Drumroll, please.
Arlington has been named a "Music-Friendly Community" by Gov. Greg Abbott's Texas Music Office, the city announced Wednesday. Fort Worth was the first city to receive that designation in 2017. Other Music-Friendly Communities include Austin, San Antonio, Denton, Lindale, Stephenville, Conroe, San Angelo, Nacogdoches, Abilene, McKinney, Waxahachie, Waco, Alpine, and Bastrop.
Being a Music-Friendly Community means a city is dedicated to music industry development, according to the Texas Music Office. In order to qualify, cities must:
- Host a Texas Music Office-sponsored, Music-Friendly Community workshop.
- Establish a Music Office/Liaison within a division of city government (city office, economic development corporation, CVB/destination tourism office) that will be responsible for monthly reports concerning the progress of local music industry development programs.
- Register with the Texas Music Office’s Texas Music Industry Directory. The liaison’s organization also signs a mutually agreed upon Memorandum of Understanding that creates a working arrangement for the sharing of Music Directory data and establishes protocols for keeping the directory information up to date.
- Demonstration of partnerships with the community's music-related 501c3 nonprofits in order to foster community development.
- Collaboration with music education programs, including area college or university music schools.
- Create an advisory board made up of local music community industry stakeholders.
Arlington began the process in October, led by Letatia Teykl, executive director of Levitt Pavilion Arlington, along with Price and the city's other music industry leaders, including venues, artists, producers, educators, and recording studios.
The Texas Music Office had a goal of designating "20 in 2020," and Arlington became the 20th city to be deemed Music-Friendly.
"Arlington has a rich musical legacy, including the fine arts department of our school district that has produced Grammy Award-winning talent like Pentatonix and Maren Morris, and we are also home to the great Kirk Franklin," Arlington Mayor Jeff Williams said in a statement. "I want to thank Levitt Pavilion Arlington, city staff, and the Arlington Convention & Visitors Bureau for working on this initiative and to help us foster music economic development opportunities throughout The American Dream City."
A ceremony will take place Friday at 12:30 p.m. via Zoom, when Williams, Arlington City Manager Trey Yelverton, and Arlington Convention & Visitor's Bureau CEO Ron Price receive the certification from Texas Music Office Community Relations and Outreach Specialist (and Arlington native) Chip Adams.
