This year will be my family's 5th year to attend the CMA Music Festival in Nashville, Tennessee. I wanted to publish this article so others will know what to expect and have a better understanding of the entire festival so they can take advantage of everything there is to offer.
What is CMA Music Fest?
The CMA Music Festival is a 4 day summer event in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, that offers day and night entertainment for all things relevant in the country music world. Hundreds of artists will perform live at multiple venues and some may even be around for meet and greets, autograph sessions, and photo opportunities. This year, CMA Fest is taking place June 11th-14th. More than a hundred thousand country music fans will be roaming the streets of Nashville in their quest to lap up as many activities as possible.
How do I get tickets?
Tickets are sold 13 months in advance and sell out within days. While Ticketmaster is the original distributor, they can be found on third party sites such as StubHub or RazorGator. You can buy a 4 day pass or single day tickets, depending on your schedule. A 4 day ticket includes access to the nightly LP Field concerts and AT&T U-verse Fan Fair X Hall. Aside from these 2 events, everything else at CMA Fest is free. Tickets for AT&T U-verse Fan Fair X can be purchased on-site, depending on availability ($10 per day or $25 for all 4 days).
Where will I stay?
Good luck! Hotels in the area book up nearly a year in advance, but you may luck out and find a room here or there. I would suggest looking into renting from a Nashville local on sites such as Airbnb, VRBO, or Tripadvisor. Hotels within walking distance of the festival include the Omni, Hilton Downtown, Hyatt Place Downtown, Renaissance, and Union Station Hotel. We have stayed in neighboring cities before and although the drive can be a pain, if you allot time for traffic the commute is not that bad.
Where will I park?
Nashville has lots of parking lots and garages scattered throughout downtown. Although parking can be pricy, it is worth it to be close to everything during the day and only a walk across the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge, to LP Field, away.
LP Field parking passes can be purchased through Ticketmaster. Cars must be removed from the lot 2 hours after the final performance and although some rules apply, this is the closest parking for the nightly concerts. Keep in mind that traffic is horrendous before and after the shows, so allow adequate time for traveling.
Many hotels in the downtown area provide shuttles to and from the festival, which is a huge plus. Although you may have to wait to be picked up, it is free from the hassle of parking and driving on congested streets.
An alternative to driving downtown is to take a LYFT (cars with pink mustaches) or UBER ride. These are ride share programs in which locals will pick you up and drop you off at your requested location. Both are done entirely through apps on your mobile device. Look online as there are often codes which can be redeemed for free rides.
My daughter Taylor meeting her favorite Siruis XM Highway Radio Broadcaster, Storme Warren.
Where can I eat?
There are many restaurants, both counter and full service, on Broadway and the surrounding streets. Food trucks are often located outside the Music City Walk of Fame park and kiosks are built in some of the concert areas. Merchants is our restaurant of choice, but keep in mind all these places will be on a wait and do not accept reservations. Jack's Bar-B-Que, Puckett's Grocery & Restaurant, Wildhorse Saloon, Fleet Street Pub, Melting Pot, the Palm Restaurant, Joe's Crab Shack, and Husk are some other choices. LP Field has a wide selection of food including a very popular Logans Roadhouse booth.
What is the Buckle?
The Buckle is a group of blocked off streets on Broadway that allow pedestrians to roam freely throughout the festival's grounds (often referred to as Honky Tonk Row). Booths will be set up in this area offering snacks, games, contests, entertainment, free samples, and more. One year they even had pets for adoption. It is always a good idea to stop by for free sunscreen and ice cream cups. Fun Nashville honky-tonks line these lower Broadway streets and welcome you in all hours of the day. This is one party that never sleeps; four days of fun and cram packed streets full of country music lovers.
Where will I see the music performances?
There are a plethora of venus around town.
The Chevrolet Riverfront Stage, on the Cumberland River bank, is home to the best acts during the day. Their lineups include new artists as well as country music legends. 4 day ticket holders can get in starting at 9 am while non-ticket holders have to wait until 9:45. Performances start at 10 am and you will need to be there when the gates open in order to get a spot if you plan on seeing any concert there during the day (this can make for incredibly long days in the summer sun). This year, Sirius XM Radio is hosting a "Highway Find" concert series all day Wednesday here to kick off CMA Fest. It is a nice bonus day of performances from artists many people have never heard of, and may be headliners in the near future.
