Presentations

A native of Nashville, Jon Sewell graduated from University of Memphis in 2004 with bachelor's degrees each in Philosophy, Political Science, and Foreign Languages. Returning to Nashville, he obtained his master's degree from Vanderbilt University in 2006. After a roughly decade and a half period in skilled trades, he returned to graduate school in 2022, and now in process to receive his Ph.D. in Public History from Middle Tennessee State University, he currently serves as a Graduate Assistant at the Center for Popular Music, while working on his own community-founded Nashville Underground Music Archive. His professional residency at Jefferson Street Sound Museum runs through 2026.

Exhibits

Nashville's Independent Labels of the ‘40s & ‘50s.

exhibit at Center for Popular Music, MTSU, Murfreesboro. Jan- Aug 2025. Collection from the CPM archives, supplemented with artifacts from the Nashville Underground Music Archive collection. Curator and Installer.

Nashville's Independent Labels of the ‘40s & ‘50s Exhibit Catalog. 44 pp. booklet in a 7” sleeve. 2025

“Nashville’s Early Independent Scenes” Panel at Center for Popular Music in conjunction with above exhibit.

Presenter, with performer Jimmy Church and writer Randy Fox. March 19, 2025.

“Nashville’s Independent Labels of the ’40s & ’50s.” online exhibit. Story Map – Launched September 2025.

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/c5a09be1ae1049e5961460f9a7556d74

Muse Sick City

An exchange between music and visual arts history in Nashville.

exhibit at Art Between the Avenues, Gallery 53, The Arcade, Nashville. August 2026. Curator and Installer.

“What’s it like living inside an explosion? The History of Nashville Punk 1979-1985” Panel at Gallery 53, The Arcade, in conjunction with the above exhibit. Presenter, with Dave Willie (author of Music City Punk and frontman for CPS), Johnny Hollywood (guitarist for Cloverbottom), and Joe Blanton (guitarist, The Ratz). August 22, 2026.

The Future of Print

exhibit at Julia Martin Gallery, Group show with Bingham Barnes, Matthew Sharer, Josh Shearon, Graeme Morris, Yanira Vissepo, and Rachel Briggs. Artist and installer. Nashville, April 2023.

Academic Conferences

sample selections:

Indie publications and scenes:

Punk Scholars Network (PSN) annual conference, Las Vegas (2026)

Paper: “Punk in Music City, 1978-1984” with Dave Willie, founder of the Music City Punk Project

International Country Music Conference (ICMC), Nashville (2026)

Paper: “Kindred Type: Country Music Fanclub Magazines and Punk ‘Zines”

Interdisciplinary:

Southern Sociological Society (SSS), Jacksonville (2026)

Paper: “Rock & Roll in Nashville? Local Musicians as Creative Labor in the 1950s and ‘60s”

Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), Atlanta (2025)

Paper: "The role of African American Labor in creating Music City"

Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), Norfolk (2026)

Paper: “A Black-owned Independent Record Label in Music City: Carrie Records, James Hendrix, and a Diversified Output” in Panel: “Active Archives: Material Culture, Visual Arts, and the Vernacular Landscapes of Black Commemoration,” organized by TSU professor Dr. Marquita Reed-Wright.

Paper: “‘Black Musicians in Music City, USA’: Revisiting a 40 year old research study”

Paper: “Case study: The community house of the Jefferson Street Sound Museum”

Southern underground music archives:

American Association of State and Local History (AASLH), Cincinnati (2025)

Panel Chair: “Underground and Punk Archives in Local Communities”

Panelists: John Rash (Southern Punk Archive, Ole Miss), Dan Drinkard (Memphis Punk Archive; Seasick Records), Heather Fox and Kevin Bailey (Louisville Underground Music Archive, University of Louisville), Scott Satterwhite (309 Punk Project, Pensacola)

Society of American Archivists (SAA), New Orleans (2026)

Session Chair: “Underground and Punk Music Archives in the American South”

Panelists: Greg Johnson (Head of Special Collections, Blues Curator, Univ. of Mississippi), Carrie Daniels (Louisville Underground Music Archive, Special Collections, University of Louisville), Scott Satterwhite (309 Punk Project, Pensacola; University of West Florida), and Paul Campagna, founder of Delaware Music History Archive.

