With audience up 77%, Broadbeach Country Music changes name to Groundwater Country Music

With the free Gold Coast festival Broadbeach Country Music posting a 77% attendance figure earlier this year to 54,000, organisers have made a name change to Groundwater Country Music.

The new name frees up the festival to be moved forward to the next step, and to widen its target demographic.

Organiser Broadbeach Alliance CEO Jan McCormick says, “We have been blown away by the growth of this festival on the Gold Coast; in just five short years it has become one of the biggest music festivals of its genre in Australia and is a must do on the events calendar for music lovers and artists.

“Our small team is very experienced in producing events and we understand how pivotal artist programming is to keep surprising and delighting our loyal attendees whilst opening the door for first timers.

“We have been watching this musical genre closely on a global landscape and felt now is the right time to introduce a new brand signifying that we are ready to take the strength of this festival even further.”

Groundwater as a name draws from the Aboriginal people’s close spiritual connection with the groundwater, as well as the farming community’s reliance on groundwater for survival using the rivers, lakes, streams, and oceans.

“Groundwater is the common denominator in bringing people together,” say festival organisers.

This year’s festival, helped by perfect weather, strong word-of-mouth, and the hiring of its first international headliner (US soft rock band America) saw an extra 15,000 to 20,000 people attending the event for the first time.

In 2016, 30% of attendees were from the Coast, 36% from around Queensland, 29% from intestate and 2% from overseas. They injected more than $6 million into the local economy,

Over three days in July, 110 shows were performed across 12 stages.

Names included Kasey Chambers, Troy Cassar-Daley, Shane Nicholson, Fanny Lumsden, Lachlan Bryan, Jetty Road, The Weeping Willows, Aleyce Simmonds and Roo Arcus.