My daughters on the pedestrian bridge, Steel Magnolia, James Otto.
Located right outside of Bridgestone Arena, on the corner of 5th and Broadway, is the Bud Light Plaza. They will have music from morning unit late in the afternoon.
The Belk Park Stage is between the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Hilton Suites, at The Park. It is a smaller venue and provides hammocks and cornhole games.
Right outside of LP Field is the BMI Tailgate Party. It kicks off at 4:45 and gets people pumped up for the nightly concerts.
Jon Pardi
New music acts can be seen at the Chevrolet Roadhouse Stage, in Fan Alley (on Broadway between 3rd and 4th avenue).
The CMA website has a lottery where people can win entry into performances at The HGTV Lodge, located in Fan Alley. It is a barn made for the music festival and often includes HGTV stars, such as Drew and Jonathan Scott. They also have a Jack Daniels trailer you can walk through to learn about the distillery process and purchase their beverages.
The Gildan Broadway Stage at the Hard Rock Cafe is between The Buckle and Riverfront.
LP Field is home to the best concerts of CMA Fest. Each night is packed with a star-studded lineup that is sure to get you on your feet. Since this is a football stadium, they have a strict bag/purse policy so make sure to check on that prior to your arrival. LP Field holds 65,000+ people so be prepared for the crowds.
AT&T U-Verse Fan Fair X is located in the Music City Center building and is full of fun things to do: playing games, browsing through country music memorabilia, and seeing musicians being interviewed, performing, or signing autographs. We have met many performers here in the past. Fan Fair X has 3 concert stages and live performances all day. Booths are sponsored by local businesses, TV stations, and country music apparel giving patrons a chance to shop, meet up and coming artists, or buy concert paraphanalia.
My daughter Peyton meeting one of her idols, Lisa Marie Presley.
Crystal Gayle, Sarah Darling, Lynn Anderson (we got to sing with her), Lorrie Morgan and Pam Tillis.
My daughter Taylor with Corey Smith, Lauren Alaina, Scotty McCreery, Darryl Worley
How will I spend my day?
Prior to your arrival in Nashville, download the CMA Music Festival app on your phone. It will allow you to create a custom schedule for each day, as well as share it with friends. How you spend your day is entirely up to what artists you want to see and what aspects of the festival you want to experience. Generally, we spend our days running between the Riverfront, Fan Fair X, the Bud Light Plaza, and Belk Stage. Sometimes we have time to get across town to change clothes and then fight traffic back to LP field in time for the concerts; but other times, we are downtown from 9 am until 12 am. There is so much to see and do that there is not a lot of time to sleep. If you go to the bars after LP Field, you can guarantee a rough start to your morning as you will get even less sleep. Oh to be young again!
What stars will be there?
The lineups completely change every year. This is the biggest change in LP field performers that we have seen in 5 years. Some of the highlights for this year's festival include Jason Aldean, Eric Church, Sam Hunt, A Thousand Horses, Alan Jackson, Charles Esten and Chris Carmack from ABC's Nashville, Chris Young, Cole Swindell, Florida Georgia Line, Keith Urban, Kellie Pickler, Lady Antebellum, Luke Bryan, Little Big Town, Randy Houser, Rascal Flatts, Thomas Rhett, The Band Perry, Zac Brown Band, Chase Rice, Corey Smith, Dan + Shay, Dustin Lynch, Eric Paslay, Gary Allan, Tanya Tucker, The Cadillac Three, Thompson Square, Blackjack Billy, Greg Bates, Sunny Sweeney, Jessie James Decker, Casey Donahew Band, Dallas Smith, Deana Carter, Jamie Lynn Spears, Gwen Sebastian, Jana Kramer, JT Hodges, Locash, Adam Sanders, Old Dominion, and Logan Mize.
