Allow me to introduce myself. I am a Country Music fan, living in New York. AHH Yes, New York, the Mecca for whatever cultural event that might cater to your fancy. You like Broadway shows?  That we got. You like fine restaurants? We got that too. You like museums? Yes, plenty of those too. Music? You say you like music? Well I’m afraid we don’t cater to music. A mass market has been denied. New York is a land with no country music radio. Yes that’s right. The powers that be, felt the world needed yet another Classic Rock and Latin Stations. Y-107 country music out of New Jersey went top 40 Salsa. WMJC from Long Island went with the Stairway to Heaven-ish style classic rock. Both are great, neither of which are unique to the radio dial. N.Y. radio programmers should sit back and take heed, at the huge market that they have neglected. As a matter of fact they should attend a concert by a country artist, and see the thousands of loyal fans, at sold out shows.  Also, at WNBC’s Today Show Summer Concert Series, Country music’s Dixie Chicks and Tim McGraw, led to the largest crowds in recent years. Many country fans have sought solace in satellite radio. XM and Sirius are satellite radio companies that offer several different country stations, coast to coast. Others seek comfort in their local cable T.V. providers, such as CMT and GAC, which offers 24 hour programming of country music videos and concerts, and interviews of Country’s hottest stars.

     Be that as it may, every June for the past 33 years country music fans have congregated in Nashville, to attend the World’s Largest Country Music Festival.  As a fan I have been going to Fan Fair in Nashville, for the past 6 years. Fan Fair is a four-day event where you can see your favorite star, up close and personal,  and listen to non-stop concerts. So this year I decided to go to Nashville and cover the CMAFEST. My hope is to bring Country Music to the foreground in NYC, and to show those radio programmers that there is room on the dial for country music. Basically I was there on a mission, with something to prove. Then out of nowhere, at the first concert of the very first day of Fan Fair. There it was, a sign. You can’t plan these things. You hope it happens but it never does. A sign rose out, high above crowd. “Wanted Country Music Radio in NYC.” Thank you Harriet Scheir from Brooklyn, NY. Ms. Scheir was also afraid of the big picture. She stated the undeniable truth. Without country radio, there are no country artist coming to town, no concerts.

    CMAFEST is where the stars honor the fans. It’s their way of giving back to the fans. Something other genres of music have forgotten completely. Some fans bypass the main concerts and attend only fan club parties. This is where members of the fan clubs get to enjoy an intimate meet and greet, private concert, autograph sessions and not to mention a breakfast, lunch or dinner, with there favorite stars. I personally attended the fan club parties of  Kathy Mattea, Trick Pony, and Chely Wright. Chely’s fan club party has turned into one huge extravaganza. Chely combines her fan party with her benefit auction for reading and writing. This is one of the most star-studded parties you will attend.. Through the past 3 years the list is almost endless. Martina MCBride, Vince Gill and Amy Grant, Keith Urban, Loretta Lynn, Brad Paisley, Clay Walker, Gary Allen, Rascal Flats, Diamond Rio, Darryl Worley, Blake Shelton honestly the list goes on and on. After each artist performs they auction off an article of clothing that they are wearing, from a cowboy hat to well you got it there under garments. Raising hundreds to thousands of dollars each year. Carolyn Dawn Johnson’s party was the most emotional of all. As she was thanking the fans for there support, she burst out crying. As usual Trick Pony’s party was a rollicking good time.

    Autograph seekers file into Nashville’s Convention Center. This is where fans line up, sometimes all day to get an autograph. Fans wait for hours to get in to the convention center. As soon as it opens they run to the booth to get a number, to assure themselves an autograph. Then they wait on line till the artist arrives. This simple act can take 5 or 6 hours, just for one autograph.  Seems crazy to me but as I stated earlier, Country Music fans are amongst the most dedicated fans of all.

    The music is the main reason to go to Fan Fair. Showtime starts at 10:00am at the 2 Riverfront Stages and goes till 6:pm. Then you can  take the shuttle bus, run to your car or quickly walk over the bridge, because the night time shows at the Adelphia Coliseum start at 7:00pm. Shows end around 11:00 p.m. At this point there is a major decision one must make. If you still have an appetite for more music, and have the “I’ll sleep when I’m dead attitude” there are many clubs participating in Fan Fair After Hours. The other choice is to stagger back to your hotel room, and get some sleep. I chose the later, because I knew the next day was going to be as exhausting as the day before. As for me, the concerts are well worth the price of admission. Over 100 scheduled artists in 4 days. Acts range from the Grand Ol’ Opry Stars such as Bill Anderson, Jean Shepard, Kitty Wells, to the high energy leather clad country rockers Montgomery Gentry, and everything in between.

    This year CMA change the name of the festival from Fan Fair to the CMA Music Festival. Even though they took out the word FAN from the title, it’s still all about the fans. Simply the name change was to indicate that country music has changed through the years. Todays country music flows from the old-timey string band music, to the singer-songwriter, to the alternative country, to the traditional, to the spiritual to the balladeers to the harder edged southern rock. This years participants included the like of Willie Nelson, Charlie Daniels, Uncle Kracker, Hank Williams Jr.. All of which never would have appeared in prior Fan Fairs. It’s safe to consider the CMA Music Festival as a much-improved version of Fan Fair. A spokesman for the CMA stated that they never would pamper with the success of  Fan Fair. As a matter of fact CBS-TV broadcasted a 2 hour special.