This is about the time of the year when this blog moves from discussing the issues surrounding Destination Marketing and Community Development to featuring really cool songs of the season. Typically, it's a fairly hard pivot with a degree of whiplash. That we always post music finds on Fridays mitigates it slightly...but we've never had a segue like today.
Earlier this month, I stumbled upon a holiday music video by an Oklahoma-based duo named The Imaginaries. At the close of the video, as the credits begin to roll, what to my wondering eyes did appear but a logo shout out to the Chickasha Economic Development Council (it's on the band's homepage, too). Yesterday, I had the chance to chat with EDC Director Jim Cowan. He told me that Christmas has always been a big deal in this town of 17,000, a half hour out of Oklahoma City. Their Holiday Lights extravaganza typically attracts hundreds of thousands each year and this year, the installation of a 40-foot tall replica of "the leg lamp" from "A Christmas Story" drew national and international media attention from as far away as Japan.
But, it's the sheer livability of a community like Chickasha that Jim believes is the hook to get entrepreneurs and families to move there. And, as people in urban centers rethink where they live in this new work-from-home environment, smaller communities need to stand-out from the crowd. In this Hallmark-style video, the nostalgia, the friendly culture, the arts, music and video all come together to position Chickasha firmly on the list for consideration. And, we love the brilliant marriage of Music, the Holidays and Economic Development.
As we transition over to our favorite Holiday Music finds of the year, luxuriate in "Hometown Christmas" from The Imaginaries.
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