Description
In April 1972 at Municipal Auditorium, the first Fan Fair expo kicked off. Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, Marty Robbins and the Opossum himself (George Jones) performed among the 120 artists and 5,000 attendees. This gathering of country music stars was extra special as it also gave unprecedented access to fans through a variety of autograph booths.
In the second year, 10,000 fans attended. In the third year, Paul McCartney attended as the first non-country artist. In 1982, Fan Fair was moved to the Fairgrounds to make room for the ever growing audiences. In the 90s, attendance was noted as 25,000 daily attendees and has grown to 80,000 daily attendees now in its current form.
Fan Fair underwent major changes in 2001; spreading out across Nashville to different venues, altering how artist lineups were grouped and no longer paying artists to perform. By 2004, owners CMA decided a rebranding was in order and renamed the festival from Fan Fair to “CMA Music Festival” – ending a thirty-two year run of the name but shaking all the negative perceptions of the last few years.
The list of performers and notable events is outlandishly long for Fan Fair. Most notably, Garth Brooks decided to attend last minute in 1996, setting up camp at the Fairgrounds and signing autographs for 23 hours (and 10 minutes) without a single break.
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Printed on Bella+Canvas 3001 shirts. 100% cotton and lightweight! Tear away label to reduce potential itchiness. Sized slightly snug for adults.
