Proof that owning a record store is still cool, The Music Business Association will present Terry Currier, owner of Portland, Ore.’s Music Millennium with its Independent Spirit Award. The presentation will take place 5/17 during the Awards Breakfast of the Music Biz 2017 convention at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel in Nashville.

“Terry exemplifies the best qualities of independent music retail and has played a massive role in advocating for its health and vitality,” said James Donio, President of Music Biz. “Over the course of his four-plus decades in the industry, Terry has proven himself to be a true music business innovator as a pioneer for the concept of live in-store performances, helping spearhead the creation of the Coalition of Independent Music Stores (CIMS) more than 20 years ago, founding the Oregon Music Hall of Fame and establishing Music Millennium as one of the finest independent record stores in the world. For these reasons and more, Music Biz is thrilled to add Terry to the remarkable list of executives and companies who have received our Independent Spirit Award.”

Currier, who has kept the racks filled at Portland record stores for 44 years, said “It’s important to recognize the intense power of music to shape and heal lives, and the necessity of independent retail to nurture that relationship through in-person experiences with fellow music lovers. I’m happy to provide that opportunity at Music Millennium and am proud to accept this Award.”

Music Millennium has hosted more than 4,000 live performances from the likes of Soundgarden, Steve Earle, Cyndi Lauper, Randy Newman, Joe Strummer and Keith Emerson. In 1990, Currier founded Burnside Records, releasing 60 titles between the label and its sister, Sideburn Records, producing eight of them himself.