2008 Soap Box Archives

An Open Letter To The Country Music Association

As a long time member and admirer of the CMA, I write this letter with all due respect and a modicum of humor.

Every year in the month of June thousands of country music fans descend on Nashville for several days of touring the points of interest, hitting the country music night spots, getting autographs from their favorite artists and listening to as much music as they can cram into their trip.

The event was started for just such purposes back in 1972 to the everlasting credit of the Country Music Association and was known as Fan Fair, a name which, in my humble opinion, encompasses the essence of what the event is all about.

It was for the fans to get up close and personal with their favorite country music stars and indeed does take on the atmosphere of a fair or carnival.

Fan Fair is Music City at its country music best, featuring concerts by the biggest names in the business. The record companies create elaborate displays and the artists make themselves accessible to the fans and every body has a wonderful time.

I'm sure somebody, somewhere knows the answer to this riddle, it is currently unbeknownst to me, but a few years ago the Country Music Association decided to change the name of the gala to the CMA Music Festival or some such convoluted, acronymic title that people can't even remember.

If you walk up to someone on the streets of Nashville and ask them what they're doing in town, they'll say, "We're here for Fan Fair."

Hardly anybody, CMA board members notwithstanding, says "We're here for the CMA Music Festival."

Come on folks it just doesn't have the same zing to it. Fan Fair has pizzazz.

I mean no disrespect to whoever came up with the CMA Music Festival, but when you say it, it sounds like you're talking about a Renaissance festival or something where you expect them to bring out the lutes and start singing Barbra Allen.

I just can't figure out what was wrong with the name Fan Fair and neither can the people I talk to who come to it.

Even when I do interviews with out of town radio stations most of them still refer to it as Fan Fair, in fact it seems that the only people who don't call it Fan Fair are the CMA folks who changed it.

Now the advertising all says CMA Music Festival, but to all us common folks who love country music, it's still Fan Fair.

Always has been, always will be.

Pray for our troops

What do you think?

God Bless America

Charlie Daniels

June 13 , 2008