Country music's biggest weekend just made room for something it does not always have - a Sunday morning church service. And it is happening right now on the banks of the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville.
Brandon Lake is hosting Cowboy Church this morning, Sunday, June 7, at 9:30 a.m. on the Chevy Riverfront Stage at CMA Fest - and the event is completely free and open to the public. No stadium ticket. No wristband. Just show up.
Lake officially announced that country music duo Dan + Shay would be joining him on stage, and on June 1 added that multi-Dove and GRAMMY Award winner CeCe Winans would also perform as a special guest. That lineup alone makes this one of the most unexpected - and most compelling - moments of the entire festival weekend.
Lake first played the Riverfront Stage during last year's festival and left with something bigger on his mind. "Something special happened at the riverfront during CMA Fest last year, and I knew we had to do it again," he said.
His description of what Cowboy Church is meant to be says everything about who it is for.
"We're calling it Cowboy Church. Not the kind of church with suits and pews - the kind for the wanderers, the worn-out, the misfits, the ones who aren't sure they belong anywhere. If that's you - you're welcome here. Come as you are."
The CMA Fest official description called it "a rowdy, hope-filled Sunday morning gathering with some favorite on-fire country artists, open to anyone who could use a little encouragement and a moment of hope."
That description fits this particular Sunday in Nashville perfectly. CMA Fest draws nearly 95,000 daily attendees from across the country - many of them far from home, running on little sleep, and in the middle of one of the loudest, most overstimulating weekends of the year. A moment to stop, breathe, and worship is not just a nice addition to the schedule. For some people in that crowd this morning, it may be exactly what they needed without knowing it.
For the Christian music world, this moment carries broader significance too. Whether it is Brandon Lake turning a riverfront stage into a church service, Leanna Crawford sharing her music with country audiences, or faith becoming increasingly visible during country music's biggest week - the crossover between Christian and country music continues to grow in 2026 in ways that feel less like a trend and more like a movement.
CeCe Winans - fresh off her K-LOVE Fan Awards Female Artist of the Year win just two weeks ago - brings her unmistakable presence to a stage that will today feel more like a sanctuary than a festival ground. Dan + Shay, one of country music's most beloved duos, close the bridge between both worlds in a way that only CMA Fest 2026 could have made possible.
If you are in Nashville this morning, the Chevy Riverfront Stage is on First Avenue along the Cumberland River. It started at 9:30 a.m. - get there.
Related Articles:
- Dan + Shay Are Joining Brandon Lake for Cowboy Church at CMA Fest and the Call That Made It Happen
- Brandon Lake Announces CeCe Winans as Special Guest for CMA Fest Cowboy Church
