Law enforcement preparing with less than a week until Rock the South

CULLMAN, Ala. (WIAT) – The annual country music festival, Rock the South, is less than a week away. As thousands of people get ready to attend the event, local law enforcement agencies want to bring safety to the front of everyone's mind.
Headliners like Hank Williams Jr., Kid Rock and Nickelback will draw a large crowd to Cullman County. Cullman Police estimate between 12 and 13 thousand people will be at the event each night. With that many people in one area, it can be easy for things to get rowdy quickly.
'What happens in an event like that is everybody is shoulder to shoulder, right next to each other, and all it takes is an intoxicated person pushing, hitting, elbowing, doing something inappropriate to a lady, and then there's a fight,' said Cullman County Sheriff Matt Gentry.
Two years, a fight broke out that sent one man to the hospital and put three more behind bars.
'I think everybody saw the footage, of course it made the news, and hopefully it was a wake-up call,' Cullman County District Attorney Champ Crocker said. 'A wake-up call that you just shouldn't act that way and a wake-up call that there can be consequences if you do.'
Concerts coming to Birmingham area in June
According to the Cullman County Sheriff's Office, at least 250 law enforcement officers from sheriff's deputies to police officers to state troopers will be patrolling Rock the South.
'Main thing I want to tell people is you're in the county. So, we have people from all 50 states and other countries that come here, and they think because it's a venue inside that can sell alcohol that they can do things outside, well that's not correct. The outside is dry. A lot of people have never been part of that, so we try to educate them,' Gentry said. 'We're not going to put up with nonsense. When you're outside that venue, if you're going to be a knucklehead, then we're going to deal with you. We will have a mobile jail on site, so if you're going to be doing knucklehead things, you know, aggravating the neighbors in the area. If you think it's ok to go and urinate around their house or just cause problems, then we're going to put you in that mobile jail and that's where you'll be, so you won't get to attend the concert.'
Cullman Police Chief Joey Duncan says most of the calls during Rock the South are dehydration and medical related. He encourages everyone to drink water before and during the event and to take advantage of the water stations around the venue.
'If an individual becomes highly intoxicated or displays disruptive behavior, they're going to be escorted outside the event. They're not getting a refund, and they're probably going to face criminal charges,' said Duncan. 'We need everybody to act like an adult.'
Rock the South is June 19-21. The sheriff's office says traffic information will be released next week. You can find ticket information, the lineup and more at the link here.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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