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academy of country music awards

Lainey Wilson and Chris Stapleton were the top winners at the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards, which were presented on Thursday (May 16) at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas.
Stapleton won four awards, more than anyone else, but Wilson won the top prize, entertainer of the year. Luke Combs and Jordan Davis each won two awards. (Under ACM rules, artists can win two awards in a few categories – one as an artist and one as producer or songwriter.)

Morgan Wallen was shut out, despite receiving six nods.

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Wilson won entertainer of the year two years after winning the ACM Award for new female artist of the year. That’s the fastest climb from a new artist award to entertainer of the year at the ACMs since The Chicks, then called Dixie Chicks, also made the advance in just two years. That female trio was named new group or duo in 1999 and won entertainer of the year in 2001.

Wilson thus achieves what the ACM calls the Triple Crown. She won new female artist of the year two years ago and female artist of the year last year. Wilson repeated in the latter category this year. She’s the first artist to win back-to-back awards in this category since Maren Morris in 2020-21.

Wilson also won music event of the year for the second year in a row. She won this year as a featured artist on Jelly Roll’s “Save Me.” She won last year as a featured artist on Hardy’s “Wait in the Truck.”

Stapleton won album of the year for the fourth time, a total equaled or exceeded only by Miranda Lambert, who has won five times in the category. Lambert won with five consecutive studio albums. Stapleton has won with four of his five solo studio albums. He missed only when From a Room, Vol. 2 lost to Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour. (He won two awards in this category, one as artist and one as co-producer.)

Stapleton won male artist of the year for the fourth time, just one shy of the all-time record of five wins shared by Merle Haggard, Brad Paisley and George Strait. Stapleton also won artist-songwriter of the year in the second year it was presented. Hardy was the inaugural winner last year. These awards up Stapleton’s ACM Awards trophy count to 20.

Combs’ “Fast Car” won single of the year. The crossover smash reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It’s the fourth winner in that category to reach No. 1 on No. 2 on Billboard’s flagship singles chart, following Glen Campbell’s “Rhinestone Cowboy” (the 1976 winner; No. 1); Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s “Islands in the Stream” (the 1984 winner; No. 1) and Lady A’s “Need You Now” (the 2010 winner, No. 2). Combs won two awards for the single, as artist and co-producer.

But Tracy Chapman did not win song of the year for writing “Fast Car,” as was expected. The Jordan Davis hit “Next Thing You Know” won instead in that category. Davis co-wrote the song with Chase McGill, Greylan James and Josh Osborne. It’s the second win in this category for Osborne, who co-wrote the Old Dominion hit “One Man Band,” which won four years ago. (Davis won two awards in this category – one as artist and one as a cowriter.)

Old Dominion won group of the year for the seventh year in a row. That equals Rascal Flatts’ run of seven consecutive wins from 2003-09.

Dan + Shay won duo of the year for the fourth time, equaling Brothers Osborne’s four-year reign for the recent ACM record. The all-time record is held by Brooks & Dunn and The Judds, with 16 wins.

Megan Moroney won new female artist of the year, while Nate Smith won new male artist of the year. Both were also nominated in those categories last year, but lost to Hailey Whitters and Zach Bryan, respectively. ACM rules give artists two attempts to take home the award.

Tigirlily Gold won in the revived category of new duo or group of the year. The award was last presented five years ago to LANCO. Tigirlily Gold, which consists of sisters Kendra and Krista Slaubaugh, is the second sister duo to win in this category. The first was The Kinleys, which consisted of Heather and Jennifer Kinley. They won in 1998. (The Kinleys were identical twins. The sisters of Tigirlily Gold are about 2-1/2 years apart in age.)

Jessie Jo Dillon won songwriter of the year. She’s the third woman to win in that category, following Hillary Lindsey (a three-time winner) and Lori McKenna.” Dillon’s win was no surprise. She was nominated for songwriter of the year, non-classical at the Grammy Awards earlier this year.

Parker McCollum’s “Burn It Down” won visual media of the year. Two years ago, McCollum won ACM new male artist of the year.

The show was produced by Dick Clark Productions (DCP). DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a Penske Media Corporation (PMC) subsidiary and joint venture between PMC and Eldridge. PMC is the parent company of Billboard.

