Nate Rau

USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee

In one sense, it’s a relatively simple project: a barbershop, tattoo parlor and event space are moving into an old brick building on Jo Johnston Avenue just south of the Marathon Village complex.

But, Mike Wolfe, the star of the television show “American Pickers” and owner of the nearby Antique Archaeology store inside Marathon Village, sees a great deal more when he looks at his latest development.

Wolfe sees a legacy project he hopes will continue the neighborhood’s urban revival and inspire developers across Nashville to more seriously consider rehabilitating old buildings instead of demolishing them.

“Not to be dramatic, but I hope this building is here for another 50 or 100 years, or more,” Wolfe said. “I’ve saved old buildings before, but that was in a small town in Iowa. I mean, this is Nashville, Tennessee. This is one of the creative capitals of the entire world. This is the kind of project I hope I am remembered for.”

With its ties to celebrities and creative uses inside, the rehabilitated building screams Nashville in 2017. The chief tenant will be Slumerican, the brainchild of hip-hop artist and producer Yelawolf, who has headquartered much of his music work here in Nashville for the last five years. Yelawolf, whose real name is Michael Wayne Atha, describes Slumerican as equal parts barbershop, tattoo parlor and speak easy.

The barbershop will be powered by the Barber Authority, which is owned by Steve Vilot, one of the country’s preeminent barbers to the stars. The tattoo parlor will be curated by Chris Murphy, who owns East Nashville's popular Gold Club Electric Tattoos. Slumerican will also offer retail space to sell Yelawolf’s line of wallets, clothing and other items. The top floor of the 119-year-old building will be multi-use space used to host meet and greets, listening parties and other private music events.

Building returns to its roots

Wolfe had trouble finding redevelopment partners when he bought the building without stepping foot inside a few years ago. Multiple construction firms told him no before Dowdle Construction stepped in. Architect Nick Dryden served as the designer. Yelawolf and his design partner Kyle Hix brought an array of design flourishes for the barbershop and tattoo parlor.

Southern Accents, an Alabama company that provides salvaged wood and other materials for construction projects, supplied the lumber used throughout the building, including on the hardwood floors upstairs.

Gargantuan steel beams frame the building, which suffered decades of rain and weather damage leading to a collapsed roof and left the interior in near disrepair. What is now a hip space upstairs with a picturesque view of Nashville's evolving skylinecould not be safely accessed when the rehab project first began.

The large front window that will serve as the storefront for the barbershop and tattoo parlor was bricked up. New brick had to be incorporated with the old bricks in several spots.

The shelves, barber's area, reception desk and other design elements came from Hix. Wolfe said he was blown away by how the interior design meshed with the spirit of the building. Old window wells have been converted to shelf space. The floor downstairs is simple concrete and the Slumerican awning has already been hung on the main store front. The partners are hoping for a soft opening later this month in advance of a grand opening late spring or summer.

"This project was really a thrill to be a part of," said Allen Buchanan with Dowdle Construction. "The steel beams are functional in that they will support and literally hold up the brick shell of the building. But they also fit with the design inside."

Wolfe said he wants the entire team to get credit for the building’s finished product.

"Once we brought in retail, the whole first floor of the Marathon started to change," Wolfe said. "We have Jack Daniel's over there, Harley Davidson is there. Once retail came in, the whole neighborhood started changing. When I saw that happening, and I saw the condition of this building, I said, 'I want to do something with that.'"

"It was really saving the building, and it's a daily conversation about the buildings being torn down in Nashville. And the buzz of what's going on at the Marathon building, and those two things collided into me wanting to do this building."

By adding retail space, Wolfe is taking the building back to its roots. A Hungarian Jewish immigrant built the building, which housed a grocery store. A Syrian family ran the store and lived upstairs as the next owner.

"This building was built to hold small businesses," Wolfe said. "It was meant to hold entrepreneurs. That's what it was built to do."

