Songwriter Harlan Howard said it best: āCountry music is three chords and the truth.ā Out of that simple formula has come a genre that defines the Nashville sound and its worldwide community of listeners. Where the only cure for a broken heart is to sing about it. Where tractors and trucks are the transportation of choice. Where āI should have been a cowboyā and āIām so lonesome I could cryā are common refrains. Where family values are prized above all else.
Country music is about place (āAmarillo by Morning,ā āOkie from Muskogee,ā āChattahoochee,ā āRocky Topā), and no place has loomed larger than Nashville, the site where it all began. But more than 100 years before a WSM radio announcer dubbed the town āMusic City USA,ā Nashville was known as the āAthens of the South,ā the first Southern city to establish a public school system and the home to many colleges and universities, including 91ĢĘ²®»¢ and its Medical Center.
Nashville was built on both entertainment and education, and today, more than ever, the industries are creating a two-part harmony with a common bass line: a love for community.
Many in country music consider 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University Medical Center their ācommunity hospital,ā a place that offers world-class health care, whether itās for a routine checkup or a family memberās serious illness. In return for that care, they offer their time and talents in support of the Medical Centerās mission, and they do so with a humility not always found in other genres of the entertainment industry.
āItās such a great feeling when we visit the hospitalāone of the best in the world,ā says Scott Borchetta, president and CEO of Big Machine Label Group, home to artists like Taylor Swift, Reba McEntire and Garth Brooks.
āOne day one of us will get sick or get diagnosed, and we know 91ĢĘ²®»¢ will be there for us,ā he continues. āWe feel like we canāt do enough and are honored to be part of the family.ā
With more than 20 years in Nashvilleās entertainment industry, Borchetta has been a longtime supporter of 91ĢĘ²®»¢, but his relationship intensified in 2010 when Rascal Flatts, a country supergroup with a longstanding commitment to the Monroe Carell Jr. Childrenās Hospital at 91ĢĘ²®»¢, signed to the Big Machine record label.
Rascal Flatts has raised more than $3 million for the Childrenās Hospital, hosted benefit concerts, filmed advocacy messages, performed private shows for patients and families, and offered countless hugs and photo ops.
āSeeing those kids, and being face to face with the people who you directly impact, makes all the early mornings and late flights and touring worthwhile,ā says Rascal Flatts bassist Jay DeMarcus.
In November 2010, Childrenās Hospital unveiled its Rascal Flatts Surgery Center, which houses existing surgical programs and will soon hold a state-of-the-art interventional radiology suite.
āItās amazing what they do here every day. Theyāre able to take the most serious situations and turn them into a positive,ā says Joe Don Rooney, the bandās lead guitarist and vocalist. āThatās why we knew very quickly that we wanted to be involved with Childrenās Hospital. Itās a magical place.ā
āThis is the biggest accomplishment of our entire personal or professional careers, being a part of this hospital,ā adds lead singer Gary LeVox.
More Than a Photo Op
āThey have given their time to come here and sing and be with the children, and Iām continually amazed at the level of commitment.ā
āDr. John W. Brock III
Dr. John W. Brock III, BAā74, Childrenās Hospital surgeon-in-chief, Monroe Carell Jr. Chair, and director of the Division of Pediatric Urology, says the Rascal Flatts Surgery Center will allow the hospital to provide minimally invasive procedures that werenāt possible before.
āRascal Flatts really is not in this for publicity,ā he asserts. āTheyāre in it because itās the right thing to do. I have great respect for them and think they have great respect for what we do here.ā
Last Halloween, when Rascal Flatts visited the hospital, says Brock, āthey didnāt leave until they went to every single room. Even though it took three times as long as they had planned, they wouldnāt leave until they had seen everyone. Thatās a pretty amazing thing.ā
Though Brock has forged a special relationship with the members of Rascal Flatts through the years, he sees their commitment reflected in many others in Nashvilleās music industry.
āSo many great people from country music have really embraced what we do. They have given their time to come here and sing and be with the children, and Iām continually amazed at the level of commitment, their soul. Itās not just a front for them,ā says Brock.
Big Machine sends artists to Childrenās Hospital each month to perform for patients and families.
