Carolina Country Music Fest Archives

I’m sure as most of you know we are huge country music fans. The Carolina Country Music Fest that takes over our town every June is hands down one of our favorite weekends of the year.

When we first learned about the Carolina Country Music Cruise (CCMC) Jeff and I were sold….cruising with some of our favorite country artists in the middle of the ocean? What could possibly be better? We originally were all in, then Jeff broke his collar bone and we realized the cruise was during school/work (which I knew was going to be pretty much impossible to get off for) it seemed it just wasn’t in our favor to go. We kind of scraped the idea and were just counting down the days until CCMF 2020.

CCMC Yes Please!

Then one day I opened up my DM’s on Instagram and got the most amazing news, I had been invited to attend the cruise with a guest! Say what?!?! After some behind the scenes work and getting all our “ducks in a row” we took the plunge and were set to go on the first annual Carolina Country Music Cruise leaving from Charleston on the Carnival Sunshine on November 16th! By the way @ccmfcruise you can slide into my DM’s anytime!

The CCMC is pretty much the vacation of our dreams especially for those of us who love cruising and can’t get enough country music! We have been on a few cruises but of course, none that involved country music artists! I mean is it possible I could be in an elevator with an artist or sitting by the pool with the band?! How does this work? I mean the truth is, if we are all on the same ship together, it has to be pretty common to have some interaction, right? Are these two just going to be walking around the ship?! I hope they don’t mind me totally fangirling over them. I’ll try to play it cool I promise!

The Ship

The Carnival Sunshine will be transformed with different country music-related events and major shows featuring popular stars from today’s country music industry. The cruise will be just for those interested in country music and it won’t be a regular voyage which the Carnival ship usually sails.

In addition to a stacked lineup of country artists, the cruise offers nine bars, 27 dining options, pools, whirlpools, and waterslides!

Theme Nights

If you are familiar with CCMF you know they love theme days, and I love shopping and picking out outfits for them as well. US of A Day is always so much fun during CCMF, and the CCMC is following suit with Theme Nights on the Cruise.

The first theme night is Rhinestone Cowboy on Sunday, Nov 17. That’s the night everyone gets fancy for dinner. Think Captains Dinner turned Country. I’m packing my blinged out boots from Wild West Boot Store, I have a few options for dresses from Idyllwind and also found some dresses from Southern Fried Chics that would be perfect as well! My husband is packing his cowboy boots, hat and a shirt that just screams Rhinestone Cowboy all from Country Outfitters!

The second theme night is ‘MERICA on Monday, Nov 18. This is a tradition at CCMF that I was referring to so I knew they weren’t going to leave this Americana themed night out! My husband and I got our outfits from Shinesty and I cannot WAIT to show y’all! Here are some of my past CCMF American Themed outfits as well!

The final theme night is Lei’d Back on Wednesday, Nov 20. Hawaiian shirts and grass skirts are going to be taking over the ship! My husband found Hawaiian shirts from Goodwill y’all! And I found my outfit on Amazon for under $20! Here are some ideas from Amazon!

Don’t forget the lei’s!!

What else to pack?

Go ahead and bring your favorite cruise wear like bathing suits, coverups, cocktail dress, hat, sunscreen, and flip flops! You never know who you may bump into while walking around the ship, so make sure you have a camera or your phone available as well!

One of my favorite shirt companies Hippie Runner has some fun cruise-related shirts as well that you might wanna check out! She even has some fun country music-themed tees too!

We are officially 11 days away from a non-stop country music party on the high seas! Mixing country music stars, music, a world-class ship and service and of course the greatest community of fans imaginable! And yes you can still book today! Use code: JAMIE to save 10%!

C’mon, y’all what are you waiting for?!

For more information, visit ccmfcruise.com.

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CCMF 2019

We’ve made it through days of sensory overload, good times, good music and good vibes. The last thing on our mind is how much sleep or food we are getting until you need it. The Eat, Sleep, Repeat mantra is all too real. CCMF 2019 welcomes you to PCCMFD.

Post Festival Depression

Post Festival Depression is real y’all. It’s a feeling you get when you are walking out of an amazing 4-day festival and think “holy sh*t I will never experience happiness like that again.” Well until next year when it’s time for CCMF to come around again.

CCMF — US of A Day Wearing our City Roots in Boots shirts and hats

I’m 3 days post festival and I’m still not 100% “normal” I mean was I ever?! Haha. No, but it’s true I may have overindulged a bit and I’m just getting my body back to myself. It was CCMF’s property for 4 days and I’m not even mad about it.

Not My First Rodeo

This isn’t my first rodeo. This was actually the 4th year attending the festival that just celebrated its 5th anniversary. I would have been there for the first year if we weren’t preparing to move to Myrtle at the same time. It was about to be our “First week in Myrtle Beach..”

Believe me, I wanted to be there, my husband was already living here and he attended so we are definitely veterans of this music fest. But believe me when I say, nothing I’d experienced to that point in my life had prepared me for what I was about to experience, veteran or not, an endorphin-aided endurance test of partying my ass off for basically 96 hours straight (with very little sleep in between) and an endless supply of alcohol. Thanks, Ultimate CCMF Experience Wristbands.

You’re high’s a little high

The highs achieved at CCMF are absolutely no match against the lows I have felt afterward. One moment we are in a fairytale world being taken backstage, escorted to stage box seats with people who have more money to spend on a seat than I will ever make in a lifetime, where everybody accepts you for who you are, and welcomes you with open arms regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation. Then suddenly the festival is over and the next day you’re forced back into your routine of daily life and don’t see these people who you have made friends with until next year (maybe.) Talk about low.

Festivals create this temporary community that is physically, socially, and experientially separate from our daily lives. When we enter them they allow us to do things and meet people we wouldn’t otherwise encounter, like for example, the ability to take as many shots as physically possible in an hour while we watch Dan + Shay with our fellow #lyricsdowncold winners.

May We All

I have talked about this before. But, I think something that we can all agree on is there is nothing quite like hearing our favorite songs live and seeing your favorite artist. Concerts give us an escape from our reality. We dance with our best friends and with people we have never met before, who eventually become our friends…sometimes they even become our best friends. There is just something so amazing about thousands of people singing the same song on a dark summer night that makes you all connect.

And of course there will always be a part of me who will still smile at the sound of Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” no matter how many times I have heard it, and hearing it live with “my people” makes it so much better.

Living

As Dierk’s would say “Some days you’re living” and eventually all the bad post-festival symptoms will fade, and you will be able to look at your videos and photos from the weekend as amazing memories. Those memories will sustain you, until the next time, you more than willingly put yourself through this torture again.

Especially when you look back and remember you were this close to Thomas Rhett on Day 4.

Enjoy some of my memories of another amazing weekend thanks to CCMF, along with all the amazing people we met and businesses we worked with over the course of the weekend.