CBS’ New Year’s Eve Country Music Special Faces Mid-Show Disruption Due To Power Outages In Nashville

CBS' Nashville's Big Bash Pauses Due To Power Outage (Instagram/CBS)

Country Music’s Biggest Stars Celebrate The New Year At “Nashville’s Big Bash”

Jack Daniel’s New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash took place in the heart of music city to ring in 2026. The in-person watch party was held this year at Luke Combs’ Category 10.

The five-hour special featured a number of country’s top artists including Dierks Bentley, Brooks & Dunn, Rascal Flatts, Zach Top, Keith Urban, Lainey Wilson, and Gretchen Wilson.

Hosted by country music star HARDY and comedian Bert Kreischer, the public was invited to Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park in Nashville for a free night of music and celebration.

RELATED: Stephen Wilson Jr. Delivers Soulful Performance Of “Stand By Me” At Nashville’s Big Bash New Year’s Eve Celebration

Power Outage In Nashville Postpones The Big Show

Things took a turn when CBS’s legal drama Matlock unexpectedly interrupted the network’s New Year’s Eve broadcast.

Nearly 40 minutes into New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash, country music star Lainey Wilson’s performance was halted during the middle of her performance. The screen went black for a few seconds, then returned with a series of promos for Survivor and other CBS shows before switching to Matlock, which aired mid-episode.

The episode ran for several minutes, repeatedly interrupted by commercials and network promos. During the disruption, a crawl read, “We are experiencing technical difficulties,” and was later updated to say, “We are experiencing technical difficulties and programming will resume shortly.”

Viewers took to social media when the disruption hit, asking the network to clear up confusion.

The broadcast returned with a performance from Gretchen Wilson after more than a 12-minute interruption, and co-host Bert Kreischer acknowledged the technical issue.

“We lost power here in Nashville, and we got kicked off the air on CBS,” he said as he and HARDY joked none of them caused the delay

John Foster Pays Tribute To Hank Williams With Lively Rose Parade Performance

"American Idol" finalist John Foster brought country music to the 2026 Rose Parade, singing Hank Williams' "Jambalaya (On The Bayou)" on the anniversary of the icon's death in 1953. (Photo credit: Michael Tullberg / Getty Images, and George Rinhart / Corbis via Getty Images)

John Foster’s Jan. 1 Performance Coincided With The 73rd Anniversary Of The Death Of Hank Williams

Something that many people came to love about American Idol Season 23 finalist John Foster was his love for classic country music.

During his tenure on the show, which saw the country singer make it all the way to the final three, he sang songs by the likes of Conway Twitty, George Strait, Brooks & Dunn, and many more.

Although he never performed a song by Hank Williams while on Idol, John Foster kicked off the new year with a performance of “Jambalaya (On The Bayou)” at the 2026 Rose Parade.

This performance also coincided with the 73rd anniversary of the tragic death of Hank Williams, who died at the age of 29.

John Foster’s Rose Parade Performance

Leading up to his Rose Parade performance on Jan. 1, John Foster posted a New Year’s Day message to his fans on social media, writing, “Happy New Year, everyone! I’m praying for a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year for each and every one of you.”

Continuing, he wrote, “2025 was my best year yet — and if I have anything to do with it, 2026 will be even better.”

Concluding his post, he said he would be “proudly representing” his home state of Louisiana, with the singer accompanying the Explore Louisiana float.

He was also interviewed about his upcoming parade appearance on Louisiana First News, saying, “I’d always had it in my mind that it would be just very cool if I could represent my state at such an iconic parade like this.”

He added, “Everybody from our home region probably can sing the words to that great song, [“Jambalaya (On The Bayou)”] by Hank Sr., who is a legendary country music artist and somebody who has a lot of ties to Louisiana.”

Watch John Foster speak about his performance, as well as what we can expect from him in 2026, here:

Kicking off his performance at the Rose Parade, John said, “Let me show you how we do it in Louisiana!”

During his mid-parade performance, John walked alongside the float with his guitar as dancers moved around him. The rhythm of “Jambalaya (On The Bayou)” found John walking with some extra pep in his step.

His dance moves have previously been on display when he performed Elvis Presley’s “Jailhouse Rock” on Idol, as well as more recently with the release of his original song, “Little Goes A Long Way.”