CMC festival set to rock on in new streaming event

A new virtual event will take place over three days in lieu of this year’s CMC Rocks festival

Organisers of CMC Rocks QLD will deliver a new global streaming event to replace this year's cancelled festival.

ORGANISERS of Ipswich’s annual CMC Rocks festival have come up with a new way to ensure country music lovers still get their fix following the event’s cancellation.

CMC Rocks Your Yard, a global streaming event in partnership with Apple Music, is set to take place on the weekend when the concert historically takes place at Willowbank.

Live performances will take place across two action-packed hours each evening from Friday 19 to Sunday 21 March between 7pm to 9pm.

It will be the first major country musical festival based in Australia to take place since COVID-19 first wreaked havoc more than 12 months ago.

The revelation is likely to delight countless concert-starved fans, who also missed out on last year’s event due to the pandemic.

Organisers said last year that 2021’s usual festival would not go ahead as they did not want to put on a “second-rate” event.

Morgan Evans will host the event

The event, which has previously hosted Florida Georgia Line and Darius Rucker, brings in thousands of visitors and millions of dollars to the Ipswich economy each year.

Festival director Michael Chugg said he was thrilled to be delivering a reimagined event which catered to a larger audience.

Fans will be treated to live performances by Luke Combs, Kelsea Ballerini, Dan + Shay, Lee Kernaghan, The McClymonts and The Wolfe Brothers.

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“CMC Rocks QLD may have been postponed for 2021, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get the family together safely, to have a bit of a party next month!” he said.

“We know everyone’s feeling it, it’s been a tough time for a lot of people.

“We’re missing it too, that amazing energy that comes each March when CMC Rocks kicks off.”

Country music lovers can stream the event exclusively on Apple Music.

Festival Director Jeremy Dylan said the team was eager to offer fans a new alterative.

“We couldn’t let our CMC Rocks weekend go by without doing something for our fans, the amazing community of folks throughout Australia who come together each year to make our festival the magical experience it is,” he said.

Mr Dylan said the team had put together an event that will honour CMC Rocks memories, while gearing up excitement for next year’s event.

Ticketholders from 2020s cancelled event have reportedly been told to hold onto their tickets as they valid for next year’s event.  

When: Friday 19 to Sunday 21 March, from 7pm to 9pm AEDT.

Where: Available to stream on Apple Music

Cost: Free

Read more stories by Kaitlyn Smith here.

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