Bristol, Virginia / Bristol, Tennessee

Birthplace of Country Music

Problem

Fractured identity and "decline stories" sap motivation. People don't see themselves (or each other) in the town's story.

Solution

Birthplace of Country Music, Inc. (formerly the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance, IRS ruling year 1996) is a 501(c)(3) in the twin cities of Bristol, Tennessee and Bristol, Virginia that operates the Smithsonian-affiliated Birthplace of Country Music Museum (opened August 2014, 24,000 square feet, $11 million), WBCM-LP Radio Bristol (on air from inside the museum since August 27, 2015) and the Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion festival (founded 2001, part of BCM since December 2012, held each September on State Street). The shared story is the July-August 1927 Bristol Sessions, recognized by Congress in H. Con. Res. 214 on October 9, 1998.

Patterns used: Shared Cultural Story

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