Groundwater country music festival’s attendance estimated at 65,000

The rebranded Groundwater country music festival on the weekend may have hit a new attendance peak of 65,000, promoter Broadbeach Alliance estimated.

This year the Queensland festival ran under the new Groundwater name, changing from its original title of Broadbeach Country.

Jan McCormick, Broadbeach Alliance CEO, reported, “At six years old Groundwater has certainly demonstrated that it will become Australia’s largest CMF in a very short time.

“The crowds have been strong and everyone is so relaxed and happy, from performers and crews to the fans… A perfect recipe for the festival’s growing success moving into the future. “

Groundwater wrapped up last night with a packed out 30 Years of Pride: A Tribute to James Blundell.

It featured major names as Drew McAlister, Felicity Urquhart, Ben Ransom, Jonny Taylor and Brewn – and an unexpected appearance from Lee Kernaghan, who also announced that he will be headlining the 2019 event.

Kernaghan said, "Joining this star-studded line-up at Groundwater has been one of the highlights of my year.

"It was a pleasure to pay tribute to an absolute living legend on his 30th-anniversary tour, and I can't wait to come back next year to perform again."

Major live drawcards included The McClymonts, Suzanne Vega, Amber Lawrence, Adam Harvey and O’Shea.

Another packed-out event was on Saturday night for US artist Granger Smith in the Kurrawa Big Top.

Love was in the air with a marriage proposal on Friday at the Broadbeach Mall stage, and a couple returning to the festival for the anniversary of their meeting there.