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It’s finally here – the much
heralded ‘Spirit of Nashville’ Award that nobody seems to be able to define. We
have our list of the 2019 Spirit of Nashville nominees finalized, and folks – I
am here to share that list today (the ballot is embedded below, so if you don’t
care about all of this nonsense, just scroll to the bottom and vote).
First things
first, a brief introduction to who we are. We’ve found in the past that because
some of the nominees shared this news on their social media accounts, we had a ton
of people coming to the site (to vote for Paul Heggen and WKRN’s Good
Morning Nashville) who didn’t actually know who or what we are.
In short, we’re a content/media company. We’re
kind of inappropriate. But, we have about 25K-30K readers/listeners each month
(we’re babies) – people come here to read our coverage of Nashville, the
Tennessee Titans, movies, independent professional wrestling, and really any
sort of viral content.
The best way I can describe it is
that the SoBros Network is the Ke$ha spectrum – when we get serious about our
writing, we are as good as “Praying,” but when we let loose, we are as fun as
“Tik Tok.”
I’ll go ahead and address the
elephant in the room while I’m at it, because I know people that have been on
the SoBros Network train for years are probably confused as hell right now.
Yes, this award used to be called the ‘SoBro of the Year’ Award. But, we found
that people were kind of confused by the fact that people who aren’t SoBros
were winning the award. So, branding/marketing and all that.
On to defining what exactly
this award means…
It’s like a lot of what we do – shrugging and saying, “I dunno, let’s just do it.” Sometimes,
this award is a way for us to recognize individuals who are doing exemplary
work in the Nashville community. Some people deserve an extra pat on the back
for all they’re doing and what they mean to their respective community (it
isn’t always Nashville-based).
Sometimes, it’s based purely on
performance. Look at how much success a person attained in a given year and
give that a big shout out. Did someone win a championship? Is their name
popping up all over the place? Do they have a smooth, silky voice they use to
predict the weather on television? Do they make hilarious jokes about the
potholes on 440? These are just a few examples.
It essentially sounds like there are
no rules to being nominated for this award, and that’s certainly not NOT true.
But, the general consensus is that being nominated for this award comes from
having a successful year and being of strong character that matches the core
values of our company. Those values would be:
1.
Create Fearlessly
2.
Uplift Others
3.
Be Humble
4.
GSD (Get Shit Done)
You represent that spirit, we’re
going to take notice.
HISTORY OF THE AWARD
2017 – PAUL HEGGEN
2018
– WKRN’S GOOD MORNING NASHVILLE
Who’s going to get the disco ball
trophy in 2019?
2019 ‘SPIRIT OF
NASHVILLE’ NOMINEES
Nominations were made by the
SoBros Network staff after exhaustive discussions and even a little high jinks.
NASHVILLE
3HL – I still
remember sitting in my car about to head into my shitty retail job the first
day that Brent, Blaine, and Clay took the air for the first time. All due to
respect to the other shows in the market, but 3HL was the shot in the arm that
Nashville sports talk needed. This nomination is long overdue – they’ve long
been the paragon of fun, casual sports talk in town.
Mickey
Ryan replaced Clay in 2014, and after some shuffling around at 104.5 a year or
so ago, Blaine jumped ship to the Wake Up Zone. His seat was filled by Dawn
Davenport (who was nominated for this award last year), one of
the most accomplished sportscasters in town. Throughout it all, the show never
lost its good-natured and fun spirit.
Bussin’ with the Boys –
Is anyone more emblematic of our ‘create fearlessly’ mantra than the team at
Bussin’ with the Boys? Taylor Lewan and Will Compton are hilarious, relatable
dudes who create a comfortable environment for their guests that brings out
some of the best interviews out there. Call it ‘guys being dudes’ if you will,
but this is one of the best podcasts going right now. Plus, we’re big Matt
Neely guys on this website. This will technically be Lewan’s third consecutive
nomination for this award.
