Jordan Rager, Maggie Rose & More Talk 2016 Key West Songwriters Festival

The festival brings five days and nights of nonstop live music in Key West, FL.

Jordan Rager, Maggie Rose & More Talk 2016 Key West Songwriters Festival
Photo via @playitagainmusicc on Instagram

For the 21st straight year, country artists packed their bags and headed from Nashville, TN to Key West, FL for the annual Key West Songwriters Festival. The festival brings five days and nights of nonstop live music, giving fans a chance to see the faces and hear the stories behind their favorite songs.

Appearing at this year’s festival were artists like Jake Owen, Rhett Akins Band, Bob DiPiero, Lori McKenna, Liz Rose, Heather Morgan, Maggie Rose, Paul McDonald, Walker Hayes, The Roosevelts and many more.

“I love the Key West Songwriters Fest because it’s a time where the songwriters get the spotlight and they are the attraction,” “Southern Boy” singer Jordan Rager said of the festival’s importance. “So it’s kind of a cool thing where, most of the time, they don’t get maybe some of the recognition that some of the artists do, whereas the songwriters are the ones out there writing the songs for everybody every day. It’s cool to see them get the recognition they definitely deserve.”

“…It’s all centered on the song, the lyrics to these songs, that us artists and songwriters write in Nashville, and it’s so nice to come down and play for crowds who just eat it up,” added Walker Hayes. “They want to hear new lyrics, new songs. They want to hear the future of the music industry. That’s awesome to be an artist and play to those types of people, for sure. I love playing here.”

See what else some of the featured artists told us about playing the Key West Songwriters Festival in the video above.

The 2017 Key West Songwriters Festival will take place May 10-14, 2017. For more information, visit keywestsongwritersfestival.com.