Southern Historical Association (SHA), Atlanta (2026)

Roundtable Chair: “Hearing the Edges of the South through Underground Music Archives”

Panelists: Brittany Newberry (Atlanta Hip-Hop Archive, Georgia State University), Burgin Mathews (Southern Music Research Center), Evie Spradlin (Punk House Atlanta), and Randy Gue (Emory University Libraries)

American Historical Association (AHA), New Orleans (2027)

Roundtable Chair: “The Emergence of Underground Music Archives: Historical Precedent and Recent Trends.” Panelists: John Rash (Southern Punk Archive, Ole Miss), Heather Fox (Louisville Underground Music Archive, University of Louisville), and Scott Satterwhite (309 Punk Project, Pensacola).

Fests & Avocational

Nashville Design Week, Nashville (2019)

Panel Organizer: “Behind the ‘Zines: Small Run Art Publications in Nashville”

This is Nashville, WPLN Nashville (2023)

Panelist: “DIY venues and their history in Nashville”

Zine City Fest, Nashville’s small-run and independent press conference (2023)

Presentation: “The History of the Underground Press in Nashville 1955-2025”

Southern Festival of Books, Nashville (2024)

Panelist: “Nowville: The Untold History of Nashville's Contemporary Art Scene” with artist Lesley Patterson-Marx, gallerist Evan Roosevelt Brown, author Joe Nolan, and moderator Jim Hoobler.

Zine City Fest 2, Nashville’s small-run and independent press conference (2024)

“The History of the Underground Press in Nashville, 1940-2025”

Cheekwood Community Celebration: Arts and Music in America (2026)

Roundtable Panel: “Nashville's Contemporary Art Scene”

Panelists: Joe Nolan, chair, author of NOWVILLE: The Untold History of Nashville's Contemporary Art Scene, gallerist Katie Shaw of Red Arrow Gallery, and Lina Silvers, Cheekwood curator.

Nashville Comic Arts Festival (2026)

Presentation: “The History of the Underground Press in Nashville 1940-2025”

All Presentations:

Nashville Design Week, Nashville (2019)

Panel Organizer: “Behind the ‘Zines: Small Run Art Publications in Nashville”

This is Nashville, WPLN Nashville (2023)

Panelist: “DIY venues and their history in Nashville”

International Oral History Association, Rio De Janeiro (2023)

Paper: “The Meaning of Work: Creativity as Labor” in Panel 2: Oral History and Interdisciplinaries

Zine City Fest, Nashville’s small-run and independent press conference (2023)

Presentation: “The History of the Underground Press in Nashville 1955-2025”

Southern Festival of Books, Nashville (2024)

Panelist: “Nowville: The Untold History of Nashville's Contemporary Art Scene” with artist Lesley Patterson-Marx, gallerist Evan Roosevelt Brown, author Joe Nolan, and moderator Jim Hoobler.

Zine City Fest 2, Nashville’s small-run and independent press conference (2024)

“The History of the Underground Press in Nashville, 1940-2025”

Oral History Association (OHA), Cincinnati (2024)

Poster: “Nashville Underground Music Archive: Placing the Past in concert with the Present”

National Council on Public History (NCPH), Montreal, Quebec (2025)

Poster: “Nashville Underground Music Archive: A Community Archive in an Industry Town”

Society of American Archivists (SAA), Research Forum (2025)

Presentation: “Comparative Research on Underground Music Archives in the American South”

American Association of State and Local History (AASLH), Cincinnati (2025)

Panel Chair: “Underground and Punk Archives in Local Communities”

Panelists: John Rash (Southern Punk Archive, Ole Miss), Dan Drinkard (Memphis Punk Archive; Seasick Records), Heather Fox and Kevin Bailey (Louisville Underground Music Archive, University of Louisville), and Scott Satterwhite (309 Punk Project, Pensacola)

International Oral History Association (IOHA), Warsaw, Poland (2025)

Paper: “Under the Dominant Beat: Investigating the musical landscapes that shaped Music City”

Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), Atlanta (2025)

Paper: "The role of African American Labor in creating Music City"

Oral History Association (OHA), Atlanta (2025)

Paper: “Rock n Roll in Nashville? An Oral History of a Southern Town making American Music”

Society for Alabama Archivists, Huntsville (2025)

Paper: “Comparative Research on Underground Music Archives in the American South”

