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On-air personalities Mary Turner, Bob Grant, Jack “The Rapper” Gibson, Long John Nebel and Terry Dorsey are among 12 radio professionals who will receive the Legends of Radio award from the Radio Hall of Fame. The award recognizes “the talents and efforts of on-air personalities, programmers and operators who contributed with greatness to the radio industry and have since passed away.”  

They will be honored at the 2023 Radio Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Nov. 2 at the InterContinental New York Barclay Hotel in New York City. Christopher “Mad Dog” Russo, a 2022 Radio Hall of Fame inductee, will MC the event.

“It’s heartfelt recognition to see these individuals and their career contributions to the radio industry recognized with this induction,” Kraig T. Kitchin, co-chair of the Radio Hall of Fame, said in a statement. “They’ve made a forever impact on the audiences and businesses they interacted with and for that, we’re grateful.” 

Dennis Green, the other co-chair of the Radio Hall of Fame, added: “Gone but never forgotten, these Legends of the radio industry deserve to be recognized as Hall of Famers and it is an honor to induct them to the Radio Hall of Fame. From programmers to talent to executives, these individuals are the best of the best.” 

Another of this year’s Legends of Radio honorees, Tom Rounds, co-founded Watermark Inc., the syndication company responsible for American Top 40, American Country Countdown and other shows. By coincidence, Shadoe Stevens, who succeeded Casey Kasem as host of American Top 40 in 1988, is one of eight inductees into the Radio Hall of Fame this year.

This year’s seven other Radio Hall of Fame honorees are: John DeBella (WMGK-FM, Philadelphia), Gerry House (WSIX-FM, Nashville), Pat St. John (60s Gold, SiriusXM), Bob Rivers (The Bob Rivers Show), Nina Totenberg (National Public Radio), Deborah Parenti (publisher, Radio Ink) and Charles Warfield (executive).

Here are this year’s recipients of the Legends of Radio award: 

Bob Grant – on-air personality 

Dave Robbins – programming executive 

Ed Christian – executive 

Eduardo Caballero – executive 

Jack “The Rapper” Gibson – on-air personality/writer 

Joe “Butterball” Tamburro – programming executive 

Long John Nebel – on-air personality 

Marty Glickman – play-by-play host/executive 

Mary Turner – on-air personality 

Steve Rivers – programming executive 

Terry Dorsey – on-air personality 

Tom Rounds – executive 

Here are all of the biggest winners, most memorable performances and highlights from the 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards. Griselda Flores:Bad Bunny and Peso Pluma are victorious and both hit the stage … while Karol G gets candid. The Miami area was scorching during the 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards, and we have all the […]

Regional Mexican music star Peso Pluma was the big winner at Thursday night’s (Oct. 5) 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards, taking home eight awards, including artist of the year, new; Hot Latin Songs artist of the year, male; and the coveted songwriter of the year award, reflecting his more than 20 hits on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart.
Pluma’s awards also included four nods alongside trio Eslabón Armado for their runaway hit “Ella Baila Sola,” which won Hot Latin Song of the year and Hot Latin Song of the year, vocal event, among other prizes.

Pluma was followed in number of wins by global superstar Bad Bunny, with seven awards, including artist of the year, tour of the year and Global 200 Latin artist of the year, as well as two awards for his smash hit “Titi me Preguntó.”

Both Pluma and Bad Bunny performed at the Billboard Latin Music Awards, which were produced by MBS Events and aired live on Telemundo from the Watsco Center in Miami.

Next up in wins was Colombian star Karol G, who won five awards, two of them for her album Mañana Será Bonito as Top Latin Album of the year. The set, which debuted at No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart — the first Spanish-language album by a female artist to do so in history — also won Latin Rhythm Album of the year. Karol G also took home the Hot Latin Songs artist of the year, female and top Latin Albums artist of the year, female awards. In addition, she was honored with Billboard’s Spirit of Hope Award for her philanthropic work supporting women through her Con Cora Foundation.

The four top winners — Peso Pluma, Bad Bunny, Karol G and Eslabón Armado — reflect the current state of Latin music, where urban beats are living high on the charts along with a new generation of Mexican music artists who have become global successes.

The plurality was also reflected in this year’s special awards, with Mexican cumbia act Los Angeles Azules receiving the Billboard Lifetime Achievement Award and reggaetón pioneer Ivy Queen the Icon award.

Finalists and winners of the Billboard Latin Music Awards reflect performance of new recordings on Billboard‘s albums and songs charts during a one-year period from the rankings dated Aug. 13, 2022, through this year’s Aug. 12, 2023 charts. Determinations are based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital song sales, streaming, radio airplay and touring, tracked by Billboard and its data partner, Luminate.  