The line-up of performers and presenters for the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards is just about set, and the key word is collaboration.  Kelsea Ballerini and Noah Kahan will team up for a performance, as will Blake Shelton and wife Gwen Stefani and also Nate Smith featuring Avril Lavigne. In addition, Post Malone is booked for the show. He is expected to perform “I Had Some Help,” his new single featuring Morgan Wallen, though that has not yet been announced.
Presenters include Alabama (most awarded group in Academy history with 22 ACM Awards), Carin León (two-time Latin Grammy Award winner), Dion Pride (son of country legend Charley Pride), Rozene Pride (Pride’s widow), Richard Sherman (Super Bowl XLVIII Champion & Thursday Night Football analyst), Charissa Thompson (host, Thursday Night Football) and Randy Travis (11-time ACM Award-winning artist).

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Hosted by 16-time ACM Award-winner Reba McEntire, the ACM Awards will stream live for a global audience on Prime Video from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas on Thursday (May 16) at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. A Prime membership will not be required to watch live. The full rebroadcast will be available directly following the stream on Prime Video and available the next day for free on Amazon Freevee and the Amazon Music app.

The ACM Awards will kick off with the Official ACM Awards Red Carpet Show hosted by Amber Anderson and Kelly Sutton (co-hosts, Country Heat Weekly podcast), Makho Ndlovu (host, Amazon Live), and Elaina D. Smith (host, Nights With Elaina), with Katie Neal (host, Katie & Company) serving as a correspondent from the carpet. Presented by Prime Video and Amazon Music, the Red Carpet Show will also feature a performance by Megan Moroney (this year’s most nominated female artist with six nods), and air on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch starting at 7 p.m. ET.

Plus, Bobby Bones, five-time ACM Awards winner for national on-air personality of the year, will be featured throughout the night. His segment, “Backstage with Bobby Bones,” will showcase intimate artist interviews and special moments of the show.

Fans can also experience a week of pre-ACM livestream celebrations hosted by Kelly Sutton and Amber Anderson courtesy of Amazon Music. Broadcasting live on the Amazon Music Channel on Twitch, the festivities will kick off on Tuesday (May 14) at 9 p.m. ET with Live from the ACM Awards: ACM New Artist Winners Celebration from Tostitos Championship Plaza at The Star, which will feature musical performances and special guests, as well as the presentation of the ACM new male artist, new female artist, and new duo or group of the year.

On Wednesday (May 15) at 9 p.m. ET, fans will be able to stream Live from the ACM Awards: Backstage with Kelly & Amber. Amber and Kelly will also release three ACM-themed Country Heat Weekly podcasts on Thursdays, starting on May 9 with the duo’s interview with McEntire.

Fans can also stream the Official ACM Awards playlist available now on Amazon Music in celebration of this year’s nominees. Fans can listen to Country Music’s biggest stars directly on the Amazon Music app.

The 59th Academy of Country Music Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions. Raj Kapoor is executive producer and showrunner, with Patrick Menton as co-executive producer. Damon Whiteside serves as executive producer for the Academy of Country Music, and Barry Adelman serves as executive producer for DCP. John Saade continues to serve as consulting producer for Amazon MGM Studios.

Here are the performers and presenters for the 2024 ACM Awards. Any additional performers will be added to the list as they are announced.

Performers

Jason Aldean

Kelsea Ballerini and Noah Kahan

Kane Brown

Jelly Roll

Cody Johnson

Miranda Lambert

Post Malone

Parker McCollum

Reba McEntire

Thomas Rhett

Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani

Nate Smith featuring Avril Lavigne

Chris Stapleton

Lainey Wilson

Presenters

Alabama

BRELAND

Tyler Cameron

Jordan Davis

Sara Evans

Carin León

Little Big Town

Ashley McBryde

Dion and Rozene Pride

Noah Reid

Richard Sherman

Charissa Thompson

Randy Travis

Clay Walker

Four pop stars — Post Malone, Gwen Stefani, Noah Kahan and Avril Lavigne — are set to perform on the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards on Thursday May 16, but the show’s producers stress that the performances came about organically.
“Our goal is always country-first,” Raj Kapoor, who is the show’s executive producer and showrunner, told Billboard. “We’re not actively going out to pursue artists [who are] out-of-genre. I think the most important thing is that it fits in a very natural way. We’re not asking people to come in who don’t have relationships or haven’t wanted to work together or don’t have projects together. We always want to stay authentically country. Those bonds that bring people together need to exist already.”

