In 2019 Country Thunder rocked Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee like never before, and country music fans throughout Central Florida could hardly wait for the 2020 lineup. That was until COVID-19 put the brakes on music venues all over the world in 2020 postponing Country Thunder Florida into 2021.
Tens of thousands of fans and top headlining acts have made their way back to Osceola and by the size of the crowds this weekend, Country Thunder is back and bigger than ever!
Old Dominion, Eric Church, and Dierks Bentley are this year’s headliners with other stars like Russell Dickerson, Hardy, Sawyer Brown, Dallas Smith and Kameron Marlowe appearing on the lineup.
On Friday, after rain and lightning delayed Dallas Smith’s set, the show went on with Lonestar, Lee Brice and Old Dominion kicking off the three-day country music festival in Kissimmee, Florida.
Rain continued on Saturday, but that didn’t stop the bands and the fans from coming out to celebrate country music and the 20th anniversary of 9/11 as they lifted their drinks along with the stars and stripes from one end of the festival to the other. One look at this weekend’s event and it’s easy to see the crowd has outdone the 2019 festival in a big country music way!
Saturday’s crowd was a sea of Eric Church shirts and other flare, but when Lanco kicked off their set, (short for Lancaster and Company with band members Brandon Lancaster, Chandler Baldwin, Jared Hampton, Tripp Howell, and Eric Steedly) the crowd put the pandemic and the rain in the rear view mirror. Lanco came to play and play they did from their opener to their closer. From center stage to the runway that stretched into the depths of the crowd, Lanco was full on with some serious musicianship and big time showmanship. As the band finished it was easy to hear the crowd chanting “ see you next year – see you next year,” and see them next year they might after setting up Eric Church with a crowd on fire!
Hard to believe, but when Church and his band took the stage to close Saturday out, the crowd took their excitement to an even hotter level. Fans left their seats and got busy singing with Church who has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. Church never disappoints and Saturday’s show filled with slick vocals, energetic arrangements, and edge of the seat showmanship was no different. It was another epic performance from Church and his band that will put the pressure on Sunday’s lineup of Payton Smith, Kameron Marlowe, Jon Langston, Parker McCollum, Russell Dickerson, and headliner Dierks Bentley.
Tickets are still available for Country Thunder’s final day in 2021 at CountryThunder.com.
