Music and Travel Tourism: Great for Texas
Music is one of Texas’s top tourist attractions and has a positive impact on the state’s economy. Today, I would like to share with you information about this important type of tourism as well as a number of unique music-based attractions and activities found in our area. Even though the state is widely known for its country music, the music industry in Texas is very diverse in it’s genres. The unique music industry in Texas is highly successful and rich in it’s history.
There are over 7,000 Texas music businesses, nearly 700 Texas music events annually, over 800 Texas radio stations and 7,200 Texas recording artists. To manage all of this, the Texas Legislature created the Texas Music Office in 1990. This entity was created to continuously promote and develop the Texas music industry. Visit Texas Music Office.
Due to the diverse Texas music industry, several hundreds of dance halls, festivals, Halls of Fame/museums have been established around the state. As a result, there are several resources available that make it possible to plan your own Texas music road trip. For example, the Texas Highways magazine published Sites Sounds Texas Music – A Road Trip. This document provides a brief overview of some of the most popular Texas-music related attractions, events and even radio stations to listen to during the drive. Visit the Texas Travel magazine Travel Texas – Concerts in Texas for a Texas Music travel guide and planning tools.
The Coastal Bend has several Texas music events and attractions. For example, Fiesta de la Flor Music Festival, Texas Jazz Fest, Frontera Festival, Otrafest, ZieganBock Music Festival, Bay Jammin’ Concert & Cinema Series, Greek Festival and Rodeo Corpus Christi attract thousands of musicians, bands and their fans annually. Other local attractions include the Selena Museum, the Selena statue on the Corpus Christi Bayfront and the Port Aransas Art Center. You can find more information on Corpus Christi attractions at Corpus Christi Texas and Port Aransas attractions at Port Aransas and Mustang Island.
Myself, the Texas Music Office and the Corpus Christi Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) along with Otrafest and Bar Under the Sun are hosting the 2018 Power On Music conference on September 20th. The conference will feature panel discussions from national and Texas music industry leaders and is aimed at promoting the importance of this industry on our Texas economy. Members of the city’s music community, as well as music business professionals from the surrounding area, are invited to attend. For more information and registration, visit Power On Registration.
Also, the Texas Music Office’s “Music Friendly Community” program provides Texas communities with a network for fostering music industry development and sends a clear message to industry professionals that certified communities are serious about attracting and developing music industry growth. The Texas Music Office developed this program to better facilitate an interconnected and organized music community across the state and will involve Coastal Bend input.
The Texas music industry has grown at a rapid pace. In 1991, there were only 1,160 listings in the Texas Music Industry Directory, but today there are over 18,000. As a result, there is plenty to do, listen to and see throughout the state.
If you have questions regarding any of the information mentioned in this week’s article, please do not hesitate to call my Capitol or District Office, and feel free to contact my office if you have any questions or issues regarding a Texas state agency or constituent services. As always, my offices are available at any time to assist with questions, concerns or comments (Capitol Office, 512-463-0672; District Office, 361-949-4603).
– State Representative Todd Hunter, District 32
Rep. Hunter represents Nueces County (Part). He can be contacted at todd.hunter@house.texas.gov or at 512-463-0672
