhaps fuelled by those famous honky tonks surrounding the downtown arena, Predators fans started their own traditions, quite oblivious to the notion that these things just aren’t done in hockey.

“They do standing ovations before anything happens,” says Sean Henry, the Predators’ president.

They go wild during the third-period TV timeout, for no other reason than to get loud and support the Preds.

“The opposing team stops. They’re looking up, like, ‘What are they doing? Why are they on their feet,’ ” says Henry.

“I’ve never seen a city before (where) at a timeout, when the team needs a boost, (they) stand up and give them a standing ovation for 90 seconds,” says Horachek. “The whole team is going, ‘Come on, they got you, let’s go.’ It’s a special town that way. They’re vocal. They’re loud. They’re into it.”

The announcement of each opposing player’s name is greeted by “You suck” — with “You suck, too” reserved for the opposing coach.

Take a penalty and fans give you the middle finger. Let in a goal and the netminder hears: “It’s all your fault.”

Fans are up on their feet a lot, says colour commentator Stu Grimson, the former NHL enforcer who retired as a Predator.

“My dad always has his arms crossed, folded across his chest,” says Grimson. “Typical Canadian, annoyed (because) people are getting up and down in front of him. They’re obstructing his view of the game. But that’s the way we do hockey in Nashville. We get pretty excited.”

The in-game experience includes a live band, and sometimes top singers grab the microphone. The Gatlin Brothers, Tim McGraw and Alice Cooper have sung between periods...

Raucous Nashville hockey scene fuels Predators’ rise | Toronto Star

Nashville's party atmosphere and excellent arena are also reasons why Nashville has become a semi-regular host of the NCAA Women's Final Four and the SEC Men's Tournament.

I agree with all this. Having come from San Antonio, the 'choir boys' of the NBA, let me assure you even the choir boys wreak havoc on the city. Gang and drug activity, fights in public and let's not forget the string of illegitimate kids all over town.

I can't remember the last time I heard about a Predator's player being arrested or on the bad end of a news story. I guess you could bring up the civil suit against Ribeiro right now but I will count that when he is actually found liable. It wouldn't be the first time a former employee made up charges about a famous employer to extort money.

The NBA sucks so keep it in Memphis, again, a good cultural fit for that city. The NHL is a good fit for Nashville, there are few other cities as electric on game night. The NFL is clearly a feather in the cap of any city.

I wouldn't consider the addition of an MLB team as a bad thing but I would prefer to keep AAA. I WOULD consider the addition of an NBA team as a negative for the city.

[Drake744]

Originally Posted by BayAreaDave

Kick the preds out bring the Grizzlies here. No one even cares about hockey except cities with hockey teams.

I'm not seeing the logic here.

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by BayAreaDave

Kick the preds out bring the Grizzlies here. No one even cares about hockey except cities with hockey teams.

Just because YOU don't like hockey doesn't mean that other Nashvillians don't passionately care about the team.

[My_home_town]

Originally Posted by BayAreaDave

Relocate the Grizzlies here please.

Hahaha!

[UNITYinternational]

Originally Posted by loveautumn

I heard on TV that it's now being called "Nashvegas"...this was after the CMA awards. That makes me sad...

Nashvega
CAshville
The Ville
NOTlanta

all terms I have heard for more than 7 years in reference to Nashville.

[UKWildcat1981]

Originally Posted by UNITYinternational

Nashvega
CAshville
The Ville
NOTlanta

all terms I have heard for more than 7 years in reference to Nashville.

How about just Music City

[UNITYinternational]

Originally Posted by Drake744

Nashville isn't a big enough market to support 3 major sports teams, plus as said, MLB isn't exactly jumping to try and expand.

I think they just rebuilt the minor league baseball field that never sells out so I doubt baseball is coming anytime soon

Soccer or basketball over baseball would be my guess... but Nashville has also created a ridiculous grid lock by situating all the entertainment venues in the core of the city. Ridiculous traffic for a midsize city that still has a town feel and public transportation is lacking.

The best thing they got going, during my visits, is quick passenger pickups at airport and short terminal hikes.

[UNITYinternational]

Originally Posted by UKWildcat1981

How about just Music City

Yup, heard that forever and then there is the Volunteer State in reference to TN

[STL2006]

Originally Posted by UNITYinternational

Soccer or basketball over baseball would be my guess...

MLS would definitely be my bet if Nashville gets another professional sports team in the next decade. MLS is expanding and Nashville is viewed very positively on the soccer scene, and already has Nashville FC. But again, even that would require a new venue, as MLS isn't moving forward with teams playing in existing venues (NFL stadiums, MLB stadiums, etc).

As others have said though, there's nothing wrong with what Nashville has right now. It's the right mix.

[GWoodle]

Originally Posted by STL2006

MLS would definitely be my bet if Nashville gets another professional sports team in the next decade. MLS is expanding and Nashville is viewed very positively on the soccer scene, and already has Nashville FC. But again, even that would require a new venue, as MLS isn't moving forward with teams playing in existing venues (NFL stadiums, MLB stadiums, etc).

As others have said though, there's nothing wrong with what Nashville has right now. It's the right mix.

My guess is soccer could be next. LP field fills up when the World Cup games are here As for baseball, I wonder if a lot depends if we had an AL team vrs a NL team. It would be nice if the sounds had a rival city to compete with.