221: Music as Economic Development with Matt Mandrella

About this episode

Dane Carlson discusses with Matt Mandrella how music can be leveraged as an economic development strategy in cities.

In this episode of the Econ Dev Show, Dane Carlson talks with Matt Mandrella, Music Officer for the City of Huntsville, Alabama, about what it means for a city government to take music seriously as an economic development strategy. Matt explains how Huntsville’s music audit led to intentional investments in venues, programming, artist development, tourism, and workforce attraction, including the Orion Amphitheater, MidCity, Women in Music, tour grants, a central music calendar, and partnerships that help local artists and businesses grow. The conversation shows economic developers how music can strengthen quality of life, support downtown and district development, attract talent, create career pathways, and give a community a stronger identity without trying to become the next Nashville or Austin. Like this show? Please leave a review . Even one sentence helps more than you know. 10 Actionable Takeaways for Economic Developers Start with an audit. Before launching programs, study the local music ecosystem, identify gaps, and use that work to create a practical roadmap. Treat music as quality-of-life infrastructure. Think about music the same way you think about parks, trails…

People in this episode

Host: Dane Carlson

Guest: Matt Mandrella

Topics covered

• music as economic development
• city government strategies
• community identity
• talent attraction
• quality of life
• local music ecosystem

Keywords

• economic development
• music audit
• artist development
• workforce attraction
• community identity
• local artists
• tourism

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Orion Amphitheater, MidCity, Women in Music

Places: Huntsville, Alabama

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