By Aundrea Cline-Thomas and Chris Cannon
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - More than 100,000 people filled downtown Nashville for "Let Freedom Sing", the city's annual 4th of July celebration.
Folks came out early on Monday morning to find a spot for the concert and fireworks.
Mona and Rick Eichler came at 9:30 Monday morning to stake out the perfect spot.
"We got the chairs and the umbrella to keep the sun off us. A little bit of water to keep us hydrated," said Eichler.
After more than five years, they said it's becoming a tradition.
"This is the best fireworks around and the symphony is great with it. Great music all afternoon. This is our fourth of July," Eichler added.
While crowds gather and enjoy time out in the sun, the crews setting up the fireworks are baking in it.
They are working to make sure everything is just right for the show.
"It's a lot of hard work, a lot of preparation, a lot of man hours for 22 minutes of fireworks," said Tate Wilson with Pyro Shows.
Once again, they're trying to top last year's performance by bringing in 10-inch shells that shoot 1,200 feet in the air.
"We're doing stuff off the stadium. Different scenes up there so they'll notice that a lot. We have a lot of whistles," Tate added.
Crowds gathered on both sides of the river to watch the show. Many of the people who camped out at LP Field have been doing it for years.
"It's a delightful way to spend the 4th of July and be a little patriotic," said Bunny Porter-Shirley.
She and her group of friends have watched the fireworks from the east bank for a decade now.
Back downtown crowds converged on any street where they could get a view of the sky over the stadium. There was not much room to move and it was hot outside, but most people did not mind.
"Everybody is getting along, it's beautiful. Nashville does have the best festival," Angela Peterson explained.
The headline show started just after 8:00 p.m. with country star Darius Rucker and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. The fireworks began filling the sky over the Cumberland River at 9:20 p.m. and did not disappoint.
According to the Convention and Visitors bureau the expected 125,000 people who came out for the fireworks last year spent $5.6 million dollars.
"It's huge. It's just crazy. It feels like it gets bigger every single year," said Rachel Lane with the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Email: acline-thomas@newschannel5.com and ccannon@newschannel5.com
