In most cases, inheriting a well-known and beloved business would bring nothing but joy to its new owner. However, when singer-songwriter Christina “Redd” Daugherty inherited Rush’s Music in 2023, it was not a joyous occasion.
The business became Daugherty’s when her close friend Jason Cooper was killed in February of that year. Cooper had owned the business for less than two years.
“It’s crazy, he didn’t even have a chance to enjoy it,” says Daugherty.
“I was blindsided that he left it to me.”
Founder Bob Rush opened his namesake store in 1958. Originally running the business from his home, Rush’s moved to a spot on Cumberland Avenue in Fort Sanders shortly after it was founded and later expanded into different locations. Rush forged a relationship with local school band directors, finding ways to supply students with instruments for band classes. When Rush died of lung cancer at the age of 50 in 1977, his wife Willene took over the business. She ran it until 1998 when she sold it to Steve Boyce, who was the store’s manager at the time. Boyce ran Rush’s until 2021 when he sold it to Cooper, who had worked at the store since 2002. By that time, there were two locations, one at 2107 Chapman Highway and the other at 9117-D Executive Park Drive.
Daugherty, who grew up in Clinton, began working at Rush’s when she was 19 and stayed through getting her master’s degree in education. She made many friends there, including Cooper.
“I grew up in Rush’s,” she says. “I’d worked there for six years, and it felt like a homeplace.”
Daugherty returned to work at the store on occasion, repairing instruments even after becoming a high-school teacher and a working musician.
Daugherty built a local following as a singer-songwriter and found national fame in 2021 when she was a contestant on the TV show “American Idol.” She didn’t win, but her performances earned her a following around the country. The next year, she quit teaching high school to pursue music ventures full-time and kept a regular touring schedule with her band Redd & The Paper Flowers.
On Feb. 22, 2023, though, all that changed. On that date, Jason Cooper’s roommate Sarah Scarbrough shot and killed him. Scarbrough will go on trial for second degree murder in March 2025.
The shock and grief of losing her close friend was compounded when Daugherty found out the responsibility she’d been left with.
At first, she felt numb from the shock. Then there was sadness and rage.
“I broke every dish in my house,” she says.
And there was also fear.
“I didn’t know how to run a store,” Daugherty recalls. “It was absolutely terrifying. It’s been around since 1958, and every school depends on it.”
She began reading books on running a business. She hired Kristin Kolbert as the store’s business manager and threw herself into keeping Rush’s Music going.
“My initial thought was, ‘What does the store need, and what does the staff need?’” Daugherty says.
Except for two technicians, the staff at both stores stayed on.
Daugherty also had to familiarize herself with all of the school band directors in the area.
“It’s a very complex web of relationships with band directors,” she says. “You would assume that when you buy a business everything is very transactional, but it’s not. Our first priority is to take care of kids. How do we get them a horn if they don’t have [or can’t afford] one?”
Daugherty says band directors are underappreciated heroes for what they have to deal with.
“Everything is a performance for them,” she says. “They have to work within their budgets. They have a ton of kids who don’t have any resources. Then how do I support them and still break even?”
Also, she had no idea how to fit the time for her own career in amongst her new responsibilities.
“My life was a way I really enjoyed for a while,” she says. “Then it flipped on its head. … It was a [complete] lifestyle change. I put the band on hold, and I didn’t go back into the recording studio for a year.”
Daugherty says she had a breakdown before realizing that she had to find a balance.
“I had trauma-bonded with the store,” she says. “It was like pulling teeth getting me to relinquish any responsibilities.”
Juggling emotions was also difficult. Daugherty adopted Cooper’s dog after his death. When the dog died in April, it reignited the grief of Cooper’s death yet again.
“It’s something I’ll be dealing with for a long time,” says Daugherty. “In 2023, I had more rage and anger in my body than ever before. In 2024, I’ve been more calm and [I’m] processing it.”
It’s only now that Daugherty has been able to dedicate more time to her own music. She hired Lily Ginder as general manager for both locations of Rush’s and has a 22-date tour booked for the spring. One early gig is Jan. 11, opening for Milk Man & The Big Band at the Bijou Theatre. She says the feeling of being away from the store feels a little like how mothers describe the guilt of spending any time away from their young children.
“You feel like you need to be at the store just in case anyone needs anything,” she says. “I’m more comfortable now with Lily and Kristin being there. And I have a booking agent who knows when I need to be [at the store] for the band directors.”
Redd & The Paper Flowers have gone back into the recording studio, as well. However, the band realized that all of the songs they had recorded prior to Daugherty taking over Rush’s needed to be re-recorded because the group had changed them so much throughout the year.
Daugherty says what makes her happiest is being with and making music with her bandmates. Both mandolin player Gavin Gregg and bassist Katie Adams quit other jobs to work at Rush’s and support their bandmate. Paper Flowers’ cellist Colleen d’Alelio does not work at the store but has her own act called Stranger May.
Daugherty is currently planning a release party in 2025 for a new Redd & The Paper Flowers album entitled “Appalachian Bell Jar.”
There has to be a sense of satisfaction in making both the music and the business work.
“There are days when I walk in and think, ‘Oh my gosh, the business is still here!’” says Daugherty. “I feel lucky to be able to carry it on, having people rely on me and not destroy it.”
She sees a future when Rush’s is even more involved in the music community as a whole, supporting artists and sponsoring music events while its proprietor is able to take as much time as possible to continue her own performing career.
“After so much chaos and sadness, rage and anger, it feels odd to feel happy about things,” says Daugherty. “I’m really excited about the future.”
bledsoe@blanknews.com