American Historical Association (AHA), Chicago (2026)

Poster: “Nashville Underground Music Archive: A Community Archive in an Industry Town”

Punk Scholars Network (PSN) annual conference, Las Vegas (2026)

Paper: “Punk in Music City, 1978-1984” with Dave Willie, founder of the Music City Punk Project

Southern Sociological Society (SSS), Jacksonville (2026)

Paper: “Rock & Roll in Nashville? Local Musicians as Creative Labor in the 1950s and ‘60s”

Southern Historical Association Graduate Council, ‘Southern Exchanges’ (Spring 2026)

Research Presentation: “Case Study of the Nashville Underground Music Archive”

Society of American Archivists, Students and New Archival Professionals (SNAP) Section, Annual Meeting (2026)

Poster: "Methodologies of Community-run Music Archives”

Midwest Archives Conference (MAC), Columbus (2026)

Poster: “Underground Music Archives in the American South: Institutional and Community Approaches”

International Country Music Conference (ICMC), Nashville (2026)

Paper: “Kindred Type: Country Music Fanclub Magazines and Punk ‘Zines”

Cheekwood Community Celebration: Arts and Music in America (2026)

Roundtable Panel: “Nashville's Contemporary Art Scene”

Panelists: Joe Nolan, chair, author of NOWVILLE: The Untold History of Nashville's Contemporary Art Scene, gallerist Katie Shaw of Red Arrow Gallery, and Lina Silvers, Cheekwood curator.

Society of American Archivists (SAA), New Orleans (2026)

Session Chair: “Underground and Punk Music Archives in the American South”

Panelists: Greg Johnson (Head of Special Collections, Blues Curator, Univ. of Mississippi), Carrie Daniels (Louisville Underground Music Archive, Special Collections, University of Louisville), Scott Satterwhite (309 Punk Project, Pensacola; University of West Florida), and Paul Campagna, founder of Delaware Music History Archive.

Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), Norfolk (2026)

Paper: “A Black-owned Independent Record Label in Music City: Carrie Records, James Hendrix, and a Diversified Output” in Panel: “Active Archives: Material Culture, Visual Arts, and the Vernacular Landscapes of Black Commemoration,” organized by TSU professor Dr. Marquita Reed-Wright.

Paper: “‘Black Musicians in Music City, USA’: Revisiting a 40 year old research study”

Paper: “Case study: The community house of the Jefferson Street Sound Museum”

Society of Tennessee Archivists (STA) Annual Conference (2026)

Roundtable Chair: “Underground Tennessee Music Voices in Local Archives”

Poster: “Jefferson Street Sound: a Music and Local Culture Community Museum and Archive”

Oral History Association (OHA), Portland (2026)

Poster: “Southern Underground Music Archives: Place and Practice”

Host: OHA Emerging Professionals Committee

From the Ground up: An Archives UnConference (2026)

Session co-host: “Media in Community Archives” with Chad Hunter (Archive Director, Appalshop)

Southern Historical Association (SHA), Atlanta (2026)

Roundtable Chair: “Hearing the Edges of the South through Underground Music Archives”

Panelists: Brittany Newberry (Atlanta Hip-Hop Archive, Georgia State University), Burgin Mathews (Southern Music Research Center), Evie Spradlin (Punk House Atlanta), and Randy Gue (Emory University Libraries)

American Historical Association (AHA), New Orleans (2027)

Roundtable Chair: “The Emergence of Underground Music Archives: Historical Precedent and Recent Trends.” Panelists: John Rash (Southern Punk Archive, Ole Miss), Heather Fox (Louisville Underground Music Archive, University of Louisville), and Scott Satterwhite (309 Punk Project, Pensacola).

National Council on Public History (NCPH), St. Louis (2027)

Roundtable Chair, organizer: “The Emergence of Underground Music Archives”

with Paul Campagna, (Delaware Music History Archive), Heather Fox (University of Louisville), John Rash (University of Mississippi), Scott Satterwhite (University of West Florida)

Panel: “Oral History as Community-Building: Lessons from Students and Community Stakeholders”

with Dana Best-Mizsak (The University of Akron), Julia B. Haager (Western Carolina University), Kelly H. Jones (The University of Akron), Josie Naron (Localized History Project @AAARI-CUNY), Jill Mudgett (Hazen Union School)