Nashville, TN. (Top40 Charts/ Country
Music Association) - From the opening shot of LP Field, home of the NFL's Tennessee Titans, its lights gleaming against the evening sky in Nashville and its seats and field jammed with cheering Country
Music fans, to the last notes fading after two hours of celebration, "CMA
Music Festival: Country's Night to Rock" is a thrill ride, packed with surprise turns, sweetened with touching moments and driven by great performances captured for television.
Airing 9-11PM/ET Monday, Sept. 8, "CMA Music Festival: Country's Night to Rock" starts fast and picks the pace up immediately. Three exciting young stars host the show, which begins as two of them, Julianne Hough and Kellie Pickler, surrounded by thousands of music enthusiasts, welcome viewers and introduce the opening act, their co-host Taylor Swift.
Stunning Performances
Taylor Swift fires up the night with a sizzling rendition of "Picture to Burn," illuminated by towering images of flames that blaze across the huge LED screen at the back of the stage. With that, the cavalcade begins, with one superstar following the next, each offering a unique combination of artistry and charisma that's guaranteed to make "CMA Music Festival: Country's Night to Rock" one of the most varied concert experiences of the season.
Among the show's many highlights:
- Trace Adkins baring the sensitivity behind his Country-tough swagger with a rendering of "You're Gonna Miss This" that's both artful and wise
- Faith Hill ending an 11-year hiatus from CMA Music Festival with a romp through "Mississippi Girl" - the perfect autobiographical song for this exceptional headliner
- Alan Jackson laughing, tossing his guitar pick into the crowd and capping his rendition of "Good Time" by observing, "We're having a good time here at CMA, y'all"
- Jewel making her CMA Music Festival debut with "I Do," her voice riding the rhythm like a sunlight streaming over a dark river
- The passionate tenor of Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts riding harmonies laid down by his bandmates Joe Don Rooney and Jay DeMarcus throughout "Every Day"
- Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush of Sugarland making the entrance of the year prior to launching into "All I Want to Do"
- Carrie Underwood dominating the stage with a confident, sassy and searing rendition of "Last Name"
- Keith Urban delivering a textbook lesson on mirroring dynamic vocals with a slamming guitar solo on "Better Life"
- Dwight Yoakam returning to CMA Music Festival after a 20-year absence to croon "Fast as You" over a classic Bakersfield dance-hall groove
- Plus electrifying performances on the stadium stage by Rodney Atkins, Bucky Covington, Billy Ray Cyrus, Julianne Hough, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Kellie Pickler, Josh Turner and Gretchen Wilson
Meeting the Stars
Between these musical highlights, viewers join several lucky fans as they are treated to unexpected and unforgettable access to Country Music artists.
- Julianne Hough delights in picking out and leading audience members from the stadium to the backstage area for quality time with their favorite stars - including one couple who flew together from Australia, never dreaming their visit would culminate with an introduction to Faith Hill.
- Taking the idea further, Julianne Hough stuns two sisters with an invitation to spend a full day with her, from an indulgent visit to the spa to an opportunity to cut tracks together in a recording studio.
- And Taylor Swift documents her surprise performance on the steps of the historic Ryman Auditorium as well as her epic day of signing 900 autographs at the Fan Fair Hall, from the moment its doors opened until hours after the venue was officially closed for the day.
Rockin' the District
Taylor Swift's street set is just one milestone captured on "CMA Music Festival: Country's Night to Rock." The ABC-TV cameras also take viewers into one of the fabled honky tonks along Nashville's Lower Broadway, where Gretchen Wilson nails "Don't Do Me No Good" before a fist-pumping, rafter-rattling, wall-to-wall crowd.
And a more family-oriented perspective is offered by Bucky Covington, who intersperses his romp through "It's Good to Be Young" with a tour of the Festival neighborhood and sums up the essence of what makes CMA Music Festival unique among musical events in any genre.
"CMA Music Festival is all about the chance for Country Music artists to give back to Country Music fans," Covington observes, speaking for all who donate their time and talent as Festival performers.
The giving begins on Monday night, Sept. 8, only on ABC-TV. The television special will be promoted on www.ABC.com for five days preceding the broadcast. This coverage will be posted in Webisodes: General Festival coverage, which will include events, interviews with artists and fans, performances, footage from the ABC Block Party and more; behind the scenes/making of the broadcast special, capturing the crew in action, backstage activities and similar glimpses into the technical and creative process; and After Hours with Jake Owen, who will take viewers on a tour of Nashville (including visits to music venues), interact with fans and more, along with excerpts from Owen's performance at LP Field.
