First Tennessee Pavilion is normally pretty empty on a Monday afternoon, but earlier this week it was a beehive of activity. It wasn't full of people like it is during a Sunday Chattanooga Market, but there were a couple dozen people in the end near Finley Stadium.
There was a man dressed as a cowboy, a father and son in camo from head to toe, several police officers and even a man who looked just like a country music star. While all of these people looked to be dressed in costumes for Halloween, in most cases, this was their normal attire.
Barry CourterCody McCarver, a real-life country music performer, was at First Tennessee shooting a video for his song "We Gotta Rise Up." As he's done on a couple of past videos, he turned to friends and family to be extras, and he chose to shoot it as close to home as possible. He shot the video for "White Trash With Money" in his hometown of Dunlap several years ago.
"It works better if you use real people," he says. "Real is always good."
McCarver, who has also acted in several films, walks around the pavilion like an expectant father but one who has been through the drill several times. He checks in with the cast and crew and offers up coffee and biscuits to everyone. This is not new for him, but it's not his turn to be on camera, so he's antsy.
"I know these people know what they are doing, and I should let them, but I just feel like I have to be doing something," he says.
He spent several years with Confederate Railroad and as a solo country singer, but three years ago refound Jesus and has since been writing and performing what he calls Outlaw Gospel. The songs have Christian lyrics and an outlaw country sound, he says.
"I'm still performing the same way I always have, but the words are different," he says.
Overseeing the shoot was Deb Haus, a Nashville veteran who spent 20 years as head of artist development for Sony Nashville. She also produced videos for country acts including Montgomery Gentry.
"I love this space," she said of First Tennessee.
Flick Whitshire of Vintage Flick Productions in Nashville is handling the videography. He and McCarver "discovered" the pavilion while driving around scouting rooftops as possible locations for the shoot. McCarver said it was love at first sight for Whitshire when he pulled into the building.
"If we had a space like this in Nashville, it would be used all the time," Whitshire said of the pavilion.
Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.