Summer is the biggest season for music festivals, and Country Stampede has become one of the hottest in the industry as thousands of fans pack the Tuttle Creek State Park near Manhattan, Kansas to catch some of country’s biggest names and newcomers alike.

With the artists making the fans feel like the true stars of the four day festivities, newcomer Chase Bryant even invited them onto the roof of a bus for very special post-show performance.

The Texas native says festivals are a bit like family reunions for the musicians and fans, making them some of the most highly-anticipated dates of the year for artists.

“It’s like family, friends, fans,” he told CMT Hot 20 Countdown. “They’re all the same to me. We’re all a big family. This is the one time more people come for so many artists. Not just for one artist not just two or three artists but for the whole weekend. They gather because they love country music.”

Bryant’s debut single, “Take It on Back,” was released last year. And even though it reached the Top 10 on Billboard’s country airplay chart, he’s still amazed when the audience sings the words back to him at his concerts.

“I’ve got one song they know well,” he said. “We just do our best to get out there and entertain the crowd and keep the crowd ramped up and into what we’re doing. I think if you show them honesty and you show them the truth behind the music, I think they’re into that.”

Bryant is glad to be part of the country family.

“I said this onstage, but this is the best genre -- always going to be the best genre,” he said. “It’s always going to be the best family. It proves it today when you see thousands of people out there hugging and loving on each other and just hanging out and having a blast. It’s just a great big family, and that’s why I love doing this.”

For more on the festivities from this year’s Country Stampede tune into an all new episode of CMT Hot 20 Countdown this Saturday and Sunday (July 18-19) at 9 a.m. ET/PT.