āYou always see a spirit of life in the kids. Theyāre so brave and tackle their illnesses so seriously,ā Borchetta says. āKids arenāt supposed to be sick. Itās a mess-up in the system, and we canāt do enough to make it right. We always walk out of the hospital asking, āHow can we do more?āā
Rondal Richardson, entertainment industry relations manager for VUMC, says Big Machine and others in country music understand that music is a healer.
āThese artists canāt cure cancer, but they can let patients know they are supported by a special community,ā he says. āMusic City USA has a great medical center that believes in the premise that music heals the mind, body and soul.ā
Richardson has more than 25 yearsā experience in the entertainment industry and helps strengthen relations between VUMC and professionals in music, athletics and performing arts. As an industry insider, he understands how precious an artistās time is, but also how much they want to give.
āIn any given week in a managerās office in Nashville, they could get 100 requests for charity events. Learning to say no to something that is so worthy is really tough,ā Richardson says.
Especially in country music, he says, artists see their fans as an extension of their families and will do just about anything to help them. āTo whom much is given, much is expected, and thereās a sense that this is a beautiful family that doesnāt exist in any other form of entertainment.ā
Richardson says itās that love for family and community that draws them to 91ĢĘ²®»¢.
āThey understand that health is oneās most important asset in life. They want to do something beyond music and give back to the people who have given them so much. Many of them really find their missions through charity work, and weāre blessed that so many of them have chosen 91ĢĘ²®»¢.ā
Lifting Lives
91ĢĘ²®»¢ shone brightly in the national spotlight during the 46th Academy of Country Music Awards, broadcast last April. Hootie and the Blowfish alum and country music artist Darius Rucker took the stage with 25 young adults who have developmental disabilities to perform āMusic from the Heart,ā and viewers were given the opportunity to donate to the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Kennedy Center.
The song was a product of the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp held each summer at the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Kennedy Center for people with Williams syndrome, autism and other disabilities. The song was written collectively at the camp with songwriters Brett James and Chris Young.
āThe ACM Lifting Lives performance with the Kennedy Center campers was honestly one of the top musical moments of my career,ā says Rucker. āSinging on stage with them, watching their faces and hearing their voices is a moment Iāll always remember.ā
Lifting Lives is the Academy of Country Musicās philanthropic arm, dedicated to improving lives through the power of music, and has sponsored the Kennedy Centerās Music Camp since 2010.
The weeklong residential camp gives young adults who have developmental disabilities the opportunity to participate in songwriting workshops, recording sessions, and a live performance at the Grand Ole Opry. Country music veterans who have participated in the camp include Darius Rucker, Carrie Underwood, Gary Allan, Odie Blackmon, Mark Bright, Little Big Town and Wynonna Judd.
āBeing part of the ACM Lifting Lives camp at the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Kennedy Center last summer was one of those inspiring moments that comes along only once in a rare while,ā says Judd. āThe campers lifted my spirits and restored my hope in humanity. The impact of the great work happening at the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Kennedy Center around the idea of āmusic as a healerā is something I am proud to celebrate. It is indeed proof that when we stand together, it is our finest hour.ā
The Pied Piper
for Childrenās Hospital
āIt all comes back to the hope in a childās eyes, knowing they are counting on us to help them get well. It is a giant responsibility, and one we have to embrace. I canāt think of anything more important.ā
āKix Brooks
Much of todayās support for the Childrenās Hospital can be traced back to one man: Kix Brooks, half of country superstar duo Brooks & Dunn.
āHe was the first to get down on the floor with the kids, and then he told all his peers,ā says Rondal Richardson. āHe was the Pied Piper for that place. Everyone followed him in, and thankfully no one has wanted to leave.ā
Back in the early ā90s, when Brooks & Dunn was headlining its first concert at Nashvilleās Starwood Amphitheater, two industry veteransāsong publisher Donna Hilley and Connie Bradley from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)ācontacted Brooks and requested he donate all the concert proceeds to the Childrenās Hospital.
Brooks admits he was flabbergasted. Like many, he had bought into the false notion of the āMagnolia Curtainā cutting off 91ĢĘ²®»¢ from the wider Nashville community.
