2017 CMA Music Festival Adds Additional Performers to Upcoming Festival

The 2017 CMA Music Festival just got a whole lot bigger with the addition of more stages, more artists and more music!

2017 CMA Music Festival Adds Additional Performers to Upcoming Festival
Phil Vassar; Photo courtesy Webster Public Relations

As country music fans anxiously await the 2017 CMA Music Festival, the Country Music Association is sharing more details about the yearly four-day festival that takes over Music City. In addition to the already incredible lineup slated to take the stage for the nightly concerts within Nissan Stadium, the organization has revealed the lineup for the nightly National Anthem performers.

Taking the stage on Thursday will be Phil Vassar alongside the United States Customs and Border Protection color guard, Brooke Eden on Friday, the Knoxville, Tennessee Central High School Bobcat Company choral group, led by Choral Director Matt Parks Saturday, and Restless Heart Sunday.

The new additions join Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton, Thomas Rhett, Dierks Bentley, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert and so many more on the nightly show bill.

In addition to the National Anthem performances, the CMA revealed a free nightly concert at the Cracker Barrel Country Roads Stage, located in Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater.

Big and Rich “Bring the Party” will kick off the festivities Thursday with special guests DJ Sinister & the Country Fried Mix, Cowboy Troy, Deana Carter, Billy Ray Cyrus, and The Oak Ridge Boys. Sara Evans will headline Ladies of Country Friday. Also performing are songstresses 3 Girls Rock into a Bar featuring Kelleigh Bannen, Ruthie Collins, and Natalie Stovall; Danielle Bradbery; Kellie Pickler; and Aubrie Sellers. And finally, SiriusXM The Highway presents Saturday with Dan + Shay, Hunter Hayes, High Valley, RaeLynn, Cale Dodds, Ryan Kinder and Bailey Bryan.

“With tens of thousands of Country Music fans pouring in from all over the U.S. and over two dozen countries, CMA’s partnership with Cracker Barrel to present free nightly concerts at Ascend offers non-four-day ticket holders access to additional nighttime options and the chance to see even more of their favorite artists,” said Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer.

“Music and entertainment are an important part of the Cracker Barrel brand experience because the platform provides an invaluable and resounding connection with our guests, which is why we’ve committed to this partnership for the next three years,” said Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Senior Vice President of Marketing Don Hoffman.

Coinciding with these events will be many more around the downtown Nashville location, including The HGTV Lodge, located at the corner of Fourth Avenue and Broadway and the “You Look Good” Beetique featuring Lady Antebellum at The Bell Tower.

Tickets for the Nightly Concerts at Nissan Stadium are still available through the CMA Box Office at 1-800-CMA-FEST. Passes for the shows will also give fans access to to Xfinity Fan Fair X. The Chevrolet Riverfront and Park Stages, Budweiser “Forever Country” Park Stage, Gildan Broadway Stage at Hard Rock Cafe and the Music City Stage inside the Nashville Visitor Center at Bridgestone Arena are free for the public. For more information, visit  or download the CMA Fest app via the iTunes App Store or Google Play Store.