Lady Antebellum, Miranda, Reba + More Relish CMA Music Fest

Country artists have a special bond with their fans, and nowhere is that more apparent than at CMA Music Fest. There is no other genre of music that has singers fishing, playing poker, cooking or signing autographs for hours on end so their fans can share some personal time with them. With the 2010 CMA Music Festival now on the history books, the stars look back on what made this year's gathering one they'll never forget.

Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum says, "We owe our fans an arm and a leg. We come to the CMA Music Fest to celebrate the fans because they're the reason we are standing here right now."

Fellow band member Charles Kelley adds, "Our fan club party was a lot of fun and we raised good money for flood victims. We always see some familiar faces; they are the die-hard fans who come to our shows throughout the year. They've been with us from day one, maybe before we had a record deal. It's our way to show appreciation for fans, and at the same time give money to flood relief."

Miranda Lambert acknowledges that she takes time to give back to her fans because they're the reason she has a career. "They give us our jobs; they come to our shows and buy our records," she says. "They are the reason we get to do what we love. Music Fest is a time for all of us to thank them and be here for them. It's also a time to thank my fan club members personally because they are so passionate about Miranda Lambert."

Reba McEntire took a moment to remember her first Fan Fair -- the name of CMA Music Fest when it was held at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds and prior to that, downtown's Municipal Auditorium. "It's funny, when we were riding over to LP Field from my bus I thought, 'Gosh it's a lot different from my first Fan Fair in 1977. I think back then I rode to Fan Fair in my car with every piece of clothing I could bum off my college roommate. I didn't have any fancy clothes but she did because she was in rodeo." She paused, then added, "We have the most loyal fans in the world in any business, any genre, and we are thrilled to get to come here and show our appreciation to our fans."

Jason Aldean brought a few more hit songs to Music Fest this year to play for his fans. "Every time we've played one of the night shows at the stadium it's a lot of fun," he says. "It's just a thrill to get to play in front of that many people. Other than Kenny Chesnsey, nobody gets to do that. I just try to make sure the fans have a good time; we have a blast out there. People come to the festival from all over the country and we want to give them the best show we can."

Jason says he also went to the convention center, where fans started lining up on the street the night before in order to be able to get his autograph. Jason visited one-on-one with his fans, signing autographs and posing for pictures. "For me it's a little crazy but it's one of the coolest parts of the week. It's not until this week that you really get to go out and see how many fans you have."

Josh Turner says he's living his dream. "I'm very blessed, and I want to be able to give back to my fans by putting on a great show, spending extra time with them signing autographs, and hosting my fan club party for them. I've had fans come to see me this week from all over the world. I was sitting on bus the other morning, watching my fans pile into my fan club party, and it's really humbling and flattering for me to live my dream. I have a huge sense of responsibility and gratitude to my fans."

Joe Bonsall of the Oak Ridge Boys says the group has taken part in every Music Fest ever held. "It's just gotten bigger and bigger and when it outgrew the fairgrounds, the Country Music Association decided to bring it back downtown and now it's bigger than ever. When we were standing on that big stage at LP Field singing the National Anthem, especially realizing that just a few weeks ago it was all underwater, it was a great experience. A lot of people didn't think the event would even happen this year. To the Oak Ridge Boys, as long time residents of Nashville and part of the business, we are thankful to see this event going strong and to see the big crowds along with hotels and restaurants full. Right now, I think being part of Music Fest means more to us than it ever has."

Blake Shelton also referenced the recent floods when he talked about the event. "It doesn't surprise me to see so many people here this year. II live in Oklahoma and Nashville is a special place to most of the people I know. They want to come here to see the Grand Ole Opry, and it's devastating to the people who don't live here to see what happened to this city. It's their special place; it's the place that creates their favorite music."

Darius Rucker was honored to be one of the artists that people come to see at Music Fest, saying, "Most of our fans save their money all year long to come to Fan Fest. And for me to be one of the people they come to see is why I do what I do."

Brad Paisley thinks this year was probably the most important Music Fest ever held. "After what we've been through as a city, it's something to be able to say thank you to all our fans who are so loyal, and I felt a responsibility to make the show go on."

Dates for the 2011 CMA Music Festival have been set for June 9-12.