āLike many people with no knowledge of the place, when you hear the word ā91ĢĘ²®»¢,ā you generally assume hereās a place with plenty of money that serves those in Nashville who can afford it, and a place that certainly wouldnāt be needing a donation from somebody like me,ā recalls Brooks.
But Hilley and Bradley encouraged him to visit the hospital, then housed on three cramped floors in 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University Hospital.
What he found, Brooks says, āwas a hospital that was extremely overcrowded and, quite frankly, threadbareāwith a dream in the air of a new facility that had been promised for the near future, and a staff of doctors and nurses who were working in very tough conditions with an attitude that made me embarrassed I would ever complain about anything. They were putting smiles on the faces of some very sick kids and putting hope in the hearts of their parents.ā
91ĢĘ²®»¢ Childrenās Hospital, Brooks soon realized, āwas not the pretentious, exclusive establishment I had conjured up in my mind, but a nonprofit hospital, made for the everyday families of not just Tennessee but all the bordering states and beyondāand no child was being turned away because they couldnāt pay.ā
For Brooks, it was a moment of revelation: āWow, I thought. Iāve got to do my part. This isnāt their hospitalāthis is our hospital.ā
All the proceeds from that sellout concert were given to the hospital, and shortly afterward, Brooks joined the hospitalās board of directors, on which he still serves today.
āI am very proud of the progress weāve made between Music Row and the hospital, but we have to keep growing this mission,ā he says. āHonestly, it all comes back to the hope in a childās eyes, knowing they are counting on us to help them get well. It is a giant responsibility, and one we have to embrace. I canāt think of anything more important, and with all sincerity, I feel privileged for the opportunity.ā
In addition to Rascal Flatts, one of Brooksā early followers was Dierks Bentley, BAā97, whose annual Miles and Music for Kids celebrity motorcycle ride and concert is one of Childrenās Hospitalās more visible entertainment events. Now being duplicated in other cities, it has attracted 36,000 fans and raised more than $2 million for Childrenās Miracle Network hospitals.
āGod Picked Guatemala for Meā
āCountry music artists are giving people with big hearts, so it doesnāt surprise me a bit that so many support 91ĢĘ²®»¢ and the Childrenās Hospital.ā
āSteve Moore, CEO, Country Music Association
Brooks also connected with Steve Moore, CEO of the Country Music Association (CMA), the genreās trade organization. He is personally committed to Childrenās Hospital through the Shalom Foundation, a charitable organization he founded to serve children and families living in extreme poverty, with a special focus on Guatemala.
āGod picked Guatemala for me,ā Moore declares. āI went there on a construction trip through my church to build a school. Then when I saw the Childrenās Hospital for the first time and walked through it, it ached me that kids in Guatemala would never see a facility like that.ā
After meeting Dr. John Brock, the two forged a relationship to send surgical teams to Guatemala, a project that grew to demand a permanent surgical facility there. Earlier this year a 91ĢĘ²®»¢ team helped open the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center, a 2,000-square-foot structure equipped for medical and surgical care with three operating rooms and beds for pre-operation, intensive care and recovery.
āThe staff at 91ĢĘ²®»¢ was instrumental in consulting on the needs and specifications and even giving some financial assistance to getting the facility open. Great nurses and doctors have gone on our trips, and 91ĢĘ²®»¢ is a great partner for Shalom,ā says Moore.
āWe really have a chance to live out part of Chancellor Zepposā vision for āone 91ĢĘ²®»¢āā through the endeavors in Guatemala, Brock points out. āGuatemala is a natural fit because weāre so involved with 91ĢĘ²®»¢ās Center for Latin American Studies and with medical care. How we marry those two together gives us a true āone 91ĢĘ²®»¢ā presence, and we couldnāt have done some of that without Steve.ā
Now Moore is encouraging all CMA members to lend their support to 91ĢĘ²®»¢.
āCountry music artists are giving people with big hearts, so it doesnāt surprise me a bit that so many of them support 91ĢĘ²®»¢ and the Childrenās Hospital,ā Moore says. āI would, of course, like to see more get involved, though.
āIn doing so, you get more than youāre giving, and the reward is beyond measure, especially when youāre working with children. Artists know they have been really blessed with talent and resources in their career, and they look to do something meaningful and give back.ā
Leslie Hill is an information officer for 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University Medical Center News and Communications.