by Douglas Burger

When it comes to seeing a favorite band in concert, people will go to extreme lengths: wait hours in line, hit redial over and over, refresh the ticket page repeatedly -- whatever it takes. Music is an important part of many people’s lives, and we set out to determine the best cities in the U.S. for music fans. We looked at 15 different data points grouped into three categories to come up with our answers. Below you will find our results, as well as a detailed methodology explaining how we arrived at them.

Best Cities for Music Fans

Here is how 200 metropolitan statistical areas with qualifying data stacked up in the three separate categories that we studied. In all rankings below, a lower number is better than a higher number.

Rank Area The Band The Crowd The Intangibles 1 Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN 1 36 62 2 Urban Honolulu, HI 21 46 16 3 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 9 56 48 4 Madison, WI 40 19 34 5 Austin-Round Rock, TX 17 65 14 6 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY 42 13 45 7 Tucson, AZ 29 53 6 8 Rochester, NY 33 10 84 9 Pittsburgh, PA 25 31 76 10 San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 4 109 2 11 Salt Lake City, UT 24 48 70 12 Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI 27 57 48 13 Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA 13 86 40 14 Eugene, OR 14 79 52 15 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 5 118 3 16 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 15 94 26 17 Asheville, NC 40 8 129 18 Burlington-South Burlington, VT 65 3 67 19 Boulder, CO 7 122 4 20 Binghamton, NY 33 21 147 21 Wilmington, NC 29 61 86 22 Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA 44 35 102 23 Fort Collins, CO 62 39 41 24 Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL 37 70 64 25 Duluth, MN-WI 70 2 104 26 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 3 150 10 27 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 2 159 1 28 Sioux Falls, SD 77 1 95 29 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 20 128 18 29 New Orleans-Metairie, LA 49 81 25 31 Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV 6 156 8 32 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 55 77 28 33 Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO 21 138 13 34 Trenton, NJ 10 154 29 35 Colorado Springs, CO 68 52 60 35 Lincoln, NE 90 9 80 37 Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT 8 137 72 38 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH 18 147 27 39 Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN 39 96 67 40 Gainesville, FL 108 27 14 41 Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA 57 109 5 42 St. Louis, MO-IL 70 39 107 43 Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY 48 92 71 44 Appleton, WI 50 43 165 45 Champaign-Urbana, IL 117 17 17 45 Lynchburg, VA 51 84 81 47 Charlottesville, VA 47 114 36 48 Rockford, IL 19 103 144 49 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 43 133 20 50 Portland-South Portland, ME 28 80 173 51 Greensboro-High Point, NC 65 62 101 52 Akron, OH 38 93 121 53 Toledo, OH 93 6 137 54 Salem, OR 75 24 157 54 Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA 87 44 81 56 Syracuse, NY 98 22 93 57 Tulsa, OK 60 63 126 58 Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN 26 131 96 58 Raleigh, NC 23 139 89 60 Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 12 177 47 61 Anchorage, AK 114 10 78 62 Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA 11 195 23 63 Savannah, GA 96 64 33 64 Reno, NV 98 78 7 65 Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL 16 181 53 66 Cedar Rapids, IA 84 32 148 67 New Haven-Milford, CT 73 71 110 68 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 31 168 43 69 Ann Arbor, MI 31 172 39 70 Charleston, WV 94 7 187 71 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT 55 94 131 72 Springfield, MO 54 65 197 73 Roanoke, VA 85 46 144 73 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 59 127 60 75 Canton-Massillon, OH 98 5 189 76 Lubbock, TX 106 37 115 77 North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL 69 125 54 78 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX 79 113 64 79 Albuquerque, NM 88 123 24 79 Barnstable Town, MA 45 119 161 81 Santa Rosa, CA 97 116 12 82 College Station-Bryan, TX 152 15 51 82 Oklahoma City, OK 35 153 126 84 Peoria, IL 131 28 94 85 Kansas City, MO-KS 57 130 114 86 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD 64 161 32 86 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC 60 172 22 86 Richmond, VA 62 155 50 86 South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI 80 76 154 90 San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA 118 87 35 91 Lancaster, PA 67 143 89 92 Lexington-Fayette, KY 130 42 104 93 San