BEST ANNUAL FESTIVAL/EVENT
C OUNTRY SUMMER
“We focus on blending together some of country music’s biggest names with some of Nashville’s newest talent…we’ve managed to create a staple in the festival space.” —Drew Jacoby, executive producer
By Rosie Padilla
C ountry Summer, the annual three-day country music festival at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. More locally driven than competitors like BottleRock, Country Summer proved the favorite North Bay event among readers topping Best Annual Festival/Event in the first year we’ve featured the category. [Country Summer is co-produced by Amaturo Sonoma Media Group, which publishes NorthBay biz magazine.] “Country Summer has cemented itself as a major player in the industry,” says Drew Jacoby, executive producer. “We focus on blending together some of country music’s biggest names with some of Nashville’s newest talent, and while routing bands this far west can sometimes be a challenge, we’ve managed to create a staple in the festival space.” Jacoby asserts that a huge part of Country
Country Summer continues to have dedicated fans show out every year to get a glimpse of their favorite country artists. [Photos by Will Bucquoy]
Summer’s prosperity is due to its dedicated fans. The feedback of both fans and partners allows the music festival to improve with each year. Another unique aspect of the music festival is its limited capacity. Normally, headliners like Eric Church
or the bathroom. Particularly enthusiastic music lovers will also be able to get a better view of their favorite bands with Sonoma County wine country serving as a backdrop. Each year the search for headliners presents a challenge—it’s not only about attempting to secure popular country artists but also attempting to coordinate with their already busy schedules. Even after an artist expresses interest in performing, after the offer is submitted, the talent scouter must continually push for the date to be a part of the artist’s tour. “Oftentimes the final lineup is a big departure from the one that the festival originally drafted when the whole process started, but that just comes with the territory of being an independent festival in today’s corporate environment,” says Jacoby. This year’s lineup is set to dazzle with headliners like Old Dominion, Little Big Town and Jordan Davis. Single day as well as 3-day passes can be purchased at countrysummer.com . Hotel and camping packages are also available for purchase. “Make sure to snag [your tickets] to secure your place at Northern California’s biggest country music festival and Sonoma County’s biggest party,” says Jacoby. v
and Blake Shelton perform at events for up to 40,000 patrons a day. Country Summer is hosted every year at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, capping at 13,000 concertgoers a day. Another selling point, according to Jacoby, is that fans won’t have to wait as long for drinks, food
Last year Lynyrd Skynyrd offered attendees a rocking good time. [Photos by Will Bucquoy]
countrysummer.com
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Best of the North Bay 2024
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