ACM Country Kickoff Features Free Fan Festival with Live Music, Food Trucks, a Beer Garden, Exclusive Merch, and More at The Star in Days Leading Up to the ACM Awards
VIP Ticket Pre-Sale Begins Today (5.2) with Public On-Sale Starting Friday (5.3) on SeatGeek
Limited Tickets for the 59th ACM Awards Available for Purchase HERE
Frisco, TX — The Academy of Country Music (ACM) announced today additional events for ACM Awards Week, in advance of the 59th ACM Awards, Country Music’s Party of the Year, which is set for May 16 at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, TX. Highlights include the return of the ACM Country Kickoff fan festival for its second year, featuring two days of live performances from ACM Award-nominated artists and exciting, emerging talent on the outdoor Carhartt Stage, alongside artist meet-and-greets, food trucks and partner activations beginning Tuesday, May 14; and the coveted ACM Songs & Stories brunch, powered by The Bluebird Cafe and Nashville Songwriters Association International, which celebrates the ACM Songwriter of the Year and Artist-Songwriter of the Year nominees with a traditional Nashville songwriter round and is, for the first time, offering tickets to fans to purchase.
These events are in addition to the previously announced Parker McCollum and Friends: ACM Lifting Lives LIVE, Presented by Choctaw Casinos & Resorts, the tentpole philanthropic event of the week, which is set to take place at Topgolf The Colony on Wednesday, May 15, and feature 59th ACM Award-nominated artists Old Dominion, Jordan Davis, Ashley Cooke, and Kameron Marlowe taking the stage to perform live alongside McCollum. (Limited tickets available HERE)
The excitement around ACM Awards Week in North Texas begins on Tuesday, May 14, with the ACM Country Kickoff at Tostitos Championship Plaza at The Star. In its second year, the free two-day festival will take over the plaza, allowing fans to get up close and personal with some of Country Music’s biggest stars and celebrate the ACM Awards’ return to Frisco, TX. Some of today’s most exciting, up-and-coming artists in Country Music will perform on the outdoor Carhartt Stage, including several ACM Award nominees. A beer garden and dance floor presented by Coors Light will be on hand, and for the first time, fans will be able to interact with their favorite artists in meet-and-greet sessions in the ACM Red Barrel Lounge presented by Princess Cruise Lines. In addition, food trucks, photo opportunities, ACM Awards show merchandise, and activations by a host of partners will be on-site, including ACM Lifting Lives, Ashley, Choctaw Casinos & Resorts, Coors Light, Debbie’s Dream Foundation, North Texas Ford, Fritos, Kendra Scott, Korbel, Lucas Oil, and Princess Cruise Lines. The ACM Kickoff at The Star will be held from 3:00 – 10:00 p.m. CT on both Tuesday, May 14 and Wednesday, May 15. A detailed performance schedule, as well as a map of the full festival footprint, will be released in the coming weeks.
Newly announced for 2024 is the Country Kickoff VIP ticket, which goes on-sale this Friday (5.3) on SeatGeek, with pre-sale beginning today (5.2). Each ticket includes premium viewing access of the outdoor stage from the Lucas Oil VIP Area, allowing fans to get closer than ever before to some of their favorite new and emerging artists; a meal voucher redeemable at any of the on-site food trucks; two drink tickets; dedicated bar service; a Jack Daniel’s whiskey tasting, and more. For more information, visit ACMCountryKickoff.com.
The Academy will host an intimate celebration of this year’s ACM Songwriter and Artist-Songwriter of the Year nominees and the larger Country Music songwriter community on Wednesday, May 15 at Verona Villa from 11am – 1:30pm CST. The event will be hosted by Charles Esten and powered by the Bluebird Cafe, one of the world’s preeminent listening rooms, and the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), the world’s largest nonprofit songwriters trade association.
Following brunch, some of the most celebrated artists and songwriters in Country Music will take the stage for intimate, acoustic performances of many of their biggest hits and share the stories behind their iconic songs. Open to the public for the first time this year, tickets to this coveted event will go on-sale on SeatGeek this Friday (5.3) with pre-sale beginning today (5.2). Each ticket includes a buffet brunch and open bar.