~ Throwback to CMA Fest 2012 ~

Thanks to my ramble post the other day, I had a spontaneous blog idea to post about the CMA Fest for those that don't know about it. 

If you are a country music fan, you know what the CMA Fest is!  You might not have been to 1, but you've heard about it.  If you haven't been to 1, you seriously need to go!  Just 1 time will get you hooked!

We had 7 tickets, 5 of which belonged to 5 different individuals.  So the other 2 tickets I sold to friends of mine that couldn't make the 4 days. So each day we had new people to share the experience with!  It was seriously such a blast!!  When you get 7 girls together, fun stuff happens!  I would post a video of the McDonalds visit we had at 1am, but I think it was one of those "you had to be there" moments.  And also that time when we tested out those funky jelly beans.  You know the ones that taste like dog food or chocolate...... licorice or skunk..... you get the drift.  Out of the hundreds they had in their little boxes, I guarantee you NONE of them were the good kind of jelly beans!

The CMA Fest is 4 days of nonstop FUN! You will see loads of performers and even have a chance to meet them. I do have to admit though since they changed EVERYTHING last year, it wasn't as much fun.  But since last year was the first run through, they might have realized their mistakes and fix them. I sure hope so!

The daily stuff is free to the public, although if you have a 4 day pass (nightly concerts) then you get in like 30 minutes early to the free concerts (getting your grass seat). The daily free concerts are either performers that aren't so big anymore and also some that are up and coming performers that you've heard of, but not necessarily Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, etc.

There are TONS of vendors up and down Broadway from free ice cream, testing products, beer, mini concerts, dog adoptions, jelly bean testing, etc.

Before the CMA Fest takes place you can register to win to meet and greets with certain artists. It's like a lottery.  You can win multiple ones or none.  You never know.  This is what they changed that I hated.  The 1st year I went it was like Black Friday running into the convention center to get in the line of the performer you want to meet! It was GREAT!

Here are just a few of my favorite snapshots I got from the free concerts in 2012:

Love and Theft

Montgomery Gentry. They were the opening act, so a bigger performer than the rest.

Kip Moore

Jana Kramer! Met her the previous year, she is SUCH A SWEETHEART!

The only lottery that I won last year was an acoustic performance with Love and Theft.  There were about 30-40 of us in a little barn built by HGTV.  I did also get a chance to meet Chris Lambton (on bachelor and HGTV), but I couldn't make it in time to get my tickets.

Then of course, each night... the BIG performers come out!  I think it's ABC that videos the concerts and then like in September they put it all into 2 hours for people to watch.  Pretty entertaining.
With 4 days tickets, whether you are in nose bleed or front row, you can get in a line that goes in front of the stage.  You basically get herded like cows, if you're lucky and the workers don't see you and push you through you can stay there for awhile, but if not... you are pushed through so quickly that you can barely enjoy it.

Here are some shots I got while getting herded through the line! :)

Miranda Lambert

Brantley Gilbert

Jake Owen

Carrie Underwood

Luke Bryan

Alan Jackson

Anyway, if you have a chance to go to this, please take it!!!! Also, if you have any questions or are more curious about it, feel free to hit me up!  I'd love to talk about it!