Country music fans returned to Nissan Stadium on Friday (June 7) for the second night of CMA Fest.

Kelly Sutton and Amber Anderson of Amazon Music’s Country Heat Weekly podcast welcomed the crowd and introduced the fierce Gretchen Wilson as the evening’s first performer.

Dressed in a black tank top, ripped jeans and tall black boots, Wilson got the audience riled up in the best way with “Here For The Party.” She then paused to greet to everyone, and expressed how great it felt to be back the annual event after so many years. Wilson thanked her loyal fans for sticking with her, and grabbed her guitar for a new tune titled “Little Miss Runner-Up.” Wilson revealed that the song, set to be released this coming week, is the sequel to her 2004 track “Homewrecker.” She asked all the hardworking people present to make some noise as she dove into “Work Hard, Play Harder.” Wilson then inquired about the rednecks in the attendance before belting “Redneck Woman.” The large screens placed on each side of the main stage showed fans singing alongside her as she closed with the classic.

As the sun went down, Jelly Roll came out to keep the energy high for the night’s next act, Parker McCollum. Red rays of light of covered the crowd as he began to strum his guitar for “To Be Loved By You.” Wearing a black baseball cap, blue jeans and black t-shirt that read “made by music,” McCollum moved into “Pretty Heart” and “Young Man’s Blues.” He declared “God bless country music” before playing “Handle On You” and unreleased song “Big Old Fancy House.” McCollum shared how honored he felt to be onstage along with “such incredible talent” and thanked his label for believing in him, in addition to attendees. He grasped his gold mic for “Burn It Down,” descending the main stage stairs to interact with fans as he sang.

All eyes were soon placed on the platform stage to watch Puddin, also known as K. Michelle, perform two tracks from her forthcoming country collection. Jelly Roll then reemerged to welcome Jon Pardi. Pink lights protruded through the stands as he opened with his No. 1 “Your Heart Or Mine.” Pardi had hips swaying as he grabbed a teal-colored guitar for “Heartache On The Dance Floor,” and kept audience members moving as he put it away for “Last Night Lonely.” He gleamed with giddiness as he surprised Nissan with country icon Clint Black. The two then began “Killin’ Time” together. They brought each other into a deep embrace, receiving immense applause and praise, before Black made his exit. In an all black ensemble and tan cowboy hat, Pardi announced that is was time to start the “Night Shift” and went to work on fan-favorite number.

“I’m always thankful to be a part of CMA Fest, especially at Nissan Stadium,” he said. “I want to give a shoutout to all the artists playing everywhere else. Nashville is full of people and artists right now, so I want to give a round of applause everybody out there for singing their hearts out and to all the country music fans from all over. We are country music, and we’ve all got a little dirt on our boots,” concluded Pardi as smoothly slid into “Dirt On My Boots.”

He made his way downstairs to slap the sea of hands on the stadium floor and take some selfies while he sang. Heels continued to joyfully click the concrete the songsmith ended his set with “Head Over Boots.”

The spotlight shined on the platform stage once again as Dasha kept toes tapping with “Didn’t I” and viral tune “Austin.”

Donning a denim-patterned jumpsuit and matching jacket, Kelsea Ballerini was on deck to enchant Nissan with her soft-yet-powerful vocal skills. White light beams swirled among the seats accented by the stage’s blue and purple hues as she emerged singing “Mountain With A View,” the opening number of her Grammy-nominated project Rolling Up The Welcome Mat. She followed by addressing the audience and requesting a trip down memory lane, which granted with many cheers. Ballerini then threw it back with her debut single, “Love Me Like You Mean It.” She shed her jacket and grabbed a pink guitar to call “Dibs” on Nashville with the next tune, blending it into “Yeah Boy.”

Holding a glass of red wine, Ballerini checked in with the crowd and reminisced on attending CMA Fest as little girl with her mother. She speculated that there must be a lot of holes in bottles, being that it was a Friday night in Music City, and toasted to that by with “Hole in The Bottle.” While performing, she introduced her band and immersed herself into the mass of music lovers below.

After raising her glass to Nissan, she shared, “Last year during CMA Fest, I was on tour and wasn’t able to be here. Which means the last time I played this stadium with you was two years ago. My life [now] is unrecognizable [compared] to when I last played here, and that [change] came with a lot of really hard choices and really hard walk things to walk through. But I’ve never been so proud to just be exactly where I am.”

The artist slowed things down by giving a CMA Fest debut performance of “Penthouse,” kneeling down as the stadium belted the lyrics beside her. She then moved into “Blindsided” before bringing out a black guitar to finish with “If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too).”

