TMZ Sets Up Shop In Nashville
As if Nashville needed anything else to be more like the Hollywood of the South, celebrity news outfit TMZ set up shop in the Music City this week, specifically on lower Broadway. “I wanted to get a new batch of stars,” explained managing editor Harvey Levin on the show that originally aired Friday, 3-4-11. But instead of getting “Tim, Faith, Dolly, and Carrie,” they got the barely-known but boisterous Bridgette Tatum, and “Slim Chance and The Can’t Hardly Playboys”, a house band at Layla’s Bluegrass Inn.
The TMZ on-camera staff openly questioned Harvey’s wisdom of trying to crack the Nashville market, and the segment seemed to mock the lack of celebrity content they were able to gather. There were shots of lower Broadway staples like the Elvis impersonator, the horse drawn carriage, and T-shirt shops. Bridgette Tatum was good for a short interview, but the television gold was found in Zach Shedd, bass player for Slim Chance and Hank Williams III. His resemblance to a heavily-bearded Ryan Gosling was good for a chuckle, as Zach recounted how the similarity earned him his “wings” on a plane flight to LA once.
My sources on lower Broadway tell me that the TMZ crew is still working in the area, and have specifically talked to Zach Shedd again, so we can expect more TMZ Nashville segments coming to a boob tube near you! Maybe someone should tell them the big country celebrities would not be caught dead on lower Broadway. Or maybe not.
Watch The Entire Nashville Debut Episode
The initial Nashville segment is at the 12:35 mark, with Bridgette Tatum and shots of lower Broadway. Zach Shedd and the Can’t Hardly Playboys are at the very end.
(Semi-worthless fact: Billy Joe Shaver cut a song called “Slim Chance & The Can’t Hardly Playboys” with Kevin Fowler in 2005.)
March 5, 2011 @ 8:21 pm
I tried to watch it earlier when Little Lisa Dixie posted it, but it kept stopping at 12:00……bastards!
March 5, 2011 @ 8:30 pm
I was having that problem too at first. You have to let it load. Patience, grasshopper.
March 5, 2011 @ 9:38 pm
ok, sat through it, it was worth the wait
March 5, 2011 @ 8:40 pm
Zach was filmed again yesterday for Monday’s episode.
March 5, 2011 @ 9:30 pm
Damn, that means I’m gonna have to sit through that jumpy, smutty shit again to see his appearance. I’m not on enough prescription drugs to enjoy that show properly.
March 5, 2011 @ 9:46 pm
You gotta admit Snoop waving cash around for some “Charlie Sheen’s” was pretty funny…..but that’s ALL! haha!
March 5, 2011 @ 10:25 pm
Never heard a Snoop Dogg song that I liked. I think he is highly overrated, but he is good for some funny. This is one of my favoirte moments ever, also from TMZ.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_ZSKkurmG4
Apparently Willie is gonna be on the next Snoop Dogg record. I still won’t buy it.
March 5, 2011 @ 11:54 pm
Im a fan of all types of music, as long as it is good and real. So I am a fan of some rap. Some of Snoop’s early stuff sounded great to me, have to admit though i havent heard anything from him since i bought one of his cds and it was more hip-hop than rap. Now before i’m judged on liking rap music just think about this – There are more lyrics in one rap song than there are on any pop country album. And my playlist at home are unique, I can go from Hank Sr to metal to rap. And it all sounds good if the songs are good.
March 6, 2011 @ 11:31 am
I’ve never bought a Snoop record either…he is entertaining though and respects to him for giving Willie respects!
March 6, 2011 @ 9:45 am
Is anybody? Zach could be his own drug quite easily! so glad he got some air time. I have been a big fan of beard!
March 6, 2011 @ 9:48 am
The “is anybody” is referring to being on enough prescriptions to sit thru an entire TMZ episode. Unless, it’s our friend Max, of course!
March 6, 2011 @ 12:18 pm
The frenetic pace, the way the camera jumps around, zooms in zooms out, how they only focus on any one subject for 30 seconds or less to appeal to the short attention span is enough to give one a seizure. But something tells me it’s like McDonalds. With enough exposure, eventually you start to crave it.
March 6, 2011 @ 8:31 am
Maybe they should follow some music executives around.
March 6, 2011 @ 9:23 am
now that might be XXX…….
you know I couldn’t resist that Denise 🙂
March 6, 2011 @ 9:45 am
Zach has played with many bands over the years and still does, and he is a big country celebrity to many of us ….Jake Cox aka Slim Chance was not mentioned here or on the show even though he was in the video.
Jake is a hard working talented artist/songwriter and on Lower Broadway for awhile. I had the privilege of recording a show at Layla’s on the eve of New Year’s Eve. The entire band are kick ass musicians and they work in other bands who are also duly noted on Lower Broadway.
March 6, 2011 @ 12:19 pm
Yeah, because they don’t give a shit about art. Zach looked like some celebrity I’ve never heard of, some they zoom in on that to keep the spoon fed from boredom.
March 6, 2011 @ 4:59 pm
I’ve been on lower Broadway, inside Layla’s, Robert’s Western World, Ernest Tubb’s Record shop, had a PBR and a shot at the Orchid, walked the halls of the CMHOF and navigated my way through the crowds of the CMA hoopla extravaganza. TMZ wants to make it seedy and cheapen it’s history through gossip hounding and exploitation. Next thing you know, all the trendy pop country stars are gonna be hangin’ out for their publicity shots and exposure now that Hollyweird thinks it’s cool. Oh Goody. But on the flip side, I also heard some kick ass music coming out the open doors of lower Broadway and did a little two steppin’ to Andy Gibbs steel guitar.
