Jackson Free Press

As you will read throughout this issue, there's great music in the capital city area, and the scene seems to get better with each annual Jackson Free Press Music Issue.

Attending a local concert is certainly a great way to pass the time with friends, but it's also vital for any city's growth. Look around the country at the some of the bigger music festivals, some of which draw visitors from around the nation and world, and see how important the events have become to those local economies.

For example, South by Southwest pumped $315 million into the economy of Austin, a Texas television station reported. Closer to home, Hangout Music Festival brings about $31 million to Gulf Shores, Ala.

It all starts with having strong live-music venues, ones that can attract touring bands with national followings. This, in turn, inspires local musicians to want to perform in these venues in front of their friends and fans, and better yet, open for touring musicians. Before long, the city needs more venues to accommodate circulating tours, local acts and bigger audiences.

This also creates more opportunities for young, hungry concert promoters to join existing companies, like Arden Barnett's Ardenland. Rather than creating competition, variety in music venues draws even more artists and listeners. Differing preferences mean that small, intimate venues such as The Yellow Scarf can survive alongside stadium-like venues like Thalia Mara Hall.

In a healthy music scene, show promoters can collaborate to ensure that the music coming through the city is directed to the most effective venue. For example, a touring acoustic singer-songwriter might contact a show promoter for F. Jones Corner. Rather than ignoring the request or booking the musician to play to a disappointed crowd, the promoter could call a venue like Cups in Fondren or Sneaky Beans, and help guide the artist to the right place for his or her music.

For a city like Jackson, which has struggled to bounce back from the Great Recession, leveraging the diverse, homegrown musical talent represents real potential for growth. In order for that to happen, however, we need start thinking and talking differently about music in our city.

To start, we should encourage Jacksonians to combat the ridiculous notion (does anyone really say this?) that there's no good live music here. We profile a number of artists in this issue and every week in the JFP's listings that prove the contrary. Once in a while, think about paying the $5 to $7 cover charge to hear a local band instead of sitting home streaming music online.

Doing so would pump revenues into musicians' pockets, local businesses and into the city's coffers and make life a whole lot more interesting around here.

Need ideas? You've got them right here. Enjoy the 2014 Fall Music Issue.