It may be hot, but we always have cool tunes...

Downtown Brenham just finished their last weekend of 2013's Hot Nights, Cool Tunes concert series and are feeling quite successful! Each Saturday night Downtown Brenham was filled with adults and kids, old and newer tricked-out cars and trucks, food, drinks, and of course live music!

Each year locals and visitors come together in a small-town celebration of our hot summer nights with great tunes from different bands and this year was no different. The Saturday night lineup included The Newsboyz, Radiostar, Matchmaker Band, and Suede.

So what is involved in this "hot tunes & cool nights or hot nights or whatever"? Well, let me tell ya...

Around 5pm the streets get blocked off and the cars that are in the car show for that week are allowed in to park. People start arriving with their folding chairs, blankets, kids, and even dogs. They mill around, talking to each other and maybe shopping a bit. Those who like to dance or feel that beat in their chest stake their claim for their favorite spots up front, plant their chairs and grab their beverages of choice while patiently waiting for 7pm to arrive. Others know there's plenty of room and they focus on socializing with their friends as they walk up and down the streets looking for others to catch up with.

This year we had some different food options than before. We had BBQ, corn dogs, funnel cakes, and Texas-sized portions of fresh cut potato chips. There were plenty of other treats, too, like snow cones, pizza, beer, and other adult beverages. Surrounding restaurants chimed in and served plenty of hungry people and kids enjoyed rides on the street train.

The band always starts playing at 7pm and usually takes one or two breaks about an hour apart. Depending on the crowd and the band, the fun can continue until around 10pm. This year we had a couple of other venues picking up on the music vibe and hosting other musicians after 9pm until late.

New this year the Brenham/Washington County Chamber-CVB staff set up shop on the street with a prize wheel and a variety of giveaways. We had a lot of fun helping people win. Our purpose was to gather information about the attendees - Are you local or not - and then reward them for answering our questions! Each person who stepped up to the table filled out a short form, dropped it in the entry bin, and then spun the Prize Wheel. "Everyone's a Winner!" was our motto and every person definitely won! Prizes were coupons, gifts, postcard fans, and discounts.

During the first break the Chamber-CVB staff held 4 or 5 drawings, depending on the week, and gave away bigger prizes like free nights lodging, bigger gifts, and certificates. Everyone had a really fun time and the winners were thrilled to hear their names called.

After that hot sun goes down the night isn't too hot anymore, but the tunes are always cool and fun, all evening long. If you haven't come to Hot Nights, Cool Tunes before, mark your calendar for next year. Every Saturday night in July. We guarantee you'll have a good time and we might even give you something free! :-)

We'd love to hear your comments and experiences on the fun you had this year. Please share with us below!

See you soon!

Jenny Mills
Visitor Center & Website Manager
Brenham/Washington County Chamber-CVB


We thank all participating businesses in the Chamber-CVB giveaways:
Sonic, Whataburger, Chili's, Ant Street Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Holiday Inn Express, Pleasant Hill Winery, Unity Theatre, Carol's at Cat Spring, The Book Nook, Day Star Christian Bookstore, Dona Lynn's Unique Gifts.