Other key winners of the evening included Manuel Turizo, Shakira, Bizarrap, Fuerza Regida, Aventura, Camilo, Edgar Barrera, Grupo Frontera, Ivan Cornejo, Maná, Marshmello, Romeo Santos and Wisin & Yandel.

The full list of winners is below.

CATEGORĺAS DE ARTISTAS / OVERALL ARTIST CATEGORIES

Artista del Año / Artist of the Year:

Artista del Año, Debut / Artist of the Year, New:

Peso Pluma

Gira del Año / Tour of the Year:

Artista Crossover del Año

Crossover Artist of the Year:

Marshmello

Global 200 Artista Latino del Año/ Global 200 Latin Artist of the Year:

CATEGORÍAS DE CANCIONES/ SONGS CATEGORIES

Global 200 Canción Latina del Año/ Global 200 Latin Song of the Year:

Manuel Turizo, “La Bachata”

“Hot Latin Song” Canción del Año/ Hot Latin Song of the Year:

Eslabon Armado & Peso Pluma, “Ella Baila Sola”

“Hot Latin Song”, Colaboración Vocal del Año

Hot Latin Song of the Year, Vocal Event:

Eslabon Armado & Peso Pluma, “Ella Baila Sola”

“Hot Latin Songs” Artista del Año, Masculino

Hot Latin Songs Artist of the Year, Male:

Peso Pluma

“Hot Latin Songs” Artista del Año, Femenina

Hot Latin Songs Artist of the Year, Female:

“Hot Latin Songs” Artista del Año, Dúo o Grupo 

Hot Latin Songs Artist of the Year, Duo or Group:

Grupo Frontera

“Hot Latin Songs” Sello Discográfico del Año

Hot Latin Songs Label of the Year:

Sony Music Latin

Canción del Año, Latin Airplay

Latin Airplay Song of the Year:

Manuel Turizo, “La Bachata”

Sello Discográfico del Año, Latin Airplay

Latín Airplay Label of the Year:

Sony Music Latin

Canción del Año, Ventas / Sales Song of the Year:

Bad Bunny, “Tití Me Preguntó”

Canción del Año, Streaming

Streaming Song of the Year:

Eslabon Armado & Peso Pluma, “Ella Baila Sola”

CATEGORÍA DE ÁLBUMES

ALBUM CATEGORIES

“Top Latin Album” del Año

Top Latin Album of the Year:

Karol G, Mañana Será Bonito

“Top Latin Albums” Artista del Año, Masculino

Top Latin Albums Artist of the Year, Male:

“Top Latin Albums” Artista del Año, Femenina

Top Latin Albums Artist of the Year, Female:

“Top Latin Albums” Artista del Año Dúo o Grupo 

Top Latin Albums Artist of the Year, Duo or Group:

Fuerza Regida

“Top Latin Albums” Sello Discográfico del Año

Top Latin Albums Label of the Year:

CATEGORĺA LATIN POPLATIN POP CATEGORIES

Artista “Latin Pop” del Año, Solista

Latin Pop Artist of the Year, Solo:

Artista “Latin Pop” del Año, Dúo o Grupo 

Latin Pop Artist of the Year, Duo or Group:

Canción “Latin Pop” del Año

Latin Pop Song of the Year:

Bizarrap & Shakira, “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53”

“Latin Pop Airplay” Sello Discográfico del Año

Latin Pop Airplay Label of the Year:

Sony Music Latin

Álbum “Latin Pop” del Año

Latin Pop Album of the Year:

Camilo, De Adentro Pa Afuera

“Latin Pop Albums” Sello Discográfico del Año

Latin Pop Albums Label of the Year:

Universal Music Latin Entertainment

CATEGORĺA TROPICAL /

TROPICAL CATEGORIES

Artista Tropical del Año, Solista

Tropical Artist of the Year, Solo:

Romeo Santos

Artista Tropical del Año, Dúo o Grupo

Tropical Artist of the Year, Duo or Group:

Canción Tropical del Año

Tropical Song of the Year:

Manuel Turizo, “La Bachata”

“Tropical Airplay” Sello Discográfico del Año

Tropical Airplay Label of the Year:

Sony Music Latin

“Tropical Albums” Sello Discográfico del Año

Tropical Albums Label of the Year:

Sony Music Latin

CATEGORÍA REGIONAL MEXICANO 

REGIONAL MEXICAN CATEGORIES

Artista Regional Mexicano del Año, Solista

Regional Mexican Artist of the Year, Solo:

Peso Pluma

Artista Regional Mexicano del Año, Dúo o Grupo

Regional Mexican Artist of the Year, Duo or Group:

Fuerza Regida

Canción Regional Mexicana del Año

Regional Mexican Song of the Year:

Eslabon Armado & Peso Pluma, “Ella Baila Sola”

“Regional Mexican Airplay” Sello Discográfico del Año

Regional Mexican Airplay Label of the Year:

