If you are concerned about the Crowne Plaza being a bit further from the Downtown sights (Beale, Peabody, etc.), they were running a free shuttle last time I stayed there. Drivers were happy to drive you around until about midnight-ish.
I actually live fairly close by and I have no idea what it could be. I just searched for some dates on Hotwire in May to host my family when they come in and the sam hotel came up. Did you end up booking it? Any advice on what it is?