We’re much more focused on residential real estate in Nashville here at ACRE, but we do sometimes deal with commercial properties in Middle Tennessee, and we certainly pay attention to interesting ones that hit the market.
We’re also particularly partial to historic properties, and lovers of Nashville history. So when a historic commercial property with cultural import hits the Middle Tennessee MLS, we can’t help but notice.
So: 646 W Iris Dr., on the market now. If you’re a recording engineer, a musician, or a country music lover here in Nashville, even if you’re not looking to buy property in Music City, this listing will likely grab your attention too.
The quick details: 646 W Iris Dr., now known as Legends Studio, first opened its doors in 1940, with the studio getting designed and built in the ’70s, in part by legendary producer and Grammy-winning songwriter Chips Moman, who worked alongside the likes of Elvis Presley and Aretha Franklin.
In the years that followed, the Berry Hill building hosted a parade of music-makers befitting the current name. Among the legends who crafted songs and albums inside the studio’s walls: Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson and Merle Haggard.
Among the songs captured under its roof: “Always On My Mind,” “Mommas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys,” and “The Highwaymen.”
Current hit-makers Jason Aldean and Lee Brice count among the studio’s alums, too. Impressive footsteps to walk on top of, all around.
Looking to buy a studio in Nashville?
It’s fun just to admire buildings that have contributed so much to Nashville’s musical history, but hopefully, there’s a Nashville buyer out there who’s looking to continue 646 W Iris Dr.’s musical contributions into the future, too, and maybe benefit from the historical juju that’s seeped into the walls.
Listed at $1.3 million, the property includes the 3,315-square-foot building on about a quarter-acre parcel, situated amid a bunch of the city’s other impactful recording studios, with multiple live spaces, a large control room, isolation booths — the recording studio gamut.
What doesn’t come with the purchase: the Legends Studio business, owned by engineer and producer Dan Frizsell.
If new studio owners take over, it’ll be a fresh start for 646 W Iris Dr., and a continuation of Frizsell’s efforts to preserve the property’s history. In 2007, the building was in danger of demolition, says legendsstudionashville.com, so Frizsell and his wife Susan purchased and polished the studio, bringing it back to a former glory.
Re/Max Elite is offering the property now, and you can check out a lot more detail and more photos of 646 W Iris Dr. at the MLS listing here.
We just hope its life as a vibrant piece of Nashville music history gets to continue into the future, and since it just hit the market again, we wanted to share with likeminded friends — just in case one of you is that person inspired to create that future.
Not looking for a commercial or studio space, but have your eyes peeled for a new home near growing Berry Hill? Or are you looking for a historic home in another part of Nashville? Something brand new? Whatever’s on your must-have list, we’d love to help you find it.
Check out some homes for sale in Nashville here, and contact ACRE in Nashville here.
Listing via MLS, not under agreement with ACRE and/or Benchmark Realty, LLC.