Priceless!
March 6, 2011 @ 5:03 pm
damnit GIBSON! Sorry Andy!
March 6, 2011 @ 10:47 am
🙂
March 7, 2011 @ 6:50 am
Make it seedy? Lordy Denise…You should have been there in the mid-90’s! It was the finest example of seedy I’ve ever seen. BR5-49 at Roberts. Jim (Joe Buck) doin’ his thing at Layla’s. Pawn shops and scary porn stores all around. Tootsies was a squat for homeless people.
Those were some of the best times of my life…and it was really,really seedy.I was scared to death,but Lower Broad was something to behold. Not at all like it is now. I still love it,but it’s not the same. TMZ ain’t gonna’ make a lick of difference.
March 7, 2011 @ 9:26 am
And who cleaned it up? Joe Buck, Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers, Hillbilly Casino, BR549, and Hank III. They made it a place worth going to again.
March 7, 2011 @ 10:42 am
Mid-90’s? Broad Street’s nasty history goes way back before then. In the 70’s it was all pawn shops (got a mando there once), massage parlors (got a massa…never mind), and a couple of music joints. There was Tootsies, of course, but also, across the street, The Wheel (still there). The house band at the Wheel featured a blind girl on pedal steel who could play the shit outta that instrument.
When I came back to Nashville I was shocked to see it had turned into Disneyland, all middle-class-tourist friendly. Even so, it’s worth hitting Robert’s Western World and Laylas. Still got some first class players there.
March 7, 2011 @ 12:36 pm
Amen to Trig and JD. Those folks Trig mentioned are the reason I went there in the first place..It was still pretty scary for a farm kid like me
JD, I was born in the mid-70’s JD,so I missed that era but I’ve heard stories. I hope if TMZ does make a difference,it’s a good one. I’ve got my fingers crossed.
Cheers y’all.
March 7, 2011 @ 6:58 pm
LOL I admit I’ve had limited exposure to Nashville . . . first time was about twenty years ago before I knew the difference between good and bad country and then in the last few years I’ve been priviledged enough to see Hank III in Franklin and at Layla’s, the Cannery and the CMHOF. I’m sure y’all have seen alot of changes for the worst. But like Triggerman said, Joe Buck and others have done their part to keep the spirit alive.
You can’t kill the music cause the music won’t die.
March 6, 2011 @ 5:40 pm
There really isnt anything on lower Broadway that should interest TMZ. Most of the pop-country stars live in Franklin or Brentwood (one county south of Nashville) and have no allegiance to the bars on lower Broadway. If they want to catch these people they are in the wrong place. However if they would have been at Tootsies on Feb 18th they could have gotten a glimpse at kid rock. Lower Broadway may not see another celebrity until the next time he comes back to town.
March 6, 2011 @ 6:45 pm
I am confused by this as well. It would make sense if it was CMA weekend or something of that nature, but just a normal week down on Broad doesn’t make sense. I hope III doesn’t get upset by Zach’s exposure…
March 7, 2011 @ 12:44 am
Yeah it sure is random.
March 6, 2011 @ 10:58 pm
Am I the only one who knows Bridgette wrote “She’s Country,” and she’s a killer artist in her own right?!
March 7, 2011 @ 9:28 am
I knew she wrote “She’s Country” but I also know Jason Aldean recorded it, and that made me lose all interest.
March 7, 2011 @ 6:38 pm
Great! Now I can’t get that out of my head . . . my son and his friends love that song.
March 8, 2011 @ 8:12 am
You can catch shit tons of music “stars” on lower broad and all over Nashville at any point. This however was pretty neat that they were actually hanging out watching the Slim Chance guys play. I was there at it was pretty random and entertaining for all of us as well.
March 8, 2011 @ 9:54 pm
Big fun reading all the comments. Thanks for the post!
Bridgette
March 8, 2011 @ 10:35 pm
Bridgette rawks country music! Her cd “Sex. Church and Chicken” is one of my favorites. Amazing voice and great writer!
March 13, 2011 @ 7:43 pm
I will admit to watching TMZ occasionally. Mostly when my husband is channel surfing and refuses to actually admit there is nothing on and turn off the tv. Zach was typical Zach but it was pretty great!
March 19, 2014 @ 6:11 am
Nashville is better off without TMZ! We do not want them here!
October 4, 2018 @ 2:33 pm
James Dean Fisher here…I rep some of the artists and some events in the Nashville(Music City) area. I have performed on lower Broadway over the years. I have covered several artists there, as well. Lower broad is the Mecca that has spawned quite a few artists that gone on to a successful career. I rep the entertainment here in some musical events, as well as DGT Music mag., and feel all events deserve the coverage when the y present an act that deserves recognition. The fact lower broad has expanded to the extent, it is now one of the foremost “Go-to” areas in the south. In the last three to five years, the area has enjoyed extentional growth of which is good for the performing astists, it is good for the music industry and Music City.
Happy notes, keep playing!!
James Dean Fisher/DGT/TM Z Rep.
October 4, 2018 @ 2:52 pm
T.M.Z. Is here with a new rep. The new rep., Will review the music artists in Nashville with pride and fair assessment giving credit where deserved. Lower Broadway has produced some acts-artists that have gone on to enjoy a very successful career. Lower Broadway is NO longer just Lower broad, it has gone on to now the music mecca to be reckoned with, as talent discovery.
JamesDeanFisher/Rep.,D.G.T./T.M.Z.