It’s no secret that the COVID-19 virus has had an impact on literally everyone. From doctor’s serving the potentially infected to grocery store clerks dealing with manic hoarding to all of us embracing self-quarantining, it’s everywhere. This is especially true for those in the hospitality and music industries; professions that generally don’t come with any kind of safety net for closures and cancellations.

DRKMTTR, the DIY-inspired venue over on Dickerson Pike, is not immune to these impacts either. For the indefinite time being, they’ve closed their doors to be mindful of spreading infections among attendees. It’s the right thing to do but it has put them in an incredibly difficult financial position. As a venue that intentionally keeps ticket prices extremely low as a means of accessibility, their profit margins are slim. Having cancelled their forthcoming calendar, they find themselves reaching out to the community for assistance.

The Help DRKMTTR GoFundMe is a campaign to raise $10,000 for the venue and its employees. This will ensure they stay open, pay their bills and keep their hard workers in a good spot. Even more importantly, it means that they’ll survive to re-open as a destination for artists to reach young audiences and get paid on tour.

Back in January of 2019, I sat down for a podcast interview with co-owners Olivia Scibelli and Kathryn Edwards to talk about the history of the venue and the ethos that drives it. They are absolutely committed to creating a safe space for artists and attendees, ensuring shows are affordable and going to great lengths to make sure out of town bands leave with money in their pocket. In short, they get it. Being a musician is extremely difficult and COVID-19 has had an impact on that we can’t even measure yet but once this pandemic clears, they’re going to need places like DRKMTTR to play.

As part of the GoFundMe, indie label Kill Rock Stars is going to match the first $1500 donated. That’s an added incentive to get in there and help them reach their goal.

All venues need support right now and if they request help of this nature, we’ll be happy to spotlight them as well. For now, DRKMTTR needs your help and we kindly request you lend a hand.

UPDATE: There are also GoFundMe’s for The East Room and Exit/In seeking similar help to stay open. Please consider spreading your support.

If you didn’t see it over the weekend, there was a popular tweet going around showing a Lower Broadway bar filled with people having a good time; couple with the quote “Nashville is undefeated.” This is in reference to the World Health Organization, federal government and common sense advice that everyone should be practicing “social distancing” – aka Staying Away from Crowds to help curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

As a direct response to that, Mayor John Cooper called an emergency meeting with the Health Department and declared a public health emergency, resulting in the closure of bars and limiting capacity at restaurants. The Scene has all the nitty gritty details on the closures but, suffice to say, it was a bold move that, hopefully, forces people to get it into their heads that the current atmosphere involving the virus is not a joke.

So, this is our Public Service Announcement to remind you – Stay Inside. Yes, it’s hard and can be boring. Yes, there is a huge impact on anyone working in the hospitality and entertainment industries. We all know people that work at bars, work at venues and, surely, we all know someone in a band. That doesn’t even begin to cover the impact to the tourism industry. That said, the tradeoff is, quite literally, death. Maybe not for you personally but the likelihood that someone can pick up the virus and spread it is very high. If you need more help understanding this, check out this article.

As a community, Nashville is still reeling from the devastation wrought by the tornado of early March. Putting ourselves in the headspace of helping out however possible and then immediately being asked to do the complete opposite is hard. However, you can still help people out. Venmo your bartender friends a few dollars instead of going out to a bar. Buy some Band merch or a digital download from Bandcamp – this directly supports your artist friends. Hell, make a Spotify playlist of your favorite bands and spread the word; even exposure to their music at this point is beneficial.

We’ll be gathering up and posting some entertainment for you as incentive to be smart, be safe and keep others safe by staying inside. Here’s a running list of local music videos to entertain and delight you as a first offering:

For the past 22 years, crooner D. Striker has thrown a party on every Friday the 13th called The RR Party. He performs live and releases a unique zine created specifically for the event. If you aren’t familiar with his music, watch this video for “Take Time With The Road” – a fine example of his well balanced R&B Classic Country style that’s always a little bit serious and a little bit silly (at the very least, please watch these windmill dance moves). It’s Entertainment, pure and simple.

In the wake of the recent coronavirus concerns, The 5 Spot has closed its doors for a month to help maintain a sensible, healthy, community. While we support that move, it unfortunately has led to the cancellation of the D. Striker RR Party set to take place on Friday the 13th.

Fortunately, breaking his 22-year streak of performances is simply not in the cards for D. Striker. He will broadcast on DStriker.com and Facebook Live at 8pm CT, backed by members of Ole Mossy Face.

The full announcement is pasted below. We may be quarantined to social distancing but we can all come together for a celebration of D. Striker’s ongoing streak.

For 22 years I’ve published a country music zine called RR every Friday the 13th. For almost as many years, new issues of RR have been celebrated with an event called the RR Party. The 03/13/2020 issue of RR has been printed, numbered and it’s ready for distribution.

However, the RR Party scheduled for The 5 Spot will not proceed as planned. The venue is doing the community a service by closing its doors until the COVID-19 virus is under control. This tough decision was made in the wake of the venue reopening following the destructive Super Tuesday tornado that tore through East Nashville on March 3. The 5 Spot holds a special place in our hearts. That’s where we’ve had countless good times and the venue has hosted the RR Party several times, too. We encourage everyone to donate to a GoFundMe that’s been set-up with funds going to keep the The 5 Spot afloat, its staff who rely on the money they make at the club to pay their bills and ~150 bands with canceled shows. We look forward to returning to The 5 Spot stage when the venue opens its doors again.

In the meantime, the show must go on! We’re keeping the streak alive—playing a show every Friday the 13th. So at 8p CT on 3/13, there will be an RR Party live stream beamed across the Internet featuring a D. Striker performance backed by long-time collaborators Ole Mossy Face. Keep an eye on the D. Striker Facebook page and this website. I’m grateful for the generous help of some friends (Ole Mossy Face, Thomas Petillo, Doug Lehmann, Brandes Holcomb) to keep this every-Friday-the-13th tradition alive. Stay home, stay safe, tune in and turn it up! Next time we see each other in person, I’ll have a copy of RR to give you then.