NASHVILLE, Tenn. (May 12, 2022) – As teams across the NFL unveiled their 2022 schedules Thursday evening, the Tennessee Titans took a high-visibility opportunity to celebrate a historic Nashville neighborhood. The team revealed its 2022 schedule through a short film highlighting eight iconic businesses on Jefferson Street in North Nashville, the historic corridor of Nashville’s African-American community. The film serves as a precursor for an all-season initiative to spotlight the businesses at each regular-season home game.
The vision was established by the Titans creative team in collaboration with Seck., a multi-hyphenate filmmaker and visual artist. Seck. has an established reputation for changing perceptions of Nashville’s Black creative community, from hip-hop to filmmaking and beyond.
“Schedule Release Day is a landmark for Creative teams across the NFL, and vying for the best and most creative way to unveil your team’s schedule can get fairly competitive,” said Surf Melendez, Vice President and Executive Creative Director for the Titans. “Ultimately as we sat down to plan our strategy this year, we had this vision of taking our ‘moment’ and making it Nashville’s moment. Being able to celebrate Jefferson Street in a video seen by such a large part of our fanbase is one of the most impactful schedule release videos I’ve ever been a part of.”
In the 1940s - 60s, Jefferson Street was one of America’s best-known districts of jazz and rhythm and blues, among other musical genres. Legendary musicians flocked to the neighborhood to perform at one of its many entertainment centers.
Jefferson Street also served as a southern hub for sit ins during the civil rights movement. Three historically black colleges and universities are located nearby: Fisk University, Meharry Medical College and Tennessee State University.
“We are consistently working to preserve the lineage of Nashville’s ‘original music row’ and the legacy of Jefferson Street,” said Lorenzo Washington, owner of the Jefferson Street Sound Museum. “Legends have walked this street for decades, offering some of the greatest musical traditions and historical landmarks. We are proud to partner with the Titans as we continue to grow our business and create more opportunities to tell the Jefferson Street story.”
The Titans will spotlight the below Jefferson Street businesses and business owners:
Owner(s): Hortense Price Jones (President), Treachery Price (Vice President)
Owner: Lorenzo Washington
- Najeal’s Hair Studio
Owner: Renea Jones
Owner(s): Clint Gray, Gemaal Pratts, E.J. Reed, & Derrick ‘Mo’ Moore
Owner: Nathaniel Harris
Owner(s): Rosetta Miller-Perry & Wanda Miller-Benson
Owner: Jordan Harris
Owner: Sophia Vaughn
“Jefferson Street is absolutely essential to the fabric of the African-American community and all of Nashville,” said Adolpho Birch III, Senior Vice President of Business Affairs and Chief Legal Officer for the Titans. “For decades, these small business owners and others have worked diligently to maintain the character and integrity of the neighborhood and keep alive the stories of its rich history. Highlighting important touchstones like Jefferson Street and reinforcing the values of cultural diversity are deeply important to the Titans organization. We look forward to more opportunities to highlight streets and neighborhoods across the state of Tennessee.”
All eight benefiting businesses are profiled in the schedule release video and will be further highlighted throughout the 2022 football season.
The Tennessee Titans and Shift4, the Official Payment Solutions Partner of the Tennessee Titans, are donating marketing efforts during the 2022 season to these Jefferson Street businesses.
To learn more about the businesses featured, visit www.tennesseetitans.com/jeffersonstreet.
The full 2022-23 Titans schedule can be found here: www.tennesseetitans.com/schedule.