Diego-Carlsbad, CA 72 179 9 94 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 81 166 11 95 Cleveland-Elyria, OH 123 73 74 95 Columbia, SC 104 87 103 95 Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA 145 28 98 98 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 74 164 43 99 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN 107 99 75 100 Provo-Orem, UT 46 183 92 101 Providence-Warwick, RI-MA 86 106 131 102 Green Bay, WI 138 4 181 103 Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 78 176 18 104 Prescott, AZ 177 16 42 105 Kalamazoo-Portage, MI 35 175 153 106 Salinas, CA 143 75 30 107 Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC 83 135 91 108 Amarillo, TX 123 50 143 109 Springfield, MA 118 50 159 110 Wichita, KS 140 33 134 111 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC 76 168 57 112 Mobile, AL 90 82 191 113 Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC-NC 53 165 140 114 Huntsville, AL 127 39 172 114 Lansing-East Lansing, MI 52 170 135 116 Knoxville, TN 88 102 178 117 Charleston-North Charleston, SC 132 91 69 118 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ 162 38 100 119 Shreveport-Bossier City, LA 134 103 58 120 Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL 90 141 115 120 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA 155 24 154 122 Macon, GA 114 84 158 123 Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL 102 106 151 124 Corpus Christi, TX 179 23 87 125 Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL 157 14 174 125 Fort Wayne, IN 167 12 148 127 Columbus, OH 141 82 88 128 Tallahassee, FL 188 34 46 128 Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA 126 53 194 130 Bremerton-Silverdale, WA 120 135 55 131 Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI 122 97 138 132 Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA 136 48 195 133 Olympia-Tumwater, WA 158 58 112 133 Topeka, KS 147 74 113 135 Jacksonville, FL 112 144 79 135 Manchester-Nashua, NH 98 108 193 137 Dayton, OH 174 24 139 138 Reading, PA 102 141 123 139 Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 104 185 31 140 El Paso, TX 133 119 77 140 Erie, PA 163 55 115 142 Evansville, IN-KY 187 18 124 143 Lafayette, LA 151 87 98 144 Baton Rouge, LA 139 119 73 145 Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL 110 182 38 146 Boise City, ID 109 112 192 147 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI 81 179 144 148 Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH 170 20 198 149 Norwich-New London, CT 185 28 140 150 Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ 163 117 36 151 Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 110 193 56 152 Fort Smith, AR-OK 154 60 200 153 Waco, TX 182 59 121 154 Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL 116 157 124 155 Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV 181 69 107 155 Tuscaloosa, AL 178 44 166 157 Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO 159 67 184 158 Jackson, MS 135 99 198 159 Port St. Lucie, FL 95 170 179 160 Greeley, CO 127 158 109 161 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL 144 115 161 162 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR 113 150 186 163 Modesto, CA 196 71 96 164 Winston-Salem, NC 120 174 120 165 Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 141 194 21 166 Chattanooga, TN-GA 165 101 142 167 Fayetteville, NC 189 67 151 168 Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, MS 176 105 118 169 Columbus, GA-AL 137 148 161 170 Birmingham-Hoover, AL 125 167 160 171 Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin, SC 127 160 170 172 Montgomery, AL 175 111 129 173 York-Hanover, PA 168 98 183 174 Memphis, TN-MS-AR 186 131 66 175 Fresno, CA 161 163 81 176 Worcester, MA-CT 148 133 188 177 Stockton-Lodi, CA 146 192 84 178 Chico, CA 197 129 62 179 Ocala, FL 149 146 182 180 Kennewick-Richland, WA 152 183 106 181 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre--Hazleton, PA 159 139 176 182 Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC 156 148 169 183 Utica-Rome, NY 197 87 196 183 Yakima, WA 179 144 136 185 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC 149 178 174 185 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 173 200 58 187 Clarksville, TN-KY 197 124 171 188 Flint, MI 193 125 185 189 Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL 172 196 126 190 Killeen-Temple, TX 166 188 168 191 Salisbury, MD-DE 191 152 167 192 Bakersfield, CA 195 186 110 193 Visalia-Porterville, CA 182 199 131 194 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX 168 198 177 195 Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX 192 162 180 196 Laredo, TX 197 189 119 197 Merced, CA 184 190 161 198 Ogden-Clearfield, UT 189 187 156 198 Spartanburg, SC 171 197 190 200 Brownsville-Harlingen, TX 194 191 150

