CMA Fest 2026 may have wrapped a little more than a week ago, but George Birge is one of many people who are still riding the Fan Fair high.
His euphoria comes from getting to play his top-15 hit “Ride, Ride, Ride” with Luke Bryan during his set on the main stage in Nashville.
“It was my first time performing in a stadium,” George reveals. “Seventy thousand people out there and it was just electric. Luke leaned into me right before we walked onstage and he said, ‘Man, don’t let this freak you out and go out there and get weird or nothing. Just go out and crush it, man.'”
For the “Mind on You” hitmaker, Luke’s encouragement helped.
“I gotta admit, I did have a little bit of nerves, but we went out there and it was electric,” he tells ABC Audio. “The crowd ate it up, and [it] may be one of the best nights of my life, easily, of my musical journey, getting to play that song with Luke Bryan at Nissan Stadium to close out CMA Fest.”
Not only was George part of Luke’s closing Sunday night set, he got to be part of the final CMA Fest performance at the original Nissan Stadium. Next year CMA Fest will be in the new home of the Tennessee Titans, which is currently being built.
The 2026 CMA Fest special premieres Thursday, June 25, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and streams the next day on Hulu.
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