The Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum is a Smithsonian Institution affiliate located at 191 Beale Street on the plaza of FedExForum in downtown Memphis, Tennessee. This guide covers opening hours, ticket prices, transport, parking, accessibility, and practical visitor tips to help you plan your visit.
Updated May 2026. All current admission figures below are confirmed from the official website. To skip the information and just book your tickets, head here.
Quick facts: Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Address | 191 Beale St, Memphis, TN 38103 |
| Phone | (901) 205-2533 |
| Opening hours | Daily 10:00am–5:00pm |
| Last admission | 4:15pm |
| Closed | Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day |
| Adult admission | $16 |
| Youth admission (ages 5–17) | $12 |
| Children aged 4 and under | Free |
| Combo ticket (+ Memphis Music Hall of Fame) | $21 per person |
| Nearest parking | Paid lots and street parking adjacent to FedExForum |
| Public transport | MATA buses serve downtown Memphis |
| Typical visit duration | 1–2 hours |
Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum opening hours
The museum is open daily from 10:00am to 5:00pm. Final admission is at 4:15pm — visitors arriving after this time will not be admitted.
The museum closes on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day only. It is open on all other public holidays, including July 4th and Labor Day.
Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum ticket prices
Tickets can be purchased at the front desk on arrival. There is no requirement to book in advance for standard visits.
| Visitor type | Price |
|---|---|
| Adults | $16 |
| Youth (ages 5–17) | $12 |
| Children (aged 4 and under) | Free |
| Combo ticket — Rock ‘n’ Soul + Memphis Music Hall of Fame | $21 per person |
Admission discounts are available for AARP members, AAA members, Smithsonian Institution members, and members of the US military. Bring valid membership or ID to receive the discount at the front desk.
Shelby County Tuesdays — free admission for local residents. Shelby County residents enter free every Tuesday. Bring a driver’s licence or photo ID confirming your 901-area residency. Up to four residents per visit. Youth must be accompanied by a guardian. This offer is for individuals and families only — day cares, summer camps, and scout groups are not eligible under this scheme but can access separate reduced group rates by calling in advance.
Opening hours and ticket prices were checked on the official website and last updated in May 2026.
Five great things to do in Memphis
- 🎸 Enjoy a private luxury tour of Memphis – with Graceland tickets included.
- 🍖 Get a taste of Tennessee – on a Downtown Memphis food tour.
- 🛥️ Take a Memphis discovery tour – with Mississippi cruise and Sun Studio add-on options.
- 🏙️ Discover Memphis beyond Beale Street – on a historic walking tour.
- 🚗 Hop on a day tour to Tupelo – and see Elvis’ childhood home.
How to get to the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
The museum sits at the corner of Beale Street and B.B. King Boulevard (also known as Highway 61 — the Blues Highway) in downtown Memphis, on the plaza of FedExForum.
By car: FedExForum and the museum are well signed from all major downtown approaches. From I-40 or I-55, follow signs for downtown Memphis and Beale Street.
By public transport: Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA) buses serve downtown Memphis, with stops within walking distance of Beale Street. Check current routes and schedules at matatransit.com before travelling. Rideshare services (Uber and Lyft) also operate throughout the city and are widely used by visitors.
On foot: The museum is walkable from most downtown hotels and from many other central Memphis attractions, including Beale Street itself, which begins at the museum’s front door.
Parking at the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
There is no dedicated parking at the museum. Paid parking is available in multiple lots surrounding FedExForum and along Beale Street. Street parking is also available but limited. Note: parking rates near FedExForum increase significantly on event nights (NBA Memphis Grizzlies games and concerts). Check the FedExForum schedule before choosing your parking lot, and consider arriving earlier or parking further from the arena on event days.
How long to spend at the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
The museum suggests allowing approximately one hour. Most visitors spend one to two hours, particularly those who engage fully with the audio tour. The audio guide contains over 100 music tracks and several hours of content; visitors can choose which segments to listen to at each exhibit. Allowing 90 minutes is a reliable baseline for a thorough visit.
Accessibility at the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
The museum is wheelchair accessible. The exhibits and audio tour are designed to be navigable for visitors with mobility needs. The audio guide is available in multiple languages. Visitors with specific accessibility requirements are encouraged to contact the museum in advance at (901) 205-2533.
Inside the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum: what to see
An audio guide with headphones is included with every admission ticket and is the primary way of experiencing the museum. The guide is structured as a self-directed tour, allowing visitors to choose which tracks to listen to at each exhibit point. The collection includes over 300 artefacts — instruments, costumes, original recording equipment, photographs, and memorabilia.
Rural Culture and Rural Music are the opening exhibits. They cover the blues, gospel, and country traditions of the Mississippi Delta region, including work songs, ballads, field hollers, and the role of Victrolas and battery-powered radios in carrying music across the rural South. These exhibits establish the musical conditions that preceded rock and soul.
Coming to Memphis covers the migration of sharecroppers and rural musicians to the city, and the role of Beale Street as a hub of Black commerce and nightlife during the segregation era. It addresses how Memphis music crossed racial lines through live performance, radio, and recordings even as the city itself remained socially segregated.
Sun Records and Youth Culture is among the most visited sections of the museum. It covers Sam Phillips and the founding of Sun Records, and the recordings made there — from B.B. King and Howlin’ Wolf to Roy Orbison and, in July 1954, Elvis Presley. The exhibit traces how rock and roll became a national phenomenon and a cultural language for American youth by 1955.
Soul Music covers the rise of Memphis’s STAX, HI, and Satellite record labels from the late 1950s through the 1970s. It examines the collaboration between Black and white musicians and the way soul music became both a commercial force and a vehicle for political expression and Black cultural identity during the civil rights era.
