SOLID aims to improve the future of the music industry by strengthening its professional relationships and educating its future executives while serving the community. In the summer of 1996, a small group of young music industry professionals recognized the need for an organization that would directly address the issues they faced on Music Row. After a year’s worth of backyard brainstorming sessions, this original group of friends gradually and deliberately defined the parameters for the Society Of Leaders In Development (SOLID) Their vision? To develop a community for its membership that combined the social networking of the Slugs or the Young Turks with the community service of Hands on Nashville and the educational opportunities of Leadership Music, The Recording Academy or the CMA. Above all, it needed to be accessible to entry and mid-level industry professionals who may not have the resources or opportunities to belong to other organizations. On February 15, 2000, SOLID hosted its ‘Intro To The Row’ Party in the lobby of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Chris Neese, co-founder and first SOLID President, gave an inspired speech to a crowd of industry executives, announcing the arrival of “Generation Next” to Music Row. This declaration was not a challenge to the establishment as much as an appeal to recognize and embrace the leaders of tomorrow. Support from the individuals present that day has affirmed the need for our Society and has subsequently confirmed that SOLID has a definite role in shaping the future of Music Row.
