Country Stampede

The Country Stampede festival was the largest annual music festival in Kansas while in Manhattan.^{[citation needed]} Total combined attendance for all days exceeded 170,000 – in 2012 it was approximately 175,000.^{[citation needed]} The record for largest single-day attendance was set on June 23, 2012, when an estimated 55,000 fans watched Toby Keith perform.^{[citation needed]}

The festival began as a three-day weekend event, and then for several years was expanded to a four-day format, lasting from Thursday through Sunday. Camping was common for attendees, and 2,400 camp sites were available on the grounds. Vendors, and many activities were also present at the festival. Starting in 2016, the festival reverted to a three-day format. The Thursday night kickoff party was expanded into a full-day format, while Sunday was dropped from the weekend. Festival President Wayne Rouse said the decision would allow attendees a day off to recover and travel.^{[citation needed]} The new format was well-received, and Rouse indicated the change would be permanent.^{[citation needed]}

During this time, a sister festival was held at the Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, Kentucky, in 2003 and 2004.

After the festival moved to Topeka, it was not immediately replaced; however, a two-day red dirt music festival, Rock the Plains, was planned to be held at Tuttle Creek State Park in August 2025.^[8]

In May 2019, after severe rains caused increased water levels at Tuttle Creek Lake Dam, the organizers of Country Stampede announced on their Facebook page that the festival would move to Heartland Motorsports Park in Topeka for the 2019 event as a measure to "ensure all of [the] concert goers will be out of harm's way".^[3][4]

Despite reassurances from the festival organizers on their FAQ page that the event would not permanently move from Manhattan,^[10] on June 20, hours before the festival began, Country Stampede officials and leaders from the City of Topeka announced that the festival would permanently move to Heartland Motorsports Park for three additional years, renaming the festival to "Heartland Stampede", and terminating their contract with the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism to host the event at Tuttle Creek Lake State Park.^[5][6]

2019 headline performer Jason Aldean was forced to cancel his show due to severe weather.^[11]

In December 2023, it was announced that Country Stampede would be moving to the Kansas City area for 2024, due to the closing of the Heartland Motorsports Park. It would be held at the Azura Amphitheater in Bonner Springs, Kansas.^[20]

At its inception, it was named Country Stampede. In 2011, it was renamed 94.5 Country Stampede, and was sponsored by 94.5 Country Radio. In 2013, it was renamed Kicker Country Stampede,^[21] and was sponsored by Kicker Performance Audio Products. In 2020, it was renamed Heartland Country Stampede, due to the move to the Heartland Motorsports Park.^[22] In 2021, while still held at Heartland, its name was changed back to Country Stampede.^[23][24] In years since, Kicker has not consistently been included in the name of the event, though they have continued to sponsor it at some level. In 2022 Kicker returned as a sponsor, but has not been included in the name of the event since.^[25] It is currently named simply Country Stampede, with a subtitle of "Party in the Heartland".^[26]

Attendance

In its first year, 1996, Country Stampede saw around 35,000 attendees. By 2005 it had grown to nearly 150,000 attendees.^[27]

• List of country music festivals
• Country music