In a few short weeks Country Music’s biggest party (CMA Fest) will be once again taking over Nashville! With the event vastly approaching we are taking a look ahead at the 2017 event! Variety Beat will be there bringing coverage from all 4 days! There’s a lot of reasons to be excited about this year’s festival!
10. City Of Hope Softball Game

This is always a fun event and one that has been going on for 27 years! The event takes some of country music’s up and coming stars as well as superstars and puts them on the baseball diamond! It also puts fans really close to the artists and makes for a great event for everyone! All proceeds from the game benefit City of Hope which raises money for Cancer research and treatment! The first round of this year’s team lineup as already been announced! Kellie Pickler, Lauren Alaina, Danielle Bradbery, Aaron Watson and The Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe and her fiancé Shawn Booth are in the first group announced! It has been announced that Reba McEntire will be singing the national anthem! Tickets can be purchased on ticketmaster.com and more information can be found at cityofhope.com 

 

The stars are beginning to line up for the 2017 City of Hope Celebrity Softball Game presented by Staples. Joining us on the field at First Tennessee Park on June 10 will be all-stars @kelliepickler, @laurenalaina, @aaronwatsonmusic, @saraevansmusic, @bobbybonesshow, and @kaitlynbristowe and @shawn_booth18 from ABC’s “The Bachelorette,” with more artists to be announced! Award-winning country music singer, actress and author @reba will be performing the National Anthem. Get your tickets at http://bit.ly/cohcsg17. Follow the game on social media: #strikeoutcancer17.

A post shared by cityofhope (@cityofhope) on Apr 27, 2017 at 10:41am PDT

 

9. Chevrolet Riverfront Stage 

One of the coolest stages at CMA fest is the Riverfront stage! It’s one of the free stages of the festival , the seating for fans is the actual hillside and the flowing behind the stage is the Cumberland river which gives some fans opportunities to watch from their boats! The Riverfront stage rocks all 4 days starting at 10am and ending sometime in the late afternoon usually around 5. This years lineup can be found here!

8. Country Music Hall Of Fame 

The Hall of Fame is always a hub of continuous activity. Anything from Autograph signings, performances, Fan Club Parties and other events happen there throughout the festival! They also have pop up events that happen with just a few hours notice! So make sure you keep an eye on all of the Hall of Fame’s social media accounts.

Thanks for the 🍪s @thundertech! You know the way to our 💛s!!!

A post shared by Country Music Hall of Fame (@officialcmhof) on Dec 15, 2016 at 10:14am PST

7. The Opry Store on Broadway 

While the Grand Ole Opry takes place at the Opry house in the summer, the spirit of the Opry lives on at the Opry Store that’s located on Broadway! During the festival they do a lot of signings in the back area of the store! These tend to be smaller crowds in some cases, and It gives fans a chance to meet Stars that may not be in Fan Fair X. Keep an eye on the Opry’s social media accounts to find out who they will have in store!
6. HGTV Lodge 

The lodge is free but you do have to have a wrist band to get in! The lodge has performances from different artists throughout the 4 days. Not only do you get to see exclusive performances, but the lodge has fans to help everyone get a break from the heat! Wristbands can be won on the giveaway that is done on the CMAfest website closer to the event.

5. Chevrolet Park Stage, Gildan Broadway Stage at Hard rock Cafe, Music City Stage and Budweiser Forever Country Park Stage 
These 4 stages offer a lot of amazing performances from a lot of artists! Each stage is packed full of acts! Artists such as Sundance Head, Kristian Busch, Love and Theft, Lindsay Ell, Mo Pintney, Ryan Follese, Jamie Lynn Spears, Olivia Lane, Kalie Shorr, Natalie Stovall and more! Full lineups can be found below!

CMA FEST: GILDAN BROADWAY STAGE PERFORMERS ANNOUNCED!

CMA FEST: CHEVROLET PARK STAGE PERFORMERS ANNOUNCED!

CMA FEST: BUDWEISER FOREVER COUNTRY STAGE PERFORMERS ANNOUNCED!

CMA FEST: Music City Stage Lineup Announced!
4. Night Time Events!

The party don’t end when the concerts at Nissan Stadium end! A lot of events take place at the Honky Tonk and other venues in the area! They range from fan club parties, late night Jam sessions to concerts for charities! Last year Charlie Worsham did a late night jam session at Ernest Tubb Record Shop on Broadway! With several of his friends like Brandy Clark and Eric Church dropping by! The event became so popular throughout the week that they eventually moved it to another venue.

An event that’s already been announced for this year’s Festival is The 2017 concert for Love and Acceptance hosted by Ty Herndon and Cody Allan!

Super Star Lineup Announced For Ty Herndon’s 2017 Concert For Love and Acceptance!

Several artist’s have already been announced for the concert with more coming soon! Some that have already been announced are: Thompson Square, Billy Gilman, Lorrie Morgan, Michael Ray, Kree Harrison, Runaway June, and Ryan Kinder!

3. Fan Fair X 

Fan Fair X is one of the most versatile areas of the festival! Not only is it a great place to cool off and eat all the goodies you find at the food trucks lining the street! It’s also the home of 3 stages and it’s also where you meet the stars! There is the Radio Disney Stage which is always filled with fresh and upcoming talent! Kelsea Ballerini, Lauren Alaina and Megan and Liz were just a few of the acts featured on that stage last year! Also featured in Fan Fair x is The Durango Music Spot and The CMA Close Up stage!

You can find booths for all the major labels as well as some of the artists! You can also shop in the market place area which has a variety of things from clothes, to jewelry and more! To get into Fan Fair X you either need a 4 day pass or you can purchase a $10 pass for each day!
2. Nightly Concerts at Nissan Stadium The nightly concerts at Nissan Stadium are one of the biggest draws of the festival! In just 4 nights you can see 24 of country music’s biggest and brightest stars on the same stage! Also there is always a surprise or 2 that always happens! A full list of performers and what days they will be appearing are listed here.

CMA FEST: Nightly Concert Lineup Announced For Nissan Stadium!
1. The Surprises 

There are always a few surprises during CMA fest! They range from pop up shows in bars and on street corners to meet and greets that go on for hours. You never quite know where someone is going to pop up at and in the last few years social media has aided in being able to keep track of your favorite artist. Make sure you have the CMA Fest app downloaded as well as any other social media apps. Keep an eye on all of the accounts because a lot of artists have used them in the last few years to form ‘hunts’ around Nashville for various items! So if you are attending this year’s festival be sure to keep an eye out for any events that could pop up!
Are you excited for CMA Fest like we are? Keep an eye on the site as we will be posting more articles about the festival!