Flagship store for Yelawolf's Slumerican

Wolfe sifted through an array of possibilities before partnering with Yelawolf for the space. The hip-hop artist is signed to Eminem's Shady Records label.

"What I wanted him to bring to the area is his popularity," Wolfe said. "The guy is extremely popular. He has a huge social media following. He tours all over the world. So when he plants his flag here and says I'm opening a barbershop, tattoo shop, people are gonna come."

Yelawolf has produced projects here and recorded his last two albums in Music City, including his upcoming release "Trial By Fire." In recent years, Yelawolf has extended his brand from music to lifestyle, offering wallets and other items under his "Slumerican" umbrella.

Yelawolf hopes this will be the first of several Slumerican storefront locations across the country. The upstairs will host art shows, meet-and-greets, private events and other gatherings.

Related coverage: Mike Wolfe of American Pickers puts money behind Nashville preservation

"I had the concept for the tattoo-barbershop for almost five years," Yelawolf said."I've been fishing around for a space. I had a place off Printer's Alley that I went as far as getting blueprints for, then that fell through. Mike Wolfe and I were doing a show together for this kid called Cambo. We were up in his office (in Marathon Village) signing the deal for Cambo when I told him I was looking for some space. He pointed out the window and said, 'How about that one?'

"It didn't have a roof. It didn't have a floor. But I walked over there and saw the vision. Mike has a strong vision too. Not many people in the world would have understood what I was trying to do but Mike took a chance."

Barbershop run by celebrity barber

To run the barbershop, Yelawolf didn't just tab some guy to cut hair. He partnered with Vilot, who owns a chain of barbershops called Sim's in Massachusetts and also owns the Barber Authority, a network of barbers who work music festivals and other star-studded events.

Vilot, who said he will be relocating to Nashville, envisions the shop as a hub for educating barbers, styling for celebrities and providing hair cuts for regular customers. Vilot counts Eminem, band members for Rihanna and Adele, and members of the New England Patriots and Boston Bruins among his regular clients.

Vilot is one of the most recognized barbers in the country.

"I initially was just consulting on this in terms of where the chairs should go, the hair-washing station, things like that," Vilot said. "But when I got down here and saw the vision, I thought, this is something that could change my life."

Wolfe hopes building is inspiration

Wolfe said the Slumerican building could be viewed as a welcome mat to the Marathon Village neighborhood. He described how the successful Gulch neighborhood bleeds into the Capitol View projects, including high-end office space for HCA and Lifeway. The city has ambitious plans to remake the interstate overpass, which Wolfe described as a gateway to Jo Johnston.

"So now that side of town is connected to this side of town more. And when you go underneath that overpass and come up this way, one of the first things you see is our building," he said. "It's like we've planted our flag for our neighborhood and said, 'Hey, this is part of the fabric of the way Nashville used to be.'"

Wolfe said he hopes other developers and property owners will consider what he's done with the Slumerican building and be inspired to follow suit. Wolfe is already collecting rent on the property, which he said will provide a steady cash flow. Since the project fit in the neighborhood's character and followed the trend of creative retail and entertainment space moving in, the development is the best of both worlds.

"That's not to say development is bad, it's not. It all has its place," Wolfe said. "But to fight the good (preservation) fight constantly in some ways gets tiresome. If you listen to what developers say, it's that these buildings can't be saved. That's the standard answer 101. But if you look at this property and the condition this was in, you can see it's more about priority and dollar than preserving our past. That's where the issue lies and where we all butt heads in regards to what we feel is relevant."

Buchanan, who works for the construction firm, said not every developer will have the willingness to spend the cash necessary to restore an old building. Wolf declined to say how much the rehabilitation cost.

"I do think, with the cost of acquiring property going up, more and more people will look at successful projects like this and realize they can do the same thing," Buchanan said.

Reach Nate Rau at 615-259-8094 and nrau@tennessean.com. Follow him on Twitter @tnnaterau.