The Nashville Municipal Auditorium is an indoor

sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

and

concert A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variet ...

venue in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

. It opened October 7, 1962 with both an arena and exhibition hall. The former exhibition hall has been permanent home to the

Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum The Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum (MHOF) in Nashville honors all musicians regardless of genre or instrument. The MHOF timeline starts with the beginning of recorded music and inductees are nominated by current members of the American Feder ...

since 2013. Nashville Municipal Auditorium was previously home to various teams, most notably the

Belmont Bruins The Belmont Bruins are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Belmont University located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. The Bruins athletic program is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. Prior to 2022, the Bruins were members of th ...

of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

from 2001–2003. The venue has hosted major events including the

CMA Awards The Country Music Association Awards, also known as the CMA Awards or CMAs, are presented to country music artists and broadcasters to recognize outstanding achievement in the country music industry. The televised annual presentation ceremony f ...

(1967),

Volunteer Jam The Volunteer Jam is a sporadically-held concert series headlined by the Charlie Daniels Band, featuring a multitude of musical acts that perform onstage with the band. It was first held on October 4, 1974, at the War Memorial Auditorium in Nashvi ...

(1976–1985), WrestleWar (1989), No Holds Barred: The Match/The Movie (1989),

Starrcade Starrcade was a recurring professional wrestling event, originally broadcast via closed-circuit television and eventually broadcast via pay-per-view. It was originally held from 1983 to 2000, first by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) from 1 ...

(1994–1996),

In Your House In Your House (known as NXT TakeOver: In Your House in 2020 and 2021 and then NXT In Your House beginning in 2022) is a professional wrestling series of events created by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The events o ...

(1995), U.S. Figure Skating Championships (1997), SuperBrawl (2001). Slammiversary (2007),

Lockdown A lockdown is a restriction policy for people, community or a country to stay where they are, usually due to specific risks (such as COVID-19) that could possibly harm the people if they move and interact freely. The term is used for a prison ...

(2012),

CMT Music Awards The CMT Music Awards is a fan-voted awards show for country music videos and television performances. The awards ceremony is held every year in Nashville, Tennessee, and broadcast live on the CMT (Country Music Television) channel. Voting takes p ...

(2022) and Ric Flair's Last Match (2022).

History

Construction

NashvilleMunicipalAuditoriumGospelMeeting1962 1

Designed by Marr & Holman and constructed by Nashville Bridge Company in 1962 at a cost of $5 million, the venue was the first public assembly hall in the Mid South with

air conditioning Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...

. The venue was built on the site of Bijou Amusement Company’s former Bijou Theatre as part of an urban renewal plan. Bijou Theatre was frequented by

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

audiences prior to

desegregation Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups, usually referring to races. Desegregation is typically measured by the index of dissimilarity, allowing researchers to determine whether desegregation efforts are having impact o ...

. The structure contains a 306-foot diameter bowl with a spherically-curved, clear-span roof. Within the facility is an underground

exhibition hall A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...

and an arena with two tiers of spectator stands.

Opening and reception

The first event at the venue was a Church of Christ revival on October 7, 1962. The week-long revival from October 7–14 drew more than 90,000 people.

Alterations

The walls of the upper and lower concourses are decorated with enlarged ticket stubs from events and concerts the venue hosted between 1962 and 2010. $3.2 million in renovations were completed in 2017 to satisfy venue promoter Live Nation, including modernized seating and

dressing room A changing-room, locker-room, (usually in a sports, theater, or staff context) or changeroom (regional use) is a room or area designated for changing one's clothes. Changing-rooms are provided in a semi-public situation to enable people to ch ...

areas.

Notable events

Basketball

The venue was home court for the NCAA

basketball teams from 2001–2003 while Striplin Gym was demolished to make way for Curb Event Center. The venue hosted the

Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in the Football Cham ...

basketball tournament in

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...

, 1994,

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

, 1996,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, 2011,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, 2015,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

. It currently hosts the annual Magnet Madness basketball game between rivals Hume-Fogg High School and Martin Luther King Magnet.

Professional wrestling

The venue hosted the NWA's inaugural WrestleWar event, WrestleWar '89: Music City Showdown, which featured the

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...

Match of the Year between Ric Flair and

Ricky Steamboat Richard Henry Blood Sr. (born February 28, 1953), better known by his ring name Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his work with the American Wrestling Association (AWA), Jim Crockett Promot ...

. It hosted WWF's No Holds Barred: The Match/The Movie pay-per-view special in December 1989, WWF's ''

SummerSlam Spectacular ''SummerSlam Spectacular'' is a professional wrestling television program that was produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Three separate specials aired on the USA Network, one week prior to that years respective SummerSlam. During thi ...

'' broadcast in August 1992, as well as WWF In Your House 2: The Lumberjacks in 1995. The venue hosted WCW's Starrcade 1994,

Starrcade 1995 Starrcade '95: World Cup of Wrestling was the 13th annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Championship Wrestling (WCW). It took place on December 27, 1995, at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nash ...

, Starrcade 1996, '' Clash of the Champions XXXV'' in 1997, and

SuperBrawl Revenge SuperBrawl Revenge was the eleventh and final SuperBrawl professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event and the penultimate pay-per-view event produced by World Championship Wrestling (WCW). It took place on February 18, 2001 from the Nashville M ...

in 2001. Masato Tanaka won his only ECW Heavyweight Championship by defeating

Mike Awesome Michael Lee Alfonso (January 24, 1965 – February 17, 2007) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with the American professional wrestling promotions Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestl ...

at the venue during an ''

ECW on TNN ''ECW on TNN'', also known as '' ECW Wrestling'', is an American professional wrestling television program that was produced by Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and aired on The Nashville Network (TNN, now Paramount Network). Created by P ...

