A pilot program with a mandate from its own region.
AMC didn't start with an org chart. It started with 1,213 people answering a survey about what the regional music economy actually needs. Here's the story. The numbers behind it live on their own page.
Born from the census.
Sound Music Cities, from Austin, TX, conducted the 2024 Northeast Tennessee Music Census, sponsored by the Tennessee Entertainment Commission. It surveyed 1,213 music professionals across Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia and measured a $75.9 million music economy already at work: 503 jobs and $22.8 million in earnings, built by people who mostly taught themselves the business. Western North Carolina and Eastern Kentucky have been collaborating with us all along, and we see opportunities for shared grants and resources moving forward.
AMC is the response to that data. It's a Tennessee Entertainment Commission regional pilot program anchored at East Tennessee State University, built to be the advocate and coordination layer the census respondents asked for.
The ask was clear: 59% of respondents wanted a community-based, collaborative approach, not a government-led one.
The region AMC serves is Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, and Western North Carolina, an eight-county, bi-state footprint that treats the state line as a seam, not a wall. Eastern Kentucky is next: it launches alongside the other regions rather than waiting behind them.
Data from the census lives on permanently at NETNmusic.com, AMC's public dashboard, so the numbers stay current as the region keeps measuring itself.
Four regions, one committee.
Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia are where AMC started: nine counties in Northeast Tennessee (eight originally, plus Cocke County under the region's current ARC grant scope) and eleven in Southwest Virginia, both measured in the 2024 census. Western North Carolina and Eastern Kentucky joined shortly after, and the four became one Appalachia focused on advocacy as well as finding the resources to support our creative communities.
Our mission
To build a unified, sustainable Appalachian music ecosystem, rooted in this region's musical heritage and open to every genre played here today, that advocates for creatives, presenters, and the people who support them, growing the region's economy, tourism, and workforce, and establishing it as a recognized music destination.
Our vision
AMC envisions an Appalachian region where music sustains creatives, fills venues, and draws visitors on its own, a model other regions look to build.
One shared agenda, carried out by every region.
One AMC committee sets the shared agenda, with a backbone team at ETSU providing staffing and shared measurement. Grassroots regional committees in Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, Western North Carolina, and Eastern Kentucky carry the work locally, all connected on the AMC digital community hub. The six priorities below came straight from the census.
Advocacy & Policy
A regional voice in government; streamlined permitting and regulation.
Funding & Economic Sustainability
Micro-grants, tax incentives, and revenue diversification for artists and venues.
Community Hub & Networking
The physical and digital hub, gig calendar, artist registry, and networking events.
Workforce, Education & Talent
Professional development and a talent pipeline for the region's next creatives.
Communications, Brand & Journalism
A regional identity, earned media, and a journalism initiative for the scene.
Venues & Performance
More shows per venue, and mid-size, all-ages, genre-diverse infrastructure.
Ready to be part of it?
The census told us what the region needs. The Collective is how we build it, together.