To celebrate the proclamation of June as Black Music Month (African American Music Appreciation Month), the National Museum of African American Music (NMAAM) has issued the first State of Black Music address. “Black music is America’s music,” said Henry Beecher Hicks, president of the NMAAM. “It’s global music. It crosses boundaries of culture and race and geography, bringing us together in moments of joy, celebration, challenge and contemplation. Black music is, in a word, transcendent, and it may be that the State of Black Music is stronger than ever.” “For the first time in the history of Nielsen Music measurement, …

What began as an offhand comment during a transit briefing to the Nashville Downtown Partnership on Wednesday is now the newest promotion for the few remaining units at the 505. Nashville Metropolitan Transit Authority CEO Stephen Bland was briefing the NDP Board of Directors about upcoming transit improvements. Discussion moved to traffic in the downtown area, and Bland remarked that walking was still the most efficient form of transportation. That prompted Tom Turner, President and CEO, to suggest that developer and board member Tony Giarratana offer free shoes to new renters or buyers at the 505, which opened late last …

3-D Technology Group, LLC, received a substantial boost for its aggressive growth plans by being certified as a Cisco Premier Partner, a designation that gives the Nashville-based IT services provider access to multinational powerhouse Cisco’s products and services. 3-D Technology’s vast and growing client base, which includes the top five for-profit hospital systems and the two largest nonprofit health systems, will now have access to best-in-class Cisco products and services, a certified level of Cisco expertise among 3-D Technology’s client service providers and engineers, and support for Cisco products and services that leads the IT industry. “Our partnership with Cisco …

Over 450 friends and neighbors celebrated the grand reopening of Nashville’s iconic dragon sculpture in Fannie Mae Dees Park on Sunday, May 20. The opening ceremony, which coincided with the season’s first Dragon Music Sunday, included live music, activities for children and a great lineup of speakers, including: Mayor David Briley Nathan Green, Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs at Vanderbilt Monique Odom, Director of Metro Parks Tom Cash, Chairman of the Hillsboro–West End Neighborhood Association Mayor Briley and Councilmember Burkley Allen cut the ribbon to officially reopen the Dragon to the public. Hundreds of children immediately flooded the park and …

FB Financial Corporation (NYSE: FBK), the holding company of Nashville-based FirstBank, has been recognized for its board diversity for having more than 20 percent of its board of director’s seats held by women. FB Financial was recently named a 2020 Women on Boards Winning “W” Company for the year 2017, a recognition granted to publicly traded companies whose boards consist of at least 20 percent women. Only 36 percent of the 3,192 companies tracked last year reached that mark, according to 2020 Women on Boards, a nonprofit organization founded in 2010 with the goal of increasing the percentage of women …

Brandon Barca, former director of multimedia integration for the University of Oregon Athletic Department, has joined MP&F Strategic Communications as a senior account executive. Barca brings 18 years of experience in sports communications and marketing, including digital strategy, social media, branding, consumer engagement and promotions. Prior to his work at UofO, Barca held positions with the Vanderbilt University and University of Tennessee athletic departments, and with the Nashville Predators. At UofO, Barca reinvented the athletic department’s digital and social media strategy and managed what a release bills as the “most-followed Twitter and Instagram main accounts in college sports.” In his …

After two years of renovations, Nashville’s iconic Dragon will reopen to the community Sunday, May 20, thanks to the support of community leaders, neighbors and volunteers. The Hillsboro–West End Neighborhood Association (HWEN), in partnership with Metro Nashville Parks and Recreation, will kick off the Dragon’s homecoming at the first Dragon Music Sunday of the season. The ceremony will begin at 4 p.m., with remarks from Mayor David Briley, and representatives from Vanderbilt University and the Hillsboro–West End Neighborhood Association. The Dragon will then be reopened for children to play on and neighbors to enjoy once again. After the ceremony, Centennial …

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Thousands of Nashvillians – from parents to businesses and students to city leaders – are thanking Nashville’s 6,800 hardworking public school educators during the month of May as part of the third annual Show Your Love for Teachers campaign. This annual citywide effort, a program of the Nashville Public Education Foundation and supported by the Mayor’s Office and Metro Nashville Public Schools, is shaping up to be the biggest display of teacher appreciation in Nashville to date. “Nashville’s teachers are a huge part of what makes this city great, which is why recognizing and celebrating them through …

Workplace turnover is increasing, and the employee-driven marketplace calls for CEOs and managers to focus more effort on employee retention. An estimated 42 million employees will leave their jobs in 2018, according to the findings of a comprehensive national study conducted by Work Institute. The company has released its 2018 Retention Report, the only known one of its kind, marking its second study of national workplace turnover and retention. Using a scientifically valid methodology and data from over 234,000 exit interviews, this report uncovers the root causes of turnover to reveal the real reasons employees leave their jobs for better …