Roots, Toots n' Hoots Blog

A successful CMA Music Festival

Jeffrey Remz  |  June 11, 2012

The economy may not be doing so well, but don't tell that to tends of thousands of country music fans.

According to the Country Music, this year's annual four-day shindig, aka the Country Music Festival in Nashville, drew a record-breaking 71,000 fans.

That represented a 9-percent increase over the 2011 total. CMA officials said part of the reason could have been increased seating at LP Field, sight of nightly concerts. The CMA, however, always manages to throw a few wrinkles into the mix, including free concerts, to draw the crowds.

Apparently those who attended had a great time. A survey provided by the festival said that 94 percent of respondents said they planned to return to the 2013 version.

And best of all, the money from the festival helps music education in the Nashville area schools. No performers are paid for their services (of course, the benefit to the musicians is that they get to deepen the connection with their fans, something ultra-important in the country genre). In return, the CMA donates money for education.

Congrats to the Country Music Association for putting on the festival, the musicians who played and most of all the fans who came because without them, this couldn't happen.