00:00 Forget the bright lights and red carpet.
00:08 This is where the festival's true heart and sass are born.
00:15 Each year Peel Street is transformed into what's known as the Boulevard of Dreams, setting
00:20 the stage for up to 400 buskers who compete for prizes and gigs.
00:25 I didn't realise there was going to be so many musos along this line.
00:30 So, I don't know, I guess when people are walking past they can just get snippets of
00:34 everything.
00:39 One of Tamworth's long-running buskers is Smokey Pete.
00:42 I run a walk-up busking spot and I have been in the same spot for eight or nine years now.
00:49 It's also where some of Aussie country's biggest names got their start, including Casey
00:54 Chambers, Troy Cassadayley, Keith Urban and up-and-comer Lane Pittman.
01:00 It's probably the most important thing we do here for younger artists during the festival.
01:03 I mean, it's how you get your start, it's how you get seen, you know.
01:06 He then went on to wow the judges in The Voice.
01:10 And now the 17-year-old commands large audiences of his own.
01:14 They call it the Boulevard of Dreams and that's exactly what it is.
01:16 You never know who you're going to see or the next star you're going to discover.
01:20 While it's the Golden Guitar Awards that represent the pinnacle of industry recognition, it's
01:24 the days leading up to the big event where grassroots country comes alive.
01:29 It's out here on Peel Street where the soul and longevity of this festival lives.
01:37 Now in its 52nd year, the music shows no signs of quieting down.
01:42 [music]
01:44 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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