Universal Music Latin Entertainment

Álbum Regional Mexicano del Año

Regional Mexican Album of the Year:

Ivan Cornejo, Dañado

“Regional Mexican Albums” Sello Discográfico del Año

Regional Mexican Albums Label of the Year:

CATEGORÍA LATIN RHYTHM

LATIN RHYTHM CATEGORIES

Artista “Latin Rhythm” del Año, solista

Latin Rhythm Artist of the Year, Solo:

Artista “Latin Rhythm” del Año, Dúo o Grupo

Latin Rhythm Artist of the Year, Duo or Group:

Wisin & Yandel

Canción “Latin Rhythm” del Año

Latin Rhythm Song of the Year:

Bad Bunny, “Tití Me Preguntó”

“Latin Rhythm Airplay” Sello Discográfico del Año

Latin Rhythm Airplay Label of the Year:

Sony Music Latin

Álbum “Latin Rhythm” del Año

Latin Rhythm Album of the Year:

Karol G, Mañana Será Bonito

“Latin Rhythm Albums” Sello Discográfico del Año

Latin Rhythm Albums Label of the Year:

CATEGORÍA ESCRITOR/PRODUCTOR/EDITORA WRITERS/PRODUCERS/PUBLISHERS CATEGORIES

Compositor del Año / Songwriter of the Year:

Peso Pluma

Editora del Año / Publisher of the Year:

Prajin Music Publishing, BMI

Corporación Editora del Año

Publishing Corporation of the Year:

Sony Music Publishing

Productor del Año / Producer of the Year:

Edgar Barrera

PREMIOS ESPECIALES / SPECIAL AWARDS

Premio Billboard Trayectoria Artística

Billboard Lifetime Achievement Award:

Los Ángeles Azules

Premio Billboard ĺcono / Billboard Icon Award

Premio Billboard Espíritu de la Esperanza

Billboard Spirit of Hope Award

He is a pop and salsa superstar, but on Thursday (Oct. 5,) at the Billboard Latin Music Awards, Marc Anthony displayed his great vocal versatility by uniting his voice with that of the great Pepe Aguilar to debut their first collaboration, “Ojalá Te Duela.”

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Accompanied by mariachis, the legendary Mexican singer and the Newyorican star gave a powerful performance — the former dressed as a charro, the latter elegantly in black — taking turns to sing fiery verses such as “Now you realize that you changed my love for interest, that things are not done by force”, before joining in beautiful harmony: “I hope it hurts you, I hope you cry like one day I cried.”

In its 30th annual edition, the Billboard Latin Music Awards were broadcast live from the Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Florida, on Telemundo. Simultaneously, they could be seen on the Universo cable channel, on Peacock and the Telemundo app, and in Latin America and the Caribbean through Telemundo Internacional.

The 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards feature additional performances from Bad Bunny, Calibre 50, Chiquis, Eddy Lover, Eladio Carrión, Farruko, Grupo Frontera, La Factoría, Los Ángeles Azules, Los Sebastianes, Manuel Turizo, Marc Anthony, Marshmello, Myke Towers, Nicki Nicole, Olga Tañon, Pepe Aguilar, Peso Pluma, Sky Rompiendo, Sofía Reyes, Tini, Ximena Sariñana, Yandel and Yng Lvcas.

Check back in to Billboard.com throughout the night to get the latest news on performances, special awards and more.

Myke Towers and Yandel took over the stage at Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Fla., bringing their characteristic energy to the 2023 Billboard Music Awards with a performance of “Borracho y Loco.”

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“I think of you drunk and crazy, you left my heart broken / I only know about you through social media, liking the photos,” the duo sing on their collaboration, which was released in September.

Yandel is a finalist for three awards at this year’s ceremony, including Latin rhythm song of the year and Latin airplay song of the year for his Feid collaboration “Yandel 150” and Latin rhythm artist of the year, duo or group, alongside Wisin. “Yandel 150” topped Billboard’s Latin Airplay and Latin Rhythm Airplay charts (dated April 15), marking his 15th No. 1 among 34 chart appearances.

The 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards featured additional performances from Bad Bunny, Calibre 50, Chiquis, Eddy Lover, Eladio Carrión, Farruko, Grupo Frontera, La Factoría, Los Ángeles Azules, Los Sebastianes, Manuel Turizo, Marc Anthony, Marshmello, Justin Quiles, Nicki Nicole, Olga Tañon, Pepe Aguilar, Peso Pluma, Sky Rompiendo, Sofía Reyes, Tini, Ximena Sariñana, El Alfa and Yng Lvcas.

Check back in to Billboard.com throughout the night to get the latest news on performances, special awards and more.

Justin Quiles and El Alfa kicked off the 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards on Thursday night (Oct. 5), bringing the heat to the Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Fla., with a tropical performance of their hit, “Fiesta Loca.”