'' taping in December 1999.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promo ...

held their first events at the venue in June 2002 before moving to Tennessee State Fairgrounds. The venue also hosted TNA Wrestling's Slammiversary 2007 and Lockdown 2012. The venue hosted ''

Ring of Honor Wrestling ''Ring of Honor Wrestling'', often shortened as ''ROH Wrestling TV'' or ''ROH TV'', is an American professional wrestling television series produced by Ring of Honor (ROH). The series featured professional wrestlers competing in matches and condu ...

'' television tapings between 2016 and 2020, and ''

AEW Dynamite AEW or aew may refer to: * Airborne early warning, airborne radar system for detecting aircraft * Aerosvit Airlines, an airline based in Kyiv, Ukraine (ICAO airline designator: AEW) * AEW Capital Management, a property investment management company ...

'' broadcasts between 2019 and 2022. Ric Flair's Last Match took place at the venue in July 2022.

Other sports

The venue hosted the 1994 Coca-Cola National Gymnastics Championships. The

Professional Bull Riders The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization based in Pueblo, Colorado, United States. In the U.S., PBR events have been televised on CBS and CBS Sports Network since 2012. In 2013, the ...

sponsored Bud Light Cup events at the venue from its inception in 1994 until 2001. In 2002, the event was moved to

Bridgestone Arena Bridgestone Arena (originally Nashville Arena, and formerly Gaylord Entertainment Center and Sommet Center) is a multi-purpose venue in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Completed in 1996, it is the home of the Nashville Predators o ...

. The venue hosted the 1997 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. The venue hosted

Tuff Hedeman Richard Neale "Tuff" Hedeman (born March 2, 1963) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specializes in bull riding. He won the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bull riding world championship three times (1986, 1989 and ...

Championship Bull Riding Championship Bull Riding, Inc. (CBR) was a professional bull riding organization that was based in Weatherford, Texas, United States. History Stock contractor Terry Williams and Texas businessman Joel Logan founded Championship Bull Riding (CBR) ...

All Star Shootout on June 10, 2009. Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine took place at the venue on January 7, 2011.

Concerts

In 1967, the auditorium hosted the Country Music Association's first

event, before the ceremonies moved to the

Ryman Auditorium Ryman Auditorium (also known as Grand Ole Opry House and Union Gospel Tabernacle) is a 2,362-seat live-performance venue located at 116 Rep. John Lewis Way North, in Nashville, Tennessee. It is best known as the home of the ''Grand Ole Opry'' fr ...

the following year. The 3rd GMA Dove Awards were held at the venue on October 9, 1971.

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

's performance of the venue on November 30, 1974 was released in part on '' I'm Only Dancing (The Soul Tour 74)''. Charlie Daniels Band staged their annual

concerts at the venue from 1976 to 1985.

Ted Nugent Theodore Anthony Nugent (; born December 13, 1948) is an American rock musician and activist. He initially gained fame as the lead guitarist and occasional lead vocalist of The Amboy Dukes, a band formed in 1963 that played psychedelic rock ...

's July 1977 performance at the venue was released in part on ''

Double Live Gonzo! ''Double Live Gonzo!'' is a live album by the American hard rock guitarist Ted Nugent, released as a double LP in 1978. In addition to live versions of songs from previous albums, this double album also contains original material played live, inc ...

''. The Grateful Dead's April 22, 1978 concert at the venue was released as the live album '' Dave's Picks Volume 15''. Auditions for

Season 2 Season 2 may refer to: * ''Season 2'' (Infinite album) * '' 2econd Season'' See also

* {{disambig ...

(2003), Season 14 (2015), and Season 18 (2020) of ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

'' were held at the venue. Eventual Season 2 winner

Ruben Studdard Ruben Studdard (born September 12, 1978) is an American singer and actor. He rose to fame as winner of the second season of ''American Idol'' and received a Grammy Award nomination in 2003 for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his recording of ...

was discovered at the 2003 audition. The 35th GMA Dove Awards were held at the venue on April 28, 2004. Due to the damage at

Grand Ole Opry House The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divi ...

because of the

May 2010 Tennessee floods The 2010 Tennessee floods were 1,000-year floods in Middle Tennessee, West Tennessee, south-central and western Kentucky and northern Mississippi areas of the United States of America as the result of torrential rains on May 1 and 2, 2010. Flo ...

, the venue hosted the June 8, 2010 edition of the ''Grand Ole Opry''. The 29th

Stellar Awards A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the gospel music industry.Sagma
The Stell ...

were held at the venue on January 18, 2014. Carrie Underwood filmed the video for her song " Cry Pretty" at the venue in 2018. The

2022 CMT Music Awards The 2022 CMT Music Awards, the 56th edition of the awards ceremony, were held in Nashville, Tennessee on April 11, 2022, at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium and locations in and around Nashville, Tennessee. The ceremony was hosted by Kelsea B ...

were held at the venue on April 11, 2022.

Political events

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

appeared on March 15, 2017 for a rally and speech. According to a public address announcement in the venue, thousands more were unable to attend leaving empty seats in the upper level. This announcement was highly controversial as there was no evidence the upper level tickets were ever sold.

Special features

Musicians' Hall of Fame and Museum

On June 4, 2013, the auditorium began housing the

within its exhibition hall. The museum was relocated from

Music City Center The Music City Center is a convention complex located in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, United States. It opened in May 2013. The complex was designed by tvsdesign with Associated Architects: Tuck-Hinton Architects, Moody Nolan Moody Nolan is ...

due to construction.

References

External links

*
Nashville Municipal Auditorium Concert List 1963–1999
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