Branson is booming again. The Branson Boom of the ‘80s saw the community explode as a major entertainment city. Now the town itself is taking off. The 2010 census says Branson’s population has grown 73 percent in the last decade. It’s now 10,520, a surprise to city officials who were hoping the city might have reached 8,000. Branson had 6,050 people ten years ago.