While fans were eagerly awaiting the next act, a small square stage residing among the floor seats began to glow, and the audience was in awe as Little Big Town suddenly graced it for a surprise performance of “Girl Crush.”

A mash up of tunes honoring the Lonestar State boomed through the venue and Cody Johnson soon came into view. Dressed like a true cowboy, he continued to pay homage to his home state by kicking off his set with “That’s Texas,” further emphasizing his devotion by showing off his Texas-themed chest tattoo. Johnson took out his guitar to cover Charlie Daniels’ “Long Haired Country Boy,” and welcomed Jelly Roll onstage for a touching performance of “Whiskey Bent.” Jelly Roll then asked everyone to give it up for Johnson, deeming him ‘one of the best humans [he’s] ever met, one of the greatest singers to ever do it [and] one of the best overall entertainers.” Johnson had the crowd do the same for Jelly before the two said goodbye with a sincere hug.

Prior to singing his second No. 1 “The Painter,” he stated, “I want to thank country radio not only for this No. 1, but for what they do because I saw people today from Australia, Germany, Canada and more to celebrate country music with us.”

Phone flashlights formed a starry scene as he started to play “Dirt Cheap,” throwing his pick into rows below. He followed by thanking all first responders and checking in on each side of the stadium as he cranked it back up with “People In The Back.” Blue lights blared as he closed with his first chart-topper, “Till You Can’t,” running down the stairs to throw t-shirts and high-five fans.

Although he was the last to take the mic, Luke Bryan kept the stadium enthralled with “That’s My Kind Of Night.” He showcased his guitar skills during “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye,” and jammed alongside both his guitarist and keyboard player for “Huntin’, Fishin’ And Lovin’ Every Day.” As his band rocked the house, Bryan placed his black baseball cap on his guitarist’s head and took a shot.

“I feel amazing, and I ready to have some fun with the greatest country music fans into world—you guys,” he said before shifting to his latest release “Love You, Miss You, Mean It” and his first No. 1 “Do I.” Fuchsia rays flashed as the audience joined him for “Play It Again,” before he threw another shot back for “One Margarita.” Green tones took over the stage as Bryan had every body bopping with “Country Girl (Shake It For Me),” before bringing it home with “I Don’t Want This Night To End.”

 

CMA Fest 2024 is officially here. At Thursday night’s (June 6) opening show at Nissan Stadium, the four-night run kicked off with a loud bang, with sets from Thomas Rhett, Ashley McBryde, Jordan Davis, Lynyrd Skynyrd and more, with plenty of surprise guests.

To get things started, CMA CEO Sarah Trahern welcomed everyone to the 51st annual festival, reminding the crowd that proceeds from CMA Fest benefit music education via the CMA Foundation. After Reyna Roberts sang the National Anthem, the race was on.

Craig Morgan was the first to hit the stage. He kicked off his set with one of CMA Fest-attendees favorite things, nostalgia, singing his 2005 hits “Redneck Yacht Club” and “That’s What I Love About Sunday.” Nissan Stadium was fully engaged by the time he played “Almost Home.”

Morgan spent a lot of his set recognizing members of the military and first responders. The army veteran, who reenlisted into the army reserve earlier this year, spoke about the sacrifice and brotherhood of those who serve, and roused the crowd with his cover of Gavin DeGraw’s “Soldier.”

“This one’s for the farmers!” Morgan exclaimed before closing his set with “International Harvester.” He left the crowd excited and ready for more.

Next up was Jordan Davis, who came out swinging with “Take It From Me.” Transitioning quickly into his first-ever No. 1 “Singles You Up,” Davis immediately took advantage of the stadium-sized stage’s real estate, running from end to end and down near the crowd.

Davis glided through his set with ease, grinning at fans through “Tucson Too Late” and “Slow Dance In A Parking Lot.”

“I moved to town in 2012 to write songs. It’s a dream to be here in front of you guys. But the real dream is being a father to three beautiful girls and a husband to my beautiful wife,” he said before playing his award-winning “Next Thing You Know.”

It was then and when he played the 2022 CMA Song of the Year “Buy Dirt” that became a highlight of the night. Fans were swaying, hugging each other and singing every word to both of the meaningful songs.

Davis closed his up with a electrifying performance of “What My World Spins Around,” making for a great, well-rounded set.

Soon after, fans turned towards the back of the stadium to tune into the Platform Stage. Country trio Chapel Hart were first to have the slot. They charmed fans, as they always do, with “This Girl Likes Fords” and “You Can Have Him Jolene.”

