National Museum of African American Music: the soundtrack of America

The National Museum of African American Music (NMAAM) tells the story of how Black artists created, shaped and carried forward the music America loves. It’s the only museum in the nation dedicated to preserving and celebrating the many music genres created, influenced and inspired by African Americans, from spirituals and gospel to blues, jazz, R&B and hip hop. Opened in January 2021 after nearly two decades of planning, it has quickly become one of the essential stops in downtown Nashville. For many guests, it’s the most surprising part of their trip.

Start with the Roots Theater and Rivers of Rhythm

Begin your visit in the Roots Theater, where a short film sets the cultural and historical foundation for everything that follows. From there, the Rivers of Rhythm corridor connects each era of African American music to milestones in American history, from slavery and the Civil War through the Great Migration and the civil rights movement. Interactive touchscreens let you dig into the stories behind the songs.

Five galleries of African American music history

The museum’s galleries move through African American music history in chronological order, with more than 1,600 artifacts along the way:

• Wade in the Water explores the African American religious experience through spirituals, gospel and the choirs that carried them.
• Crossroads follows the blues from the Mississippi Delta through the Great Migration.
• A Love Supreme traces jazz from its early days to the Harlem Renaissance and bebop.
• One Nation Under a Groove charts the rise of R&B, soul and funk, and their ties to the civil rights movement.
• The Message celebrates the birth and global influence of hip hop.

A hands-on music museum in Nashville

This isn’t a look-but-don’t-touch museum. Interactive stations let you take a vocal lesson, join a virtual gospel choir, learn a dance or produce your own beat. Save your favorite moments to a personal playlist as you go and revisit them at home.

A Nashville story, too

The museum fits naturally in Nashville, Tennessee. The city is home to Fisk University, where the Fisk Jubilee Singers introduced spirituals to audiences around the world in the 1870s. Black artists have also shaped country music from its earliest days, a thread you’ll find in the galleries here and at the Country Music Hall of Fame. Pair the two for a fuller picture of how Nashville’s music history, and America’s, came to be.

Visiting NMAAM at Fifth + Broadway

The National Museum of African American Music sits at 510 Broadway in Nashville, TN, inside the Fifth + Broadway development and steps from the Ryman Auditorium. From Noelle, it’s about a five-minute walk. Plan on two hours to explore at an easy pace, and book timed tickets at nmaam.org. Saturday afternoons are the busiest, so a weekday or morning visit gives you more time at the interactive stations.