Tulsa's Big Music Year

Already known for its vast music history including that of stars like J.J. Cale, Garth Brooks, Leon Russell, the Gap Band, Gene Autry, David Gates and Dwight Twilley, Tulsa, Oklahoma is about to become famous worldwide for something connected to an artist who is not from Tulsa. That artist is Bob Dylan, and the place is The Bob Dylan Center, set to open on May 10, 2022.

The Bob Dylan Center will be a mind-blowing experience for any Dylan or music fan as it will house over 100,000 treasures created and owned by Dylan over seven decades, stuff like hand-written song lyrics, previously-unreleased recordings, never before seen rare photographs, visual art, musical instruments, personal documents and all kinds of memorabilia and effects. There's so much of this priceless stuff that it will take 16 rotating exhibits to cover it all. The Bob Dylan Center will also have a 55-seat screening room, and beyond Dylan the center will also be a place for additional exhibits, lectures, publications and performances, all of which are meant to foster a conversation about the role of creativity in our lives. Tickets for the Bob Dylan Center may be purchased in advance here.

Coming to Tulsa later this year is the Tulsa Music Cities Convention, set to take place November 2-5, 2022 at various venues around the city. The event, the 11th global edition of the Music Cities Convention that takes place in a different city each time, will bring together music fans from all over the world and is expected to draw more than 500 delegates, among them about 30 experts who'll be involved in talks and presentations. Of course convention delegates will be touring the brand new Bob Dylan Center; the event's opening reception, with food, drink and live music will be held there. On Nov. 3, the first full day of the convention, talks will be held at the Hyatt Regency hotel, lunch will be at the Mother Road Market and the evening reception will feature live music at Cain's Recording at the famous Cain's Ballroom. On Nov. 4 there'll be talks and lunch at Cain's Ballroom, a screening of the "Fire in Little Africa" documentary and a First Friday Art Crawl in Tulsa's Arts District. On Nov. 5 there'll be optional tours of Tulsa tourist attractions; these have not yet been announced. For more information and to purchase tickets for Tulsa Music Cities Convention go here.

For anyone visiting Tulsa that would like to stay in a unique lodging, the Tulsa Club Hotel, a boutique hotel from Curio Collection by Hilton, is the place. Housed in a building that was constructed in 1927 and made in the Art Deco style, the hotel has been reimagined to its original grandeur and now offers 96 luxurious rooms for folks who love Art Deco, the finer side of hospitality, upscale dining and exploring iconic neighborhoods. Tulsa Club is located in the city's Art Deco district and is within walking distance of many of the city's must-see attractions. The building once held Tulsa's Chamber of Commerce and the hotel honors that era with two bars; Chamber is a modern American tavern located in the property's swanky underground while Commerce salutes the 1920s with cocktails from the era, many made with bourbon crafted in Tulsa. Book your stay at Tulsa Club Hotel here.

Fondly known as "the world's largest small town," Tulsa is packed with attractions and activities. To help plan your visit go here.

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