5 Fresh New Artists to See at 2017 Taste of Country Music Festival
The 2017 Taste of Country Music Festival is right around the corner, and in addition to an enormous all-star lineup, there are several fresh young acts that fans will want to make sure to catch.
ToC Fest is celebrating its fifth year with a massive lineup led by headliners Miranda Lambert, Jason Aldean and Sam Hunt. The three-day country music and camping festival takes place at Hunter Mountain in upstate New York every year in June. The event is set for June 9-11, with Chris Young, Kip Moore, Tyler Farr and Maren Morris also on the bill, as well as Joe Nichols, Maddie & Tae, Cody Johnson and more.
The Taste of Country Festival drew a record crowd of 53,000 country fans to Hunter Mountain in 2016 to take in top-notch performances from Kenny Chesney, Kid Rock, Jake Owen, Gary Allan and many more top country artists, but fans also got to meet new faces including Logan Brill, Adley Stump, Amanda Watkins, Annie Bosko and more. The festival continues that tradition in 2017, offering hot sets from not only some of country music's biggest stars, but also the stars of tomorrow.
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Courtney Cole
Courtney Cole parlayed a job behind the scenes in the music business into a career as a singer-songwriter. Cole began writing songs while enrolled at Belmont University in Nashville, where she graduated with a degree in voice before taking a job at Black River Entertainment. A run on CMT: The Next Superstar led to a full-time publishing deal, and Cole released her self-titled EP in 2015, promoting it by going on the road with Miranda Lambert. She'll be showcasing songs like "Free.99" when she takes the Ram Trucks Stage at the Taste of Country Festival on Saturday, June 10 at 3PM.
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Smithfield
Smithfield are a duo hailing from Texas consisting of Jennifer Fiedler and Trey Smith. They grew up together, and they've found success after moving to Nashville, opening for the likes of Eric Paslay, Scotty McCreery, Jana Kramer, Dustin Lynch, Brothers Osborne and Craig Campbell and breaking on SiriusXM's the Highway. They'll showcase their chemistry and killer harmonies on songs like "Hey Whiskey" when they perform on the Ram Trucks Stage at the Taste of Country Music Festival on Saturday, June 10 at 1:30PM.
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Brooke Eden
A Florida native, Brooke Eden attended high school with Cassadee Pope, and she first came to public attention as part of Season 7 of American Idol before moving to Nashville and scoring a publishing deal. She parlayed that into a deal with Red Bow Records, attracting fans with songs including "Daddy's Money," "Diamonds" and her latest single, "Act Like You Don't." She'll bring her unique sound to the Ram Trucks Stage on Sunday, June 11 at 1:30PM during the 2017 Taste of Country Music Festival.
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Steve Moakler
Steve Moakler has been a well-known songwriter in Nashville for years, writing songs for other artists including Jake Owen, Eric Church and more. He co-wrote Dierks Bentley's "Riser," and he's also released a string of his own work, most recently with Steel Town, which features the single "Wheels." He'll be promoting that project when he performs at the Taste of Country Music Festival on Sunday, June 11 at 3PM on the Ram Trucks Stage.
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RaeLynn
RaeLynn is not a new artist, but she's really come into her own over the last year. She has released a few singles since her run on The Voice in 2012, and in March of 2017 she finally released her full-length debut album, WildHorse, which features the hit single "Love Triangle." The rising star will showcase that along with songs like "God Made Girls" and "For a Boy" when she performs twice during the 2017 Taste of Country Music Festival; once on the Bud Light Stage at 9PM on Thursday, June 8 to help kick off the pre-festival festivities, and again on Friday, June 9 at 4:30PM on the Ram Trucks Stage.