Top (and Bottom) Five Cities for:

Music preferences can be a polarizing subject. With that in mind, we looked at 15 different data points to try to get into the heads of every music fan. Here is a detailed look at four of those data points.

If there's one group of people that know about music fandom, it's the musicians themselves. Using the Bureau of Labor Statistics as a tool, we looked at the number of employed musicians and singers per 1,000 jobs. Eugene, Ore., was the top of this data point.

Discovering new songs and artists is an exciting experience for all music fans. Radio has helped cultivate the music scene for years, and access to a wide variety of stations is important for a city. New York and Los Angeles dominate in sheer number with 428 radio stations between them. The list looks a lot different, though, when a city’s population is taken into account.

The next great album has to be recorded somewhere. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are 1,693 sound recording studios in the country. Los Angeles (second in this data point when a city’s population is taken into account) has 366 of them.

Some musicians are gifted with natural-born talent. Others go to school to hone their craft. Using the U.S. Census Bureau, we looked at the percentage of visual and performing arts degree holders in each city. This might not lead to more musicians in a city, but likely to produce a population with an appreciation for a quality music scene.

Data Takeaways

Musicians, professional or aspiring, buy records too.

How people consume music has changed -- 60 of the 200 cities in our study don't have a single tape, CD or record store -- but musicians still need places to stock up on equipment or add onto their archives.

The laws of supply and demand also apply to the sing-song industry. Based on this data, a city with fewer working musicians is likely to pay them a higher hourly wage.

Methodology

To determine the best cities for music fans, we used 15 data points from 14 reputable sources and broke them into three categories detailed below. Not all categories were created equal as we thought bands and musicians and where they play were more important than city-specific data points that go hand in hand with consuming music.For numbers 9 and 14 (below), we aggregated multiple sources to produce the data point. If a city appeared on one of these "best of" lists, they were given a single point and then totaled to come up with our rankings. Below, we break down each statistic and point to its origin. In parenthesis is the category's and stat’s weighting (a higher number represents a higher weight).

Experts' Take

1. How people consume music has changed rapidly in the last 10 years. How has music fandom changed along with it?

Music fandom has changed because today it's more about the "discovery" of music. People love to say to their friends, "Hey, I found this new artist!" Now, whether or not they financially support said artist or just download their material is another story. But I think the concept of '"finding" a new artist is very important in today's streaming culture.

2. How important is local radio in creating a following for a band?

Local radio around Nashville is a decent option -- I haven't really been here long enough to know how many new artists they accept -- but I would also recommend that any artist explode their social media. The thing about local radio is, if people aren't listening right then during that song, they won't know about you. If they are browsing the Internet, they could come across your music at any time. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would put radio at maybe a 5 in terms of importance.

3. What aspects of music venues make them fun or exciting to play?

I don't play live since I'm a session singer, but I've played out a few times in Detroit where I'm originally from and what always made them fun was the atmosphere they created. Venues start to get a reputation for being one way or another -- loud, boring, rowdy -- and the audience tends to follow suit with whatever they've heard about it. Venues can control their image to a certain extent, so making it a place of creativity, fun and respect is what's best for the artists.

4. Who are some of the best, under-the-radar live bands playing currently?

I just saw a band called Lavender Country in Inglewood. They're a little difficult to track down online but worth it to do the search. Also, if you want to see amazing, talented musicians, walk down the street! There is an artist on every corner on Broadway Street downtown, and I've yet to hear a bad one. You would think there would be a lot of competition but everyone seems supportive of one another.

1. How people consume music has changed rapidly in the last 10 years. How has music fandom changed along with it?

It seems to me that there's less of a concentration of fandom. Thanks to technology, people listen to a much larger catalog of music and tastes are less concentrated on certain artists or certain genres. With touring becoming more common than ever for bands of all sizes, consumers have been benefiting from a growing pool of concert options.

2. How important is local radio in creating a following for a band?

In April of 2011, the Treasure Valley's first independent free format non-commercial radio station since the mid-1980s hit the FM airwaves when Radio Boise KRBX 89.9 FM was born. The relationship to radio and a band’s following has definitely shifted over the years, but Radio Boise going on air had a profound effect on the local music scene. For the first time in decades, local, regional and national "indie" artists of all genres started getting regular airtime. This felt like a big shift for someone on the ground floor of that scene. Over night, aspiring local bands suddenly had a platform by which their music could be featured and it inspired a rejuvenated wave of activity. It provided a focal point for the community.

3. What aspects of music venues make them fun exciting to play?

I like venues that provide intimacy with an artist and those in attendance. I love the feel of smaller shows and the energy created when a room is packed and audience is almost spilling on top of the band. Thus, I prefer stages that aren't too high and rooms that aren't too big. Venues with good sound and lights, ability to mix in fog and haze, also makes for fertile soil for an exciting show to happen.

4. Who are some of the best, under-the-radar live bands playing currently?

Here are some of my favorite shows I've seen in Boise over the last couple years: Jonathan Richman, Whitney, Budos Band, Built To Spill, Wooden Indian Burial Ground, Thick Business, Yonatan Gat, Ancient Psychic, Tortoise, Diarrhea Planet, Music Band, Shabazz Palaces, Polica, Rubblebucket, Delicate Steve, Magic Sword, Wild Ones, k.flay, mr. Gnome, Holiday Friends, Lucy Dacus, Cy Dune, Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires, Beach Slang, Love As Laughter, Disco Doom, Here We Go Magic, The Thermals, Quiet Life, AU, Like A Villain, Dustin Wong, Paper Gates, Deerhoof, Chanti Darling, The Suffers, Dan Deacon, Clarke and the Himselfs, Sly Moon Sutra, Hollow Wood, Leafraker, Downtown Boys, Screaming Females, Baby in Vain, Wimps, Dark Swallows, Nobunny, Cool Ghouls, The Shivas, Thee Oh Sees, Beat Connection... to name a few.