Mississippi:The Blues and Beyond
Music — particularly the blues — is Mississippi’s greatest contribution to the culture of the American South, and the state is doubling down on its position as a music lover’s destination.
“In early March, the Grammy Museum Mississippi will open in Cleveland in partnership with the Delta Music Institute,” said Paige Hunt, tourism communications bureau manager at the Mississippi Development Authority. “It’s the first Grammy museum outside of Los Angeles. It’s a 20,000-square-foot museum that will highlight Mississippi Grammy winners.
“It’s an amazing attraction that personifies tourism in the New South for me. I don’t think it would have even been in people’s minds 15 years ago. It’s a really exciting project.”
Mississippi bills itself as the birthplace of American music and has more Grammy winners per capita than any other state in the nation. That musical heritage has been the backbone of much of the state’s tourism promotion. Mississippi is about to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its Mississippi Blues Trail, which now has 188 stops, and is preparing to launch its Country Music Trail. Another new trail system coming this year will tell other stories from Mississippi history.
“The Mississippi Freedom Trail will highlight the people and places that were instrumental in the fight for equality in the civil rights movement,” Hunt said. “We’re discussing it in an open way, and tourists want to know about it. Our past isn’t the prettiest past, but we can learn from it by educating others about it, and it shows that we’re moving forward.”
In 2017, two new museums will open in Jackson to help celebrate the state’s bicentennial. The capital city has also won acclaim recently for its creative community, which includes a wide variety of artists, woodworkers and craft brewers.
Missouri: Joining the South
Five years ago, you wouldn’t have heard Missouri mentioned in a conversation about the South. But after the University of Missouri joined the Southeastern Conference in collegiate sports, the state’s tourism leaders began to see other opportunities to work with the South.
“We joined Travel South as a new member in 2014, and that has been a pretty stable group for 50 years,” said Missouri Division of Tourism director Dan Lennon. “We were invited to join, and we jumped in.
“A lot of people are surprised when we’re included in the South because our culture, food and history are kind of a combination of the South and the Midwest. But we have a number of things in common.”
One of the chief commonalities is music. Kansas City is known as a national jazz hot spot, and the downtown 18th and Vine Historic District is at the epicenter of the movement. In the 20th century, it was home to jazz greats such as Duke Ellington and Charlie Parker. Today, visitors to the area will find the American Jazz Museum and the Blue Room, a pre-eminent local jazz club.
The other side of the state has its share of music heritage, too.
“In St. Louis, right along the Mississippi River, you pick up all of the great Mississippi blues,” Lennon said. “There, the National Blues Museum will be opening in 2017. That’s going to be awesome for music lovers.”
St. Louis also saw big changes throughout 2015 as the City Arch Project added green space to connect the Gateway Arch to the city center. The project also included a renovation of the Museum of Westward Expansion underneath the monument.
West Virginia: Wild and Real
Authenticity is the order of the day in West Virginia, a state known for its wild mountain scenery and Appalachian heritage.
“We just launched a new campaign that depicts West Virginia the best, and that’s ‘Real,’” said Amy Goodwin, commissioner of the West Virginia Division of Tourism. “It’s real food, real heritage, real flavor, real music — that’s West Virginia. We’re the only state that falls squarely in Appalachia. We love our Appalachian customs and heritage, and we’re really proud of that story here in the Mountain State.”
West Virginia is investing in this concept in a number of ways. The state Legislature recently authorized a spending increase that more than doubled the Division of Tourism’s marketing and advertising budget, allowing Goodwin and her team to launch a new logo, a new ad campaign and 10 new short films highlighting the state’s unique characteristics.
The outdoors continues to be a big attraction for visitors to the state. In addition to its famous rock climbing and whitewater rafting, West Virginia is growing as a ski destination. Goodwin said the state’s mountain climate is ideal for snow-making, and ski resorts across the state are reporting increased visitation year over year.
Goodwin also said attractions such as Tamarack, which features the traditional and modern work of artists and crafters from around the state, are finding renewed popularity among a new generation of travelers.
“The millennial population appreciates something that is hand stitched or hand quilted,” she said. “They want to know about who made something, why they started blowing glass, or how they started cooking in the family kitchen. And delivering that is quite simple for West Virginia.”
Alabama: Cooking Up Culture
Like many other states in the South, Alabama has found itself becoming newly famous for its food and music in recent years.
“The nation’s media has been wisely obsessed with the unique types of cuisine that have evolved here,” said Lee Sentell, director of the Alabama Tourism Department. “Chefs are repurposing Southern staples into unique dishes, while remaining true to the region that grew up on black-eyed peas, okra and grits.”
At the fore of this evolution is Birmingham, where three restaurants and their chefs have won coveted James Beard culinary awards. Among the most famous is Highlands Bar and Grill, which is considered by many to be the best restaurant in the South. Hot and Hot Fish Club in Birmingham and the Bright Star Restaurant in nearby Bessemer have also won James Beard honors.
Recent developments have also highlighted Alabama’s musical heritage. “Muscle Shoals,” a 2013 documentary film, introduced a new generation of music fans to the incredible recording industry that sprang up in the small Alabama town of the same name.
“It led to a revitalization of interest in the musical heritage of northwest Alabama,” Sentell said. “The legendary studio of the Muscle Shoals Sound will open as a museum in February and will continue to serve as a recording studio at night.
“This year is the 50th anniversary of Wilson Pickett’s ‘Mustang Sally,’ which was recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals. That’s the oldest recording studio in the world that is owned by the original owner. His name is Rick Hall.”
Beyond its food and music heritage, Alabama is showcasing other attractions with initiatives such as its Alabama Gardens Trail, which includes sites such as Bellingrath Gardens and Home near Mobile and the Huntsville Botanical Garden.
