While Knoxville might not be the first city that comes to mind when you think about major music cities, it still has a wide variety of musical opportunities to keep you entertained and excited. Blink and you just might miss the time your favorite indie/alternative band or country music artists called Knoxville their “home sweet home” for the night! Whether you plan to make a whole night out of Knoxville’s music scene or need a few hours of fun with friends, Knoxville music has got you covered!
1 . Spend a night singing along with some of your favorite artists
Knoxville has its fair share of music venues in the Bijou Theatre, Tennessee Theatre, Mill and Mine, The Concourse, Fifth Avenue House, and our very own Open Chord Music, among others. Grab some friends or family and grab a bite to eat before dancing and singing the night away at your favorite venue! Want a little more info on some of these venues? Read more below!
The Bijou Theatre: Located in downtown Knoxville on Gay Street sits the Bijou, one of the oldest venues in the city. There is not a bad seat in the house as you can enjoy your music of choice in an intimate, small venue setting. Attached to the Bijou is also its Bistro Restaurant! The Bijou’s event calendar can be found here.
The Tennessee Theatre: Also on Gay Street is arguably the most well known venue in The Tennessee Theatre. The beauty of this venue might just take your breath away as you spend a night with musicians and thousands of your new Knoxville friends! Want to check out this historic place and experience it for yourself? Click right here to see if any of these events and musicians catch your eye!
The Mill & Mine: The Mill & Mine is a Knoxville favorite and the place many well known bands and artists call their home for the night. Tucked away near the Old City, this music venue fills up fast to create a special night up close with the musicians. This music venue is a standing venue, so expect to have a fun night of dancing and a whole lot of interaction between the crowd and bands on stage. Their event calendar can be found here!
The Concourse: If the Mill & Mine is your kind of venue, The Concourse will be too as they share many similarities! Also a standing venue, The Concourse holds about 500 people. Their goal is “to bring a diverse set of live performances to the city including EDM/dance nights, Rock, Metal, Variety shows, the occasional tribute band and much more.” Want to see this venue for yourself? Check out the opportunities right here!
Fifth Avenue House: What once was an old rundown warehouse in downtown Knoxville is now a transformed music scene. Fifth Avenue House is most known as the location for worship nights with Christian band United Pursuit.
Open Chord Music: Inside Open Chord is a wide variety of opportunities to listen to live music while enjoying great food! New and upcoming artists are always scheduled and the intimate venue allows you to feel personal connections with the talent on stage. Check out the upcoming events here!
2 . Go shopping for your favorite records
If anything has come back into an immense popularity, it is vinyl records! There is nothing quite more exciting or relaxing than looking through a whole store of records to find the hidden gems of your favorite artists and bands on vinyl. If you’re someone who loves to sit down and listen to music on a record player, you’ve lucked out! Knoxville has all of the record shopping opportunities!
Some of the most popular Knoxville record stores are found in Open Chord, as well as Wild Honey Records, Raven Records & Rarities, Basement Records, Lost and Found Records, Magnolia Records and McKay’s Bookstore! Whether you’re with your friends or are on a first date, this activity allows you to explore your music taste and explain why you love your favorite artists and bands so much!
Oh, and bring a little patience with you as you sift through the wide variety of records in search of your favorites!
3 . Learn new instruments right here at Open Chord
I don’t know about you, but learning how to play the guitar has been at the top of my bucket list for years! If you’ve been wanting to learn a new instrument or pick up your very first one, Open Chord’s Music School gives you that perfect opportunity!
Don’t worry about struggling to learn because Open Chord has some of the best teachers! Whether you’re wanting to learn guitar, banjo, ukulele or more, Open Chord’s teachers are eager to help you learn!
Stop by and learn from Knoxville native Chris Newman, local musician Robert Higginbotham, performer and UT alum Josh Hobbs and veteran performer Matt Reynolds. It’s never too late to learn and Open Chord offers those weekly sessions you might have been searching for!
