While we were in Nashville for the IBMA convention earlier this month, I had occasion to speak with Kyle Cantrell, on-air host and program director for XM Satellite Radio’s Bluegrass Junction (track 14), which broadcasts bluegrass music 24/7 to XM subscribers.

Kyle caught me up on XM Nashville’s plans to move soon into new facilities, which had been announced in late August. For the past six years, Bluegrass Junction has been broadcast from a small studio space in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and Kyle tells me that he is eager to get a look at their new home as soon as construction is completed.

Bluegrass Junction has been able to air live, in-studio performances on a semi-regular basis, but had always been restricted by their need to lease studio space elsewhere whenever such an occasion arose. Kyle says that the new space will have a dedicated live performance studio, to be shared by the several XM channels currently based in Nashville, and he hopes to be able to offer more, and more timely live programming once they move to the new facility.

The new studio space will be located downtown in the arena towers, adjacent to the Nashville Arena, officially known as The Sommet Center, which is also home to the Nashville Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.