Nashvegas is the name a lot of
Nashville residents call their
hometown. It does have as many rhinestones per capita as the great
Vegas. Nashville also has been known as Nastyville and its residents sometimes call themselves
"Nashvillains". Hey - if the nomiker fits...
There are many types of charcters wandering the confusing streets . . . the wannabe types of course - the women with their skin tight clothes and tousled hair a' la Faith Hill and the men with their skin tight clothes and cowboy hats a' la Tim McGraw. There are washed up musicians who use their last royalty check from their big hit in '83 to turn their empty garage (the wife took the car in the divorce, of course)into a studio where they sit all day looking at the gold record mocking them from the wall. They are fond of the wannabes . . . There are the politicians - who regardless of what party they belong to, all go out drinking and carousing together. They are also fond of the wannabes. There are the random successful musicians wandering around in their Black SUV's, taunting the wannabes with their perfectly tousled hair. . . they like the wannabes just for the attention factor. There are business men - who are politicians and/or musicians on the side. No one in Nashvegas is without a Connection to the Industry. I have had my plumbing installed by Kim Carnes' brother. Oh yeah, there are plumbers in Nashvegas. They like the wannabes too, just in case you were wondering.
Then there are the submusic groups. The rockabilly gangs, the Western Roots revivalists, the indie/house crowd hanging with the ravers. We got yer run o' the mill teen thing. Rap, funk, trip hop. Some people like their country straight up like the honky tonkers. Some people who like it with a twist like the modern country crowd. An amazing jazz tribe resides in Nashvegas, as well as a classical camp.
The amazing thing is when it all comes together at the Ryman Auditorium. There are these shows that all the types of Nashvillains flock to see. There is something holy about the old stage that infuses everything with a spiritual energy unparalled. The music starts and all the different types get their Nashville on and suddenly it is apparent why Nashvegas is known to the rest of the world as Music City.