Jason Martin – Big
time props to JMart for blazing his own trail as apart of the 104.5 The Zone
brand. With the advent of The Big 6 on weeknights at 6PM (Nashville time), and
The Big 6 Blog, Martin is becoming one of the brightest stars in the region. I
don’t know that you’ll find a more trusted source of all things pop culture,
either. Of course, being the wrestling brand we are, I have to give a shout out
to Squared Circle Radio here, too.
Nectar: Urban Cantina – They
are our reigning “Best Overall Spot in Nashville” award recipient, so that gets
’em an automatic bid in the ‘Spirit of Nashville’ discussion. But, having the
best tacos in Nashville (I will die on that hill) helps too.
My recommendations on the current
menu would be the buffalo cauliflower taco and the veggie fajita taco. But, if
you’re not feelin’ tacos, you can always go with the trusted burrito bowl. It’s
worth stopping by every couple of weeks though to see what the specials are –
this week, I ate a splendid pork belly taco. Not to mention, Nectar has some of
the best homemade margaritas in town.
Lelan Statom –
Statom has been “the godfather” of the Nashville meteorology scene for quite
some time now, but this year, his efforts were rewarded when the National
Weather Association named him the Broadcaster of the Year. He’s worked at
NewsChannel5 for over 26 years – at this point, Lelan’s as synonymous with
Nashville as hot chicken.
Jim Wyatt – Call it a
‘career achievement’ nomination if you will, but no one can deny the work that
Gentleman Jim has put in covering the Tennessee Titans for what feels like
forever. He is the gold standard of Titans coverage. We’re all better for the
weekly #britches updates.
THE
USUAL SUSPECTS
J.R. Lind – I’ve
been calling him the best writer in Nashville for a while now, and I stand by
it, especially when I’m a few deep and run into him
at Tailgate. Sure, he’s an A+ #NashvilleTwitter follow, but it’s the advent of
J.R. Spewing on the Nashville Scene that firmly entrenches him as a ‘Spirit of
Nashville’ nominee.
Dennis Kelly – I’m
not kidding. We’re going to keep nominating Dennis until he wins this damn
thing. So, this is on you, Nashville. It’s 2019, and it is STILL a
scientifically proven fact that if you put Dennis Kelly on the field, your team
could score a touchdown. Plus, we found out this year that his professional
wrestling finishing maneuver would be the jackknife powerbomb. Talk about a
real journalism scoop…all kidding aside, Touchdown Dennis Kelly has been a
stalwart of the Titans offensive line, and played admirably in the team’s 2-2
start. The Titans are fortunate to have a guy like him handy.
Brett Ison – This
is the second consecutive nomination for “The Pitbull,” but 2019 was an even
better year for him than the one that earned him the nod in 2018. He held
Nashville-based Southern Underground Pro’s Bonestorm Championship for the
entirety of 2019 up until losing the title yesterday (10/6/19), and has
defeated a who’s who of independent wrestling in the process. Ison is truly
Nashville’s champion.
TENNESSEE
TITANS
Jurrell Casey – It’s
time to start puttin’ Casey in the conversation among the greatest Titans of
all time. I called him the Titans MVP of the
2018 season. But, the fact is, he’s been a game-wrecker along that defensive
line for A LONG time. He’s perennially underrated in the grand landscape of the
NFL, and is a credit to Nashville. This one’s a no-brainer.
Eddie George – Eddie
George is a rare breed – one of the last few true Renaissance men out there. I
saw him take the stage at TPAC earlier this year for a stirring performance
in Topdog/Underdog. But, he
also had his jersey retired in Nissan Stadium this year as well. There will
never be another like him in two-tone blue.
Amy Adams Strunk – As
far as owners go, I just don’t think it gets any better than Ms. Amy. She has
become one of the most beloved figures in all of Nashville sports. Not to
mention, she had a big time hand in the uniform release party a year ago that
ended up going a long way in getting the NFL Draft in Nashville in 2019. Give
her all the game balls.
