The heart of country music, Nashville is home to countless jewels. One of those is Santa’s Pub, a Bransford Avenue dive that celebrates Christmas 365 days a year. Sadly, many Nashvillians are currently battling flash floods as heavy rains pelted parts of the South and Midwest over the past several days. With footage of the aftermath dominating social media, fans of Santa’s Pub expressed devastation to see that the waters had reached their beloved karaoke bar.
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Santa’s Pub Has Been a Nashville Staple For Years
There are rules for karaoke at Santa’s Pub: “No Beer, No Cussin’, and No Cigarettes on Santa’s stage!” The owner, Denzel “Santa” Irwin will absolutely enforce the second one offstage, as well.
“There’s no cussing at Santa’s. You respect women or find another bar,” Irwin told WKRN in 2022. “I’m an ole’ country boy, that’s the way it is.”
You can’t get a cocktail at Santa’s; only cheap beer. Oh, and did we mention it’s inside a double-wide trailer permanently decked for Christmas?
The establishment has served a mix of regulars and A-list celebrities since opening its doors in 2011. “Everyone from Kacey Musgraves to Mumford & Sons has sang in this room,” Irwin said in 2015.
A video posted Thursday (April 3) by TikTok user David Alvarez shows Santa’s surrounded by floodwaters, tornado sirens blaring in the background. It’s unclear from the footage if the waters actually made it inside the building. Still, many former patrons expressed heartbreak at the sight.
“Not Santa’s pub!!!!” was a common refrain in the viral video’s comments. “[I swear to God] if Santa’s is gone..” lamented one TikTok user. Another added, “Not Santa’s take anything else.”
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More Rain Expected For Tennessee
Hopefully, Santa’s Pub didn’t sustain any lasting damage. However, the threat is far from over. According to National Weather Service Nashville, “All modes of severe weather are possible, including a tornado or two,” on Saturday.
The storms that swept through Tennessee on Wednesday night and Thursday have left five people dead, The Tennessean reports.
Featured image by Jason Davis/Getty Images
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