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Wednesday, November 11, 2026Nov 11

Tennessee dominates newspaper poll of best musical attractions

Staff photo by John Rawlston/Chattanooga Times Free Press - {iptcmonthname3 {iptcday}, 2015
Lauren Noethen (CQ) dances as she watches Leon Russell on a video screen at the Riverbend Festival on Sunday, June 7,  2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Staff photo by John Rawlston/Chattanooga Times Free Press - {iptcmonthname3 {iptcday}, 2015 Lauren Noethen (CQ) dances as she watches Leon Russell on a video screen at the Riverbend Festival on Sunday, June 7, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Staff photo by John Rawlston/Chattanooga Times Free Press - {iptcmonthname3 {iptcday}, 2015 Lauren Noethen (CQ) dances as she watches Leon Russell on a video screen at the Riverbend Festival on Sunday, June 7, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn.

10 best musical attractions

1. Graceland – Memphis 2. Sun Studio – Memphis 3. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum – Cleveland 4. Grand Ole Opry – Nashville 5. Stax Museum of American Soul Music – Memphis 6. Dollywood – Pigeon Forge, Tenn. 7. Motown Museum – Detroit 8. EMP Museum – Seattle 9. Joshua Tree National Park – California 10. Hansa Studios – Berlin

Five of the top six spots on USA Today’s list of 10 best musical attractions, voted on by the newspaper’s readers, went to cities in Tennessee.

Graceland in Memphis, which celebrates the musical cultural heritage of the late music superstar Elvis Presley, was rated as the top musical attraction in the country.

Sun Studio, the Memphis-based birthplace of Rock and Roll, took the second position.

Though the third spot went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, the fourth, fifth and sixth spots went to attractions located in Tennessee.