Jelly Roll closed out night three of the 51st Annual CMA Music Festival

Every June, CMA Fest takes over downtown Nashville, Tennessee, for four days of live music, meet-and-greets, and fun fan experiences. The event is considered to be one of country music’s largest festivals, with more than 300 artists showcased and drawing an estimated 90,000 attendees per day.

The star-studded lineup of performers for the 2024 event included Luke Bryan, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Cody Johnson, HARDY, Lainey Wilson, and more. In addition to performing, Jelly Roll served as co-host alongside Ashley McBryde for the CMA Fest television special, which aired tonight (June 25).

Having the honor of closing the show on Saturday night (June 8) created a full-circle moment for Jelly Roll

During his performance, the rapper-turned-country singer became emotional as he reflected on serving time in his youth at the detention center adjacent to Nissan Stadium, where the concert was held. Jelly Roll asked the CMA Fest crowd to sing loud enough for the young adults in the facility to hear. He knows they can hear, he says, because he was once one of them.

 

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Keith Urban surprises the CMA Fest crowd and joins Jelly Roll on stage

Jelly Roll had more than one surprise up his sleeve for his momentous performance. He performed his new song, “I Am Not Okay,” welcomed Lainey Wilson to the stage for a duet of “Save Me,” and finally surprised the audience when Keith Urban took the stage to play lead guitar for their collaboration “Halfway to Hell.”

“Halfway to Hell” was released at the beginning of this year and became Jelly Roll’s fourth consecutive No. 1 hit on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.

Watch Jelly Roll and Keith Urban perform “Halfway to Hell” at CMA Fest in the video below!