A longtime Fayetteville bar is in the running to be named one of America’s favorite local music venues in a fan-led, nationwide competition organized by music publication, Consequence of Sound.
George’s Majestic Lounge is one of 20 venues out of more than 1,300 nominees left in the competition called Hometowns of Consequence. The venue is one of four finalists in the Southeast region of the competition, joining only 9:30 Club from Washington D.C.; Portal at Fifteentwelve from Louisville, Kentucky; and The Radio Room from Greenville, South Carolina left in the regional competition, and in the running to be one of the 5 regional winners.
George’s owners Brian and Day Crowne participated in a Q&A with the other finalists posted by the publication this week, highlighting some of the bar’s rich history and listing some of their favorite moments from their roughly 20 years of owning the nearly century-old bar.
The bar, originally opened by namesake George Papas in 1927, is thick with history.
Brian Crowne told CoS a story he heard from a WW2 veteran who said Papas frequently waived the tabs for war vets who frequented the watering hole.
“That still moves me to even write it,” Crown said. “We were the first bar to integrate in the late ’50s and had the first pizza delivery in Fayetteville in the late ’50s as well. We were voted one of the country’s top college bars by Playboy in 1994 (before we owned it). We were nominated for an Academy of Country Music Award for night club of the year in 2010.”
Some of that history, along with an artist-first approach and reputation, is what resonates most with touring artists who visit the venue.
“They love the history,” Brian said. “They walk in the front lounge and see the history and memorabilia and it hits them how long we’ve been open. There is a connectivity in both rooms that artists of all genres talk about with the fans. It is really cool when they come in and talk about another artist that told them how much they enjoy playing at George’s.”
Hometowns of Consequence started back in March, when the publication asked fans to nominate their favorite venues around the country. George’s was named one of the regional finalists last month, and fan-led online voting will continue through Oct. 21. After that, CoS will tabulate the votes for each region, and announce their five winners in November, they told us.
The winners of the competition in each region (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, Southwest, and West) will receive an in-depth coverage package from the publication, including video, editorial, social media, and podcast coverage featuring the venue as well as some of the local, regional, and national artists that perform there.
The full Q&A with George’s and other venues in the running in the southeast region is available here.
Voters can cast their online ballots for their favorite venue once per day through Oct. 21. To vote, visit consequence.net.
