CMA Fest Wrap-Up: Day Two

One of our On The Spot Reporters, Michael Sudhalter, was sent to the CMA Music Festival this year to cover the event for those who couldn't make it or haven't made it there before.  Read on to find out what his second day of the four day festival was like.

One of the best parts of Chevy CMA Festival is meeting different country artists. Most of the time, it's planned. You find out about someone signing at a booth and you check it out. There are some fans that will wait 10+ hours or camp out in front of the Nashville Convention Center to get an autograph from a superstar like Taylor Swift or Keith Urban. Those fans are a different breed, and I respectthe heck out of them, for their dedication to their favorite artists. But I prefer to meet up and coming artists, and spend most of the time listening to the great country music.

On Friday, I was on the shuttle to the Chevy CMA Festival from the Opryland Hotel, and I saw Cowboy Troy walk into the legendary Tootsie's Orchid Lounge. Myself and another festival-goer on the shuttle entered Tootsie's where Cowboy Troy greeted us and took two different photos.

The Chevrolet Riverfront Stage is a great experience. It's daylight and you have plenty of time to go through the photo line. You get a
great mix of seasoned country stars and up-and-comers. It's a great mix, and I personally prefer it over the shows at LP Field.
Throughout the festival, I try to talk to as many Chevy CMA Festival-goers as possible. I've met a ton of folks from the Northeast
(Massachusetts and Connecticut) and even watched the end of the Stanley Cup Finals Game 5 in a bar with some die-hard Boston Bruins
fans, before heading over to the Wildhorse Saloon for Blake Shelton's Fan Club Party.

I've met people from as far away as Australia and Holland. Every festival-goer has a story to tell, and each of them is interesting. I
had a 20-minute conversation about NASCAR before the LP Field Concerts, and that was kind of neat.

I plan on test driving and catching a Chevy over the weekend. I'm open to any and all suggestions on the vehicle I should choose for the tesdrive.

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