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Post Malone will perform a song from his upcoming country album, possibly “I Had Some Help,” a collab with Morgan Wallen. Stefani and Blake Shelton will perform their single “Purple Irises.” Kahan and Kelsea Ballerini — who, Kapoor notes, were in the studio together — will perform her “Mountain with a View” and his smash “Stick Season.” Lavigne and Nate Smith will perform Smith’s song “Bulletproof.”

This is a heavier slate of pop performers than on last year’s ACM Awards, where there was just one: Ed Sheeran, who joined Luke Combs to perform Sheeran’s song “Life Goes On.”

Menton, who is serving as co-executive producer, notes, “Yes, Post is definitely a kind of pop/hip-hop performer, but in a way, he’s almost genre-less. Post spent a lot of time in Nashville on this record and kind of dove back into his roots. He’s a country traditionalist at heart. He’s from Texas, so he grew up on this. Having heard some of the album, this is a real country album. This is an artist who’s really honoring the genre.

Menton adds: “This is such a global genre now. Country artists are selling out stadiums in the U.K. and Europe and all over the world. So, I think there is that conversation of they want it to be a bit boundary-less. They want those guardrails to open up a little bit. Yes, for us to be focused on country and celebrate the genre, but we really do welcome these other genres coming in because [country] really has exploded into this global genre and we want to celebrate that.”

The 59th ACM Awards, to be hosted by Reba McEntire, will stream globally on Prime Video on Thursday May 16 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas. Also performing on the show are Jason Aldean, Kane Brown, Jelly Roll, Cody Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Parker McCollum, Thomas Rhett, Chris Stapleton and Lainey Wilson, as well as McEntire and, most likely, one or two more artists not yet named. “There may be some surprises,” Menton teases.

Kapoor was one of three executive producers of the Grammy Awards on Feb. 4, along with Ben Winston and Jesse Collins. He also served as executive producer and showrunner of the Oscars on March 10. Menton was a co-executive producer of the Grammys.

“I think my job is to make each show unique,” Kapoor says, “because they have such different DNA. That’s really what I strive for. They’re brands almost. They’re all actually [put on by] academies. It’s so different from just a pop show. There’s so many eyeballs on what we do. I guess I didn’t realize the complexities of that before I took on these positions. I’m much more aware of what goes on behind-the-scenes because it’s not just about our show. It’s really about these year-round programs that they all do and how many people are so invested.”

Kapoor and Menton have worked together on six Grammy telecasts – four in their current positions. They share a philosophy of producing a show, one that may sound a bit soft, but which is obviously working. Last year’s ACM Awards was the third-highest-rated awards show of 2023, behind just the Oscars and the Grammys (which they also worked on).

“We both lead with kindness,” Menton says. “That’s our rule of thumb, across-the-board. It’s creating space for these artists to come to us and feel safe. It’s not a case of we tell them what we want on the show. That’s not at all the way we work. It’s ‘What do you want to do on the show?’, ‘What’s going to create a moment?’ We’re all about the artist first and making sure they have a space to really create and collaborate in a safe space.”

Some awards show producers are known for taking a much firmer hand; for dictating what they want the artist to perform and who they want them to perform it with.

“We always believe it’s a conversation,” Kapoor says. “Obviously, we’re there to help guide sometimes. ‘Why don’t we try this?’ ‘What would you think about this?’ Sometimes we will push if we have a really strong belief about something, but it’s always a conversation, always a collaboration.

“Sometimes these moments really help define people’s careers,” he continues. “They can go viral. They are things that people will talk about for years to come. Last year [on the ACMs], everyone talked about Luke and Ed. Earlier this year [on the Grammys], I think everyone was talking about Luke and Tracy [Chapman, who teamed on “Fast Car].”

Kapoor believes the ACMs’ move to Amazon in 2022 helped give it a unique personality that sets it apart from the three other televised country award shows, the CMA Awards, the CMT Music Awards and the People’s Choice Country Awards.

