And Why Music Lovers Are Finally Listening
Words by Ashley Locke
Photos provided by Visit Dublin, GA
When a town finds its rhythm, it’s hard not to feel the pull. Dublin, Georgia, has never sounded better.
At first glance, it’s easy to fall in love with the leafy oaks, colorful downtown murals, and the unmistakable friendliness of the people. But hang around after dark, and you’ll hear what really makes this town move. It’s the strum of a guitar echoing off brick walls, the soul in a blues singer’s voice, and the hush of a crowd leaning into a story being told through song.
Music has always lived here, quietly, patiently waiting for the spotlight to turn its way. And over the last decade, thanks to passionate locals and a rising tide of talent, Dublin’s music scene is thriving.
“I started playing with a guy, Josh Turner, and we started getting booked at the Stone Horse Tavern. That was my first real paid downtown gig,” says Jody Hightower, a lifelong musician who now books talent at downtown venues like Company Supply and Crooked Finger Brewery. “That windowsill became the stage for the place I book for now.”
For Jody, it all began in a small church built by his grandfather. His dad played drums. One day, he sat down and picked up the beat like it was muscle memory. By age 10, he was playing in front of a congregation. By 18, he was bringing live music to a downtown that didn’t yet know how badly it needed it.
Back then, restaurants were few, and original music events even fewer. But people started showing up. And Dublin’s soundtrack began to change.
“I started off bringing a lot of talent from Macon,” Jody says. “But I didn’t want to focus on Macon specifically. I was thinking about our music scene as a statewide or regional music scene. Georgia is a huge music scene and Dublin deserves a piece of that.”
And they’re getting it. Walk into Company Supply on a Friday night, and it might feel more like a listening room in Nashville than a small-town restaurant. You’ll hear country, yes—but also blues, soul, rock, and maybe even rap. “I gravitate toward original artists that write their own music. If they inspire me, I think they’ll inspire other people,” Jody adds.
That authenticity, raw and honest, isn’t just in the music. It’s in the air. It’s in the people.
Just ask E.G. Kight, an internationally recognized blues artist who called Dublin home. “I occasionally play in Dublin and see a lot of the local people coming out, and the young people coming out,” she says. “The audience is growing.”
Kight, who’s shared stages with icons like B.B. King and George Jones, speaks of Dublin’s music scene with the kind of reverence reserved for sacred things. She’s lived the road life, but it’s the hometown crowds that move her.
“I’ve always loved being from Dublin, and I’ve always sung Dublin’s praises everywhere I’ve traveled.”
And it’s not just music that’s lighting up the stage. The theater scene is blossoming too.
Pat Brock, a recent standout in the Dublin Community Theatre’s production of Wonka, is helping bring drama and storytelling to life downtown. A self-described dreamer raised on a farm with 13 siblings, she found her calling on stage. Now she’s inspiring others to step into the spotlight.
“Dublin is finally opening itself up to how the beauty of theater and music affects a soul,” she says. “People are connecting with the theater and what it does for each individual. It helps them come out of their comfort zone and transform into whatever character they’re portraying.”
For visitors, that connection is powerful. Whether you’re watching a singer-songwriter at Crooked Finger Brewery, catching a festival set from a rising country star, or settling in for a play at the community theater, the experience sticks with you. “I hope people see how much talent can come from a small town,” Pat says. “I hope they are able to connect with the characters or the individuals performing in such a way that they want to come back.”
And they are coming back.
Today, booking requests come from across the Southeast. Bands roll in from Nashville, Macon, and even Florida, planning their routes just to make a stop in Dublin. Jody sees it all. “We went from 80% booking requests being people I knew to 80% from out of town or out of state.”
A kind of creative current runs through the town now. You can hear it in a lyric. Feel it in the hush before a note. See it in a crowd that’s come not just to eat or drink, but to be moved.
In Dublin, music pulls you in. And once it does, you’ll never want to leave the song behind.
