‘Nashville’s Big Bash’ Rings In 2023 With Record Breaking Attendance

Music City rang in 2023 earlier this week with the second annual Jack Daniel’s New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash, which aired live on CBS and Paramount+.

Following the festivities, Metro Nashville Police and event officials have estimated that a record-breaking crowd of 210,000 attendees were present at midnight, surpassing the event’s 2019 record of just over 200,000. Last year, despite ongoing COVID-19 protocols, approximately 200,000 people packed downtown to celebrate the new year.

The Bash was headquartered at Nashville’s annual free concert and Music Note Drop at Bicentennial Mall, but also moved around to some of Music City’s famed honky-tonks for many of the night’s performances. Grammy-nominated artists Elle King and Jimmie Allen took over the event’s hosting duties alongside Entertainment Tonight’s Rachel Smith.

The five hour special, finished with the renowned Music Note Drop, featured more than 50 performances from some of country music’s brightest stars and more, including Brooks & Dunn, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, Zac Brown Band, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Darius Rucker, Jimmie Allen, Dierks Bentley, King Calaway, Sheryl Crow, Flo-Rida, Riley Green, Elle King, Ashley McBryde, Steve Miller, Thomas Rhett, Darius Rucker, Lainey Wilson, and The War And Treaty.

Last year, the live show for Nashville’s Big Bash generated an estimated $30 million in direct visitor spending, setting a new record and marking an increase of 12 percent over 2019’s record-breaking $26.6 million.

Additionally, the 2021 broadcast placed second among networks in viewers during primetime and earned 4.44 million viewers.

Final viewership and other statistics have not yet been released for this year’s event.