“Our show is very fast-paced – two hours with very little commercials. So, you have back-to-back music performances. You still have a lot of awards, but our show moves very quickly. One thing I’ve really taken away since we’ve been on Amazon is how punchy and exciting it feels. We’re literally moving all the time. One performance leads into another. Sometimes, we’ve done three performances back-to-back.”

Menton says the partnership with Amazon has affected the show in another way. “It has allowed us to open those guardrails up and take chances. We’ve leaned into new artist development a lot more, we lean into diversity. We lean into something that’s completely out of the box; [that] other shows may feel a bit uncomfortable trying to do. Amazon gives us that ability to move and shake a bit differently. But I also think the industry comes to us with those out-of-the-box ideas. I think it’s because we’re open to it, Amazon is open to it and the Academy has always been that place where we’re the party of the year. We’re a little bit more fun. We try to let everyone just let their hair down.”

The ACM Awards are different in that respect from the Grammys and the Oscars, which are the official “shows of record” for the music and film industries. The CMA Awards probably better fit that description for country music, which led to the ACM Awards instead billing itself as country music’s party of the year.

As for new artist development, the show will feature performances by this year’s winners of the three new artist awards, male artist, female artist and duo/group. The latter category is being awarded for the first time in five years.

Bobby Bones will be featured throughout the show with the artist interview segment “Backstage with Bobby Bones,” which was introduced on last year’s show. This takes advantage of Bones’ close relationships with many country stars, but Kapoor reveals that the segments also serve a practical function on the show.

“Because we are live/live with all these performances, Bobby is also a great backup plan when we need him to be. You would never know it, like if we need an extra 30 seconds [to set the stage for the next performer], Bobby is there to help us if we need it, which we are very grateful for.”

Menton says they approached last year’s hosts, Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks, about returning to host the show again this year, but the superstar duo declined. “They were ready to take a step down,” he says. “They had such a rocking year last year, they probably felt like it [would be] hard to top.”

Fortunately for the show, another country legend, McEntire, was willing to return to the show for a 17th time as host or co-host. McEntire is closing in on the all-time record for most times hosting or co-hosting a major awards show. That record has long been held by Bob Hope, who hosted or co-hosted the Academy Awards 19 times between 1940-78.

“Reba is one of the most kind and hard-working artists out there, and to have her hosting our show, having an icon like that — we’re so lucky,” Menton says.

Barry Adelman, a mainstay at Dick Clark Productions, is serving as executive producer of this year’s show for DCP. Adelman has worked on the ACMs for more than 30 years.

Anyone can watch the ACM Awards, whether they have a Prime subscription or not. Did ACM CEO Damon Whiteside push for that? “Oh, I think we all did,” Menton says. “We want everyone to see this. It’s a country music show. We don’t want to have that paywall in front of us. The fact that everyone can watch it, whether you have Prime or not, we’re so grateful.”

Kapoor says they are already thinking ahead to next year’s show, which will be the 60th ACM Awards. “Everybody is already strategizing leading to that event. We’ll be returning to Amazon. I hope on this show we set the foundation for what’s going to be an amazing 60th show.”

DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a Penske Media Corporation (PMC) subsidiary and joint venture between PMC and Eldridge. PMC is the parent company of Billboard.

Lainey Wilson, Jelly Roll and Chris Stapleton are among the first performers announced for the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards, which will be held at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 16.
The show will also feature performances by Jason Aldean, Kane Brown, Cody Johnson, Miranda Lambert and Thomas Rhett, as well as Reba McEntire, who was announced as host last week. McEntire will perform new music. Additional performers will be announced in the coming weeks.

The show will stream live globally on Prime Video at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. The ACM stresses that a Prime membership will not be required to watch live. They note: “Everyone is invited to the Party of the Year.”

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Stapleton and Wilson both received five ACM nominations this year. Jelly Roll is a beat behind with four.

This is McEntire’s 17th time hosting or co-hosting the ACMs. She first co-hosted the show in 1986 with actor/singer John Schneider and the late Mac Davis. McEntire is closing in on the all-time record for most times hosting or co-hosting a major awards show. That record has long been held by Bob Hope, who hosted or co-hosted the Academy Awards 19 times between 1940-78.

