A Taylor made trip

Make a Swift visit to Tennessee's Music City, says Michael Ham

- Michael Ham

Well, we should all be in our Nashville Era now. In case you missed it, Taylor Swift's two-year worldwide Eras tour took over the globe and - in Britain in particular country music has been on the rise.

So, for the growing number of fans there is only one place on the planet to go: Nashville, Tennessee.

Music City, as it is known, is now a growing metropolis undergoing a radical transformation.

Infrastructure projects include a new stadium for the state's NFL team in which they hope to host a Super Bowl. Nashville is also home to seemingly endless live-act music bars dotted around town. And there is also an obvious, concerted effort to keep the old traditions well in place while continuing to grow.

And grow is exactly what the "Swiftie" movement has done in recent years.

After the idol moved there full time in her early teens to chase her musical dreams, the star's impact can be seen all over Nashville - from the bench in her honour at Centennial Park (which she sings about in "Invisible String" on her Folklore album), to the Country Music Hall of Fame in downtown Nashville, which is home to the Taylor Swift Education Centre.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd ever see that, but if there's a blank space to fill, country music fans know all too well how to sort that.

A Grand Ole place

Currently in its 99th year, the world-famous Grand Ole Opry - the longest-running radio show in the world - put Nashville on the map.

The Ryman Auditorium in the middle of downtown, which has seen a who's who of world music superstars perform there, was the original host of the Opry before it moved to its new home in 1974.

While the new building may be modern with a neon-filled stage fit for the 21st century and current surroundings including a shopping complex and outlet mall, the Opry pays homage to its former home in more ways than one.