Things to know
Check in at Fan Fair X Hall, located in the Music City Center, to get lanyards for your 4 day passes, lineup schedules, as well as tote bags containing coupons, maps, and other goodies. This is the ultimate place to cool down from the incredibly high Nashville temperatures.
Stay hydrated! Vendors can be found all over town selling bottled water for $1.
Wear loads of sunscreen.
Familiarize yourself with the free shuttle services available here.
Selfie sticks, Go-Pros, and umbrellas are not permitted in any of the venues. Purses or bags will be checked thoroughly.
Trivia: The CMA Fest was originally referred to as Fan Fair and changed its name in 2004. In 1996, Garth Brooks signed autographs for 23 hours straight, no breaks! In 2001, Fan Fair moved to downtown Nashville from the Municipal Auditorium. Artists performing at the festival do so free of charge and proceeds from the concert benefit the school music program, "Keep the Music Playing".
Budweiser hosts and sponsors many events so every year we get to see the Clydesdale horses and dalmatian of commercial fame.
This year is both exciting and a let down both because it will be another great year of memories for my daughters and I (our 5th year) but CMA has changed so many things around and these changes are not sitting well with the fans. For instance, admission to the Riverfront Stage is now free for anyone. This means more insane crowds and the value of the 4-day pass has been diminished. Also, the prompt of having to sign up for dozens of different activities and chances, for a slim number to be selected is annoying. Regardless, the concerts will be great fun and everyone will go home wet with sweat but full of wonderful memories of sharing four days of country music with like-minded fans.
If you have ever been to the CMA Music Fest, I would love to hear your comments. Also, if you have any questions, fire away and I will try my best to answer them.
2011 Highlights: Big & Rich, Reba, Brad Paisley, waiting at the Riverfront Stage, Jason Aldean featuring special guest Kelly Clarkson, Sugarland, Keith Urban, Trace Adkins, Clint Black, Thompson Square, Easton Corbin, Zac Brown featuring guest Randy Travis, Shania Twain,Luke Bryan.
Reba, Shania Twain, Easton Corbin, Zac Brown with guest Randy Travis.
Jason Aldean with special guest Kelly Clarkson
2012 Highlights: Eric Church, Hunter Hayes, Luke Bryan, Kenny Rogers, The Band Perry, Carrie Underwood, Ronnie Milsap, Brad Paisley, Faith Hill, Colt Ford, Blake Shelton, Rodney Adkins, Lady Antebellum, Glen Campbell, Jake Owen, Miranda Lambert.
Eric Church
Blake Shelton, Zac Brown, Miranda Lambert, Kenny Rogers.
Lady Antebellum
2013 Highlights: Taylor Swift featuring special guest Tim McGraw, Luke Bryan, Zac Brown feating special guest Kid Rock, Randy Travis, Kip Moore, Hunter Hayes featuring special guest Jason Mraz, Lady Antebellum, Blake Shelton, Little Big Town featuring special guest Sheryl Crow, Florida Georgia Line, Jason Aldean featuring Lenny Kravitz, Kelly Clarkson, Lee Greenwood, Dierks Bentley, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley featuring special guest Charlie Daniels, The Band Perry, Jake Owen.
Taylor Swift with special guests Keith Urban and Tim McGraw
Hunter Hayes, Florida Georgia Line, Brett Eldredge, Jason Aldean with special guest Kid Rock.
Little Big Town filming for ABC's "Country Music Night to Rock" in the middle of the audience.
This special guest made my day: Lenny Kravitz.
My personal favorite, Dierks Bentley.
2014 highlights: Miranda Lambert with special guest Carrie Underwood, Brantley Gilbert, Alabama, my daughters Tweet and picture being on the screens every night of CMA fest, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Travis Tritt, The Band Perry, Blake Shelton, Tim McGraw with special guest Faith Hill, Eric Church. The Luke Bryan pictures are from my very favorite CMA memory thus far; his dedication of the song "Drink a Beer" to his brother with the whole crowd singing along and giving a moment of silence. It was ultimate to be part of his special moment.
Eric Church, Jason Aldean, Tim McGraw, Miranda Lambert with special guest Carrie Underwood.
Luke Bryan's "Drink a Beer".