Sunset Country Fest has joined the Country Music Association as a Professional Member. We read CMA’s own pages to work out what the tier includes, what it costs, and what it does and does not do for a Central Florida festival.
The Sunset Country Fest 2027 lineup will be announced on Sunday, November 15, 2026, at 11:00 AM Eastern.
A federal rule has governed how live event ticket prices are displayed since May 12, 2025. Florida law regulates resale instead, which leaves the federal standard doing the display work here.
The 158th Silver Spurs Rodeo arrives in February 2027. Its 8,300 seat arena is the country room Central Florida keeps forgetting it has.
Rory Bourke charted 61 songs over 43 years without being the voice on the record. What his career says about the future of the country songwriter.
The 2026 CMA ballot gave women four of five Single of the Year nominations. Country radio gave songs by women 8.08 percent of airplay in 2025. We look at why the two numbers tell different stories.
Opry Entertainment is putting a three story, 33,000 square foot country venue at Universal CityWalk by late 2027. It is real validation for this market, and it still leaves the rung that actually develops Florida artists completely empty.
Dreamin’ Out Loud turns thirty and gets its first vinyl pressing on October 16. The number Trace Adkins buried in his own tour announcement matters more.
Wynonna, Miranda Lambert, Gavin Adcock and HARDY all released music in the same week. We look at what a crowded October costs the artists who never get a week of their own.
In 1982 three Orlando broadcasters locked themselves in the studio to stop their station from going country. Ocala resisted until 1994. We argue that pattern is repeating in live music right now.
Ian Noe’s third album is 16 songs staged as a single showcase set by a band that does not exist. We think it is the most interesting thing anyone has done with the country album format in 2026, and we explain what a festival should learn from it.
Australia, Canada and the UK jointly staged a country showcase in Nashville on September 19. We unpack what institutional global demand does to the booking math for a regional festival.