How Nashville transformed right into a booming business hub

Nashville, Tennessee, has transformed from its status as “Music City” into a serious U.S. metro because of rapid population growth, job opportunities in key industries like healthcare and tech and an excellent quality of life.  

It’s now change into considered one of the fastest-growing U.S. cities, boasting a various community and a competitive economy. 

“It isn’t just economics. It’s our climate here,” said John Eldridge, founder and CEO of development company E3 Construction Services. “It’s our culture here. It’s our location.”

A number of the biggest names in tech like Amazon and Oracle have invested within the region, too, fueling a rapid tech expansion. Oracle has developed a $1.4 billion Nashville campus for its global headquarters, and Amazon has leased over 1 million square feet of office space in downtown — on top of opening a $230 million East Coast operations hub in 2018.

In line with a joint report by the Great Nashville Technology Council and Middle Tennessee State University, the variety of tech jobs within the Nashville area grew by 17% between 2017 and 2022. 

“We found that we could locate here, we found that we could find the talent here,” said Amazon’s Vice President of Worldwide Economic Development Holly Sullivan adding that each the state of Tennessee and town of Nashville had very business-friendly policies. “Whenever you find that, you wish to double down on that.”

Many other corporate giants have been recruited to the realm because of town’s 10-year strategy that gets upgraded every decade. Under the plan, greater than 600,000 jobs have been created since 1990 and per-capita income within the region has grown by greater than 234%, in accordance with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.  

Business and residential real estate have boomed, though town has struggled to maintain up with enough inexpensive housing. Nashville ranked amongst cities with the largest increase in home prices between 2014 and 2024, according to Construction Coverage.  

Watch this video to learn more about Nashville’s rise.  

Need to boost your confidence, income and profession success? Take one (or more!) of Smarter by CNBC Make It’s expert-led online courses, which aim to show you the critical skills you must succeed that you simply didn’t learn at school. Topics include earning passive income online, mastering communication and public speaking skills, acing your job interview, and practical strategies to grow your wealth. Use coupon code MEMORIAL to buy any course at a reduction of 30% off the regular course price (plus tax). Offer valid from 12:00 am Eastern Time (“ET”) on May 19, 2025, through 11:59 pm ET on June 2, 2025. Terms and restrictions apply.