Ben's Country Music Show Week of the 9th June 2025 – LIsten Again: CMA Music Festival Documentary

Listen again to this documentary edition of Ben’s Country Music Show celebrating the 50th anniversary of CMA Fest. Originating as “Fan Fair” in 1972 with just 5,000 fans at Nashville’s Municipal Auditorium, the event grew into a downtown powerhouse welcoming tens of thousands each summer. The episode highlights unforgettable milestones, including Cathy Mattea using a computer to communicate with fans in 1991, Garth Brooks’ record-setting 23-hour autograph session in 1996, and Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner’s final duet in 1974. Behind-the-scenes changes in 2001 shifted the format to a long weekend and laid the groundwork for ABC’s televised special, CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock, starting in 2004. Ben shares vivid memories from his own experience at CMA Fest 2022, painting a lively picture of Music City’s electric atmosphere and the festival’s artist-driven philanthropic spirit.

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