In downtown Shelby, the old State Theater, a movie house that first opened in 1939 and was described then by the local newspaper as, “one of the most strikingly beautiful building fronts of the modern day.”  Today, this 400-seat performance venue, offers a slate of live shows and concerts that fill the house several times every month. The theater also operates again as a movie house, where both new and classic films are screened periodically throughout the year.

The Don Gibson Theatre is named in honor of the town's famous musical native son. Before becoming a best-selling recording artist and country music star, Donald Eugene Gibson, born April 3, 1928, had been a textile mill worker, a delivery man, a dishwasher, a soda jerk, and a truck driver. His career began in 1948 when his band, Sons of the Soil, played frequent live gigs on local radio station WOHS. During the 1950s and 1960s, Don Gibson became one of the most popular and influential artists in country music. He created numerous highly successful records as a performer and as a songwriter. His first hit single, “Sweet Dreams,” was released in 1956. During the next several years, from 1958 to 1961, he wrote and recorded an amazing array of top-ten singles. Don Gibson died in Nashville on November 17, 2003, and is buried in the Sunset Cemetery in Shelby.