Nashville Tornado Relief Concert Announced; Nashville’s Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival Canceled Because Of Tornado & Coronavirus Concerns

To Nashville, With Love
– To Nashville, With Love

Following the deadly tornadoes in Tennessee earlier this week, the Nashville music community has quickly come together to put together a benefit concert featuring performances from Brandi Carlile, Dan Auerbach, Ashley McBryde, Jason Isbell, Margo Price, Sheryl Crow and more. 

“To Nashville, With Love” is scheduled Monday, March 9 at Nashville’s Marathon Music Works. The event, which is presented by local independent radio station Lightning 100 and supported by Hardee’s, also includes Aaron Lee Tasjan, Brothers Osborne, Katie Pruitt, Kendell Marvell, Old Crow Medicine Show, Sadler Vaden, and recent Pollstar cover artists Soccer Mommy and Yola. 
Mike “Grimey” Grimes, the co-owner of Nashville club Basement East, which was severely damaged by the tornadoes, will also appear at the event. 
“Amanda [Shires] and I are proud to call Nashville our home, and we’re proud of the Nashville community’s ability to come together in a time of crisis,” Jason Isbell said in a statement. “We’re lucky that our home and our loved ones are safe, but we know that isn’t the case for many Nashvillians. I’m happy to do what I can to help the city recover.” 
 
Tickets went on sale Friday and sold out within hours. 
100% of the money raised through ticket sales and donations will benefit the To Nashville, With Love Fund, with money going to disaster relief and mental health organizations. The fund was created after the 2020 tornados struck Tennessee by a group of music industry professionals and the Founding Board of Advisors includes Neverno Management’s Charlie Pierce, WME Nashville co-head Jay Williams, WME agents Jonathan Insogna and Marissa Smith, Q Prime South VP of Marketing Tom Osborn, and Big Feat PR founder Doug Hall. All donations to the fund will be administered by The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.
 “We are overwhelmed by the support today,” organizers said in a post on Facebook. “Thank you so much to everybody who bought tickets for the show on Monday. This is just the beginning for what we hope to raise – please stay tuned to our socials for more information on how to get involved, including an auction we are currently working on! You can donate now to the To Nashville, With Love Fund on www.tonashvillewithlove.org.”
The benefit will be broadcast via Lightning 100. 
In other Nashville news, Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival announced that it was postponing its March 24-28 event “in light of the tornado this week as well as growing health concerns over coronovirus.” The event, which will be rescheduled later this year, was supposed to feature performances by Caroline Watkins, Jamey Johnson, Emily Earle and more. 
A statement noted, “It is possible that several of the venues will move forward with the previously scheduled events, this will be decided between the venues and participants and it is likely that several events will now be modified to benefit tornado relief efforts.” 
On Thursday Taylor Swift made a donation to the Middle Tennessee Emergency Response Fund and provided her Instagram followers a link to do the same. Her publicist later confirmed that the donation was in the amount of $1 million. 
“Nashville is my home and the fact that so many people have lost their homes and so much more in Middle Tennessee is devastating to me,” she wrote on her Instagram story.
At least 25 people have died because of the tornadoes, according to the Tennessean