Turning back to the main stage, it was time for Ashley McBryde, who was serving double duty on Thursday night as she is also co-hosting the CMA Fest television special alongside Jelly Roll.

She set the stage ablaze with “Blackout Betty” before thrilling fans with her “One Night Standards.” McBryde gazed out at the crowd with a grateful smile on her face, and appeared to be having the time of her life.

“We wrote this next song with hopes that one day I’d get to play the Grand Ole Opry. Tonight I’m hosting CMA Fest with my friend Jelly Roll and I’m a member of the Grand Ole Opry,” she said before playing “Girl Going Nowhere.” By that point, the crowd was in the palm of her hand.

She continued to impress with “Women Ain’t Whiskey” and “Light On In The Kitchen” before surprising fans by inviting Gretchen Wilson to join her. The two rocked out on “Redneck Woman,” creating a special moment for the two female trailblazers.

McBryde kept the rocking vibes rolling with “Martha Divine” and “The Devil I Know” before exiting the stage, leaving Nissan Stadium thoroughly entertained.

Next up, fans turned their attention once again to the Platform Stage where Dylan Gossett appeared. He sang his viral hit “Coal,” which got everybody singing along, as well as “If I Had a Lover.”

Speaking of viral hits, before the music resumed on the main stage, buzzy newcomer Shaboozey appeared on a small stage in the middle of the floor. He got the whole stadium on their feet with his smash hit “A Bar Song (Tipsy).”

Building on the dance-floor energy, next up was Thomas Rhett. He came out hot with “Look What God Gave Her” and his 20th No. 1 hit “Half of Me.”

Rhett took the chance to try out some new music, opting for a song called “Gone Country” from his recently-announced upcoming album About A Woman. He then got back to the hits, blazing through “Make Me Wanna,” rising single “Beautiful As You,” Moran Wallen-duet “Mamaw’s House” and fan-favorite “Crash and Burn.”

Fans were dancing in the aisles during “What’s Your Country Song” and sang at the top of the lungs to the eight-times Platinum “Die a Happy Man.”

The surprise of the night came next, when Post Malone appeared on the small stage in the middle of the floor. If fans were sitting down, they sprang to their feet when the superstar’s name was announced. Everyone in Nissan Stadium was trying to get a better look.

He sang his history-making debut country single, “I Had Some Help,” before enlisting another star to help with his next song, Blake Shelton. The two had a ball singing their new collaboration “Somebody Pour Me a Drink.”

To close out the next, Rock & Roll Hall of Famers Lynyrd Skynyrd took the stage for a rowdy and exciting performance. The house stayed pretty packed for their set, which started around 11:30.

The legendary band rocked out on “What’s Your Name,” “That Smell” and “The Ballad of Curtis Loew.” Everyone soaked in the moment for their performance of the iconic “Simple Man,” and after “Gimme Three Steps,” the fans were thrilled with another surprise with ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons joined Skynyrd for “Call me the Breeze.”

Closing up CMA Fest night one was an incredible double-whammy of “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Free Bird.” Needless to say, fans left Nissan Stadium thoroughly entertained.

Dolly Parton broke the news to fans at CMA Fest in Nashville this morning (June 6) that a new musical inspired by her life and career, Hello, I’m Dolly, is being developed for Broadway in 2026.

Parton is partnering with ATG Productions to bring the new musical to the stage and will produce it with ATG’s Adam Speers and CTK Enterprises’ Danny Nozell, her longtime manager. The new musical borrows its title from the name of Parton’s first studio album, released in 1967. It will feature a score by Parton, including some of her biggest hits as well as new songs she’s penned especially for the musical, and a book by Parton and Maria S. Schlatter. Additional members of the creative team and casting will be announced at a later date.

“Hello, I’m Dolly, and I lived my whole life to see this show on stage,” says Parton. “I’ve written many original songs for the show and included all your favorites in it as well. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll clap, you’ll stomp, it truly is a Grand Ol’ Opera. Pun and fun intended. Don’t miss it!”

“I first had the pleasure of working with Dolly Parton in 2019 when she trusted us to develop a new version of her musical 9 to 5 for London’s West End,” recalls Speers. “I had always heard she wanted to do a musical based on her life, so when she asked if I would be interested in producing it, I was bowled over. As the world knows, Dolly is a magical blend of talent, hard work, intelligence, charm, wit, and a gigantically big heart. I’m thrilled we’re going to bring her inspiring story to Broadway.”