Barrel Old Country Store® today announced it will power the CMA Music Festival’s Country Roads Stage at Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater beginning June 8 through June 10, 2017. This is the start of a three-year partnership with the Country Music Association (CMA), enabling Cracker Barrel to bring a world filled with hospitality and charm to the annual festival.
Located in downtown Nashville and free to the public, the Cracker Barrel Country Roads Stage will feature performances by Big & Rich, Dan + Shay, Kellie Pickler, Deana Carter, Billy Ray Cyrus, Sara Evans, Hunter Hayes, RaeLynn, High Valley, Danielle Bradbery, Aubrie Sellers, Kelleigh Bannen, Ruthie Collins, Natalie Stovall, Country Music Hall of Famers The Oak Ridge Boys and more. In addition to the performances, Cracker Barrel and each evening’s host will present a special on-stage moment meant to surprise and delight festival goers.
“We are pleased to be a part of CMA Fest and look forward to welcoming music fans to our hometown,” said Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Senior Vice President of Marketing Don Hoffman. “Cracker Barrel is a highly experiential brand, and we represent more than a meal or shopping occasion. Our brand celebrates a lifestyle centered on relaxing and connecting with the people you care about. We think music and entertainment are great marketing platforms for our brand and represent a terrific way to connect with our broad and varied guest base.”
Throughout the festival grounds, Cracker Barrel will encourage festival goers to rock for a good cause. The “Rock-A-Thon” encourages attendees to take a break on Cracker Barrel’s iconic rockers while benefitting the CMA Foundation, a national nonprofit that supports quality, sustainable music education initiatives across the country. Beginning Thursday through Saturday evening, Cracker Barrel will bring a little piece of home to downtown Nashville by displaying 644 rocking chairs, a symbol of its nationwide store count. If festival goers collectively rock at least 150,000 times in the rockers, Cracker Barrel will donate $15,000 to the CMA Foundation. Fans can follow along online and on smartphones to track the progress at www.CBRockathon.com.
To help CMA Fest fans enjoy a little piece of home, Cracker Barrel is partnering with Lyft, the San-Francisco-based ride-sharing company, who will provide free rides from the festival grounds to two nearby Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® locations. Riders might just get an unexpected delight, too. Festival goers are encouraged to find the Cracker Barrel and Lyft tent at Ascend Park to learn more and to interact with nearby Cracker Barrel murals and a life-size logo for fun, shareable moments on social media.
“Adding the free Ascend nightly programming to the CMA Music Fest lineup this year is intended to serve those who are looking for music beyond the stadium performances,” said CMA Chief Executive Officer Sarah Trahern. “We’re thrilled to partner with Cracker Barrel and this extensive variety of artists to offer the non-four-day ticket holders more evening options.”
Fans can follow along on social media by using the hashtag #CBMusic as well as tune in to watch daily recap videos on Cracker Barrel’s YouTube page.
About CMA
Founded in 1958, the Country Music Association was the first trade organization formed to promote a type of music. In 1961, CMA created the Country Music Hall of Fame to recognize artists and industry professionals with Country Music’s highest honor. More than 7,600 music industry professionals and companies from around the globe are members of CMA. The organization’s objectives are to serve as an educational and professional resource for the industry and advance the growth of Country Music around the world. This is accomplished through CMA’s core initiatives: the CMA Awards, which annually recognize outstanding achievement in the industry; CMA Music Festival, which benefits music education and is taped for a three-hour special; and “CMA Country Christmas,” featuring Country artists performing original music and Christmas classics for broadcast during the holiday season. All of CMA’s television properties will air on the ABC Television network through 2021.
About Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBRL) provides a friendly home-away-from-home in its old country stores and restaurants. Guests are cared for like family while relaxing and enjoying real home-style food and shopping that’s surprisingly unique, genuinely fun and reminiscent of America’s country heritage…all at a fair price. Established in 1969 in Lebanon, Tenn., Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. and its affiliates operate 644 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® company-owned locations in 44 states and own the fast casual restaurants Holler & Dash™. Nation’s Restaurant News’ 2016 Consumer Picks survey named Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® the Best Family-Dining Restaurant in America. For more information about the company, visit crackerbarrel.com.