The 2023 ACM Awards, hosted by Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks, garnered more than 7.7 million viewers on Prime Video plus additional viewership across Amazon Music, the Amazon Music channel on Twitch, and Amazon Live, making it one of the year’s most-watched awards shows.

This marks the ACM Awards’ third year streaming on Prime Video; its second in a row coming from Ford Center at The Star. The venue opened in 2016 and serves as the practice facility for the Dallas Cowboys, as well as the home for many major sporting events throughout the year. Last year’s ACM Awards were the first awards show to take place there.

The 59th ACM Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions (DCP). Raj Kapoor is executive producer and showrunner, with Patrick Menton as co-executive producer. Damon Whiteside serves as executive producer for the ACM , and Barry Adelman serves as executive producer for DCP. John Saade serves as consulting producer for Amazon MGM Studios.

Kapoor was one of three executive producers of the Grammy Awards on Feb. 4, along with Ben Winston and Jesse Collins. He also served as executive producer and showrunner of the Oscars on March 10. Menton was a co-executive producer of the Grammys.

A limited number of tickets to the 59th ACM Awards are available for purchase on SeatGeek.

Fans can also tune into the official ACM Red Carpet on Prime Video, the Amazon Music Channel on Twitch, and Amazon Live, starting at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT. The full rebroadcast will be available directly following the stream on Prime Video and available the next day for free on Amazon Freevee and the Amazon Music app.

Fans can also stream the Official ACM Awards playlist available now on Amazon Music.

DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a Penske Media Corporation (PMC) subsidiary and joint venture between PMC and Eldridge. PMC is the parent company of Billboard.

Reba McEntire is back in the saddle as host of the Academy of Country Music Awards, returning to the top job for a record 17th time.
The veteran country artist will lead the 2024 edition of the ACM Awards, set for Thursday, May 16, at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT/5 p.m. PT from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas.

No other artist has been asked to host the annual celebration of country music more often than McEntire, and few can beat her collection of 16 ACM Award wins and nine nominations for the prestigious ACM entertainer of the year, including a win back in 1994.

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McEntire, who stars as a mentor on NBC’s The Voice, is also the ACM Award record-holder with most nominations for female artist of the year.

“I am tickled to pieces to get to host the ACM Awards for the 17th time,” says McEntire, who will also perform on the night. “What an honor to have been part of the past, present and now the future of the Academy of Country Music with Amazon Prime Video. I can’t wait to get to Texas and see everybody May 16.”

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As previously reported, Luke Combs leads the nominations for the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards with eight nods, including entertainer of the year, male artist of the year, album of the year, song of the year, and single of the year.

Megan Moroney and Morgan Wallen are close behind with six nods each.

Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton and Lainey Wilson received five nominations each, followed by Jelly Roll and Jordan Davis with four nods each and Kelsea Ballerini and Zach Bryan with three nods each.

“There is simply no one better to continue to elevate this show in our new global streaming era with Amazon Prime Video,” says ACM CEO Damon Whiteside of McEntire’s return as host. “With exciting new music coming, extensive television presence and a worldwide fanbase, Reba’s back and better than ever.”

McEntire “is an icon,” adds Vernon Sanders, head of television, Amazon MGM Studios. “She is one of the most influential artists in the music industry and we are thrilled to welcome her back as host of the Academy of Country Music Awards.”

The Academy of Country Music (ACM) and Dick Clark Productions (DCP) announced nominations for the forthcoming ceremony on The Bobby Bones Show on Tuesday (April 9).

Established in 1966, the Academy of Country Music Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions. Raj Kapoor is executive producer and showrunner, with Patrick Menton as co-executive producer. Damon Whiteside serves as executive producer for the Academy of Country Music, and Barry Adelman serves as executive producer for DCP. John Saade serves as consulting producer for Amazon MGM Studios.

The ACM Awards, which bills itself as “country music’s party of the year,” will stream live exclusively for a global audience on Prime Video. The full rebroadcast will be available directly following the stream on Prime Video and also the next day for free on Amazon Freevee and the Amazon Music app.

Nick Jonas looked back on his off-key performance at the 2016 Academy of Country Music Awards on Monday’s episode (May 22) of Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard. Appearing on the podcast with Kevin and Joe Jonas, the youngest member of the Jonas Brothers reflected on the viral moment his guitar solo went terribly awry during […]