Country Music Association

The CMA Music Festival attracts thousands of country music fans to Nashville for the four-day event that features country music artists. The “Keep the Music Playing” program was founded in 2005 as a way for the CMA Music Festival and its participating artists to give back to the community. Partnering with the Nashville Alliance for Public Education, CMA identified a need for musical instruments in Metro Nashville Public Schools. Because the artists who participate in the festival donate their time and talent at no cost, CMA is able to donate half of the proceeds to the “Keep the Music Playing” program each year. Proceeds from the event are donated through the Nashville Alliance to purchase hundreds of musical instruments for students in order to strengthen music education in Nashville’s public schools.

To date, proceeds from CMA’s Country Music Festival have provided over $2,245,000 for new musical instruments replacing instruments for the first time in 20 years, supporting more than 41 Metro public schools.