Thousands of country music fans turned out Monday night (Aug. 18) for Jake Owen's second annual BMI Block Party, packing a parking lot in the heart of Nashville's Music Row for the free concert.

"Whether you're artists or you work in publishing, management, labels, whatever, we all sometimes sit in our offices and on our tour buses and think, 'What is it that gets to these people?'" Owen told CMT Hot 20 Countdown. "Well, this is it. It's music. Music gets to these people, and if you give it to them, they're gonna come. And that's what Music City's built upon."

With an estimated 20,000 in attendance, even Owen admitted he was surprised at the size of the crowd.

"I didn't think that last year would be what it was, and I don't think anybody else did either, so we just thought since we had such a blast last year that it's a good thing, and we need to do it again," he said.

"This city has given me so much in my life and the people in this city. I've made the best friends I've ever made here. It supports my family, and I feel like with it being Music City, the least I can do is give back to a city that has given me so much."

It was a free show for fans and a celebration of Owen's recent success with the summer smash, "Beachin'." The singer even invited some of his musical pals to join in on the fun like Lee Brice, Dan + Shay, the Cadillac Three and pop/R&B singer Mike Posner. Then Owen took the stage to perform his own fan favorites like "Barefoot Blue Jean Night," "Alone With You" and "Yee Haw."

"It was really cool making phone calls asking people if they wanted to come out and just, you know, have fun," Owen said.

Owen, who had the crowd partying late into the night, will head back out on tour this weekend with stops in Alabama and Louisiana.

For more, tune in to CMT Hot 20 Countdown this Saturday and Sunday (Aug. 23-24) at 11 a.m. ET/PT.