Social Changes addresses the intersection of music and the civil rights movement in Memphis, including the events of 1968 and the relationship between the Memphis sound and broader social transformation.
The Bravo Gallery closes the permanent exhibition and honours the musicians, producers, and industry figures whose contributions shaped global popular music. Artists ranging from Justin Timberlake to Isaac Hayes are represented.
Practical visitor tips for the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| Use the audio guide | The audio tour is included in admission and is central to the experience. Visitors who skip it or rush through it consistently report getting less from the museum. Plan your timing around the tour rather than treating it as optional. |
| Arrive before 4:15pm | Final admission is at 4:15pm sharp. Visitors arriving at or after this time will not be able to enter, even if the museum closes at 5:00pm. Plan to arrive by 4:00pm at the latest if you have an afternoon visit in mind. |
| Check the FedExForum event schedule | On Memphis Grizzlies game nights or major concert evenings, nearby parking prices increase sharply and streets around Beale Street become congested. Rideshare or walking from your hotel is a better option on event days. |
| Combine with the Memphis Music Hall of Fame | A combo ticket covering both museums costs $21 per person — only $5 more than solo Rock ‘n’ Soul admission. The Hall of Fame is a short walk east along Beale Street at the corner of Second Street. |
| Tuesday is free for Shelby County residents | If you live in the 901 area, bring a photo ID and enter free on any Tuesday. Groups of more than four, and organised youth groups, are not eligible under this scheme and should call ahead for group rates. |
Frequently asked questions about the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum suitable for children? | Yes, particularly for older children and teenagers with an interest in music or history. Children aged 4 and under enter free. The audio guide and artefact displays engage most ages, though the historical content about segregation and civil rights is more relevant to older visitors. |
| Do you need to book tickets in advance for the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum? | No. Tickets are available at the front desk on arrival. Last admission is at 4:15pm. Shelby County residents claiming free Tuesday admission should bring a valid photo ID. |
| Is the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum open on Sundays? | Yes. The museum is open daily, including Sundays, from 10:00am to 5:00pm, with last admission at 4:15pm. It closes only on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. |
| Is the audio guide included in the ticket price? | Yes. The audio guide with headphones is included with every standard admission ticket at no additional cost. |
| What is the Backstage Pass and where do I buy it? | The Backstage Pass is a multi-attraction bundle covering Rock ‘n’ Soul, Sun Studio, the Stax Museum, and Graceland for $108 per person. It is purchased at the Rock ‘n’ Soul front desk, is valid for one year, and saves approximately $25 against individual admission prices. |
Things to do near the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum
Beale Street (from the museum’s front door) is a historic entertainment district running east from B.B. King Boulevard. The street has been central to the development of blues and soul music since the early 20th century and today contains live music venues, bars, and restaurants operating from mid-afternoon into the late evening.
Memphis Music Hall of Fame (Beale Street at Second Street, ~3 minutes’ walk) honours Memphis-born and Memphis-affiliated musicians across all genres. A combo ticket combining this museum with Rock ‘n’ Soul is available for $21 per person at the Rock ‘n’ Soul front desk.
National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel (450 Mulberry Street, ~10 minutes’ walk south) is built around the site where Dr Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in April 1968. The museum traces the history of the American civil rights movement and is one of the most visited history museums in the South.
Sun Studio (706 Union Avenue, ~1.5 miles north, ticketed) is the recording studio founded by Sam Phillips in 1950, where Elvis Presley, B.B. King, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Roy Orbison all recorded. Self-guided tours run throughout the day. The studio is still in active use for recording.
The Peabody Memphis (149 Union Avenue, ~5 minutes’ walk) is a historic luxury hotel whose lobby hosts a twice-daily duck march — ducks travel by elevator to and from the hotel’s rooftop pond each morning and afternoon. Free to watch from the lobby.
What to visit tomorrow: music museums within two hours of Memphis
Stax Museum of American Soul Music (Memphis, ~15 minutes by car) is built on the original site of Stax Records and covers 17,000 square feet of exhibits on soul, R&B, and gospel. The collection includes Isaac Hayes’s gold-plated Cadillac Eldorado and a full-scale replica of the original Stax recording studio.
Delta Blues Museum (Clarksdale, MS, ~1.5 hours south on Highway 61) is located in Clarksdale, at the crossroads where Robert Johnson is said to have made his famous deal. The museum covers the origins and development of Delta blues through artefacts, instruments, and recordings.
Tina Turner Museum (Brownsville, TN, ~1 hour north-east) is housed in the Flagg Grove School, the schoolhouse Tina Turner attended as a child in Nutbush, Tennessee. The museum covers her life and career through personal photographs, costumes, and memorabilia.
International Rock-A-Billy Hall of Fame and Museum (Jackson, TN, ~1.5 hours north-east) is located in Jackson, the hometown of rockabilly pioneer Carl Perkins. It sits midway between Memphis and Nashville and focuses on the early intersection of rock and country that produced rockabilly.
Elvis Presley Birthplace and Museum (Tupelo, MS, ~1 hour 45 minutes south-east) is the two-room shotgun house where Elvis Presley was born in 1935. The site includes the birthplace itself, a museum, a memorial chapel, and the hardware store where a young Elvis bought his first guitar.
More Tennessee travel
Other Tennessee travel guides on Planet Whitley include:
- Plan your visit to the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum, Legends of Country Music Museum and Johnny Cash Museum in Nashville.
- First time visitor guides to Belmont Mansion and Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage in Nashville.
- Practical visitor guide to Lane Motor Museum and the Tennessee State Museum in Nashville.
- Visiting Ruby Falls and Rock City Gardens from Chattanooga.
- Plan your visit to the Hunter Museum of American Art and Sculpture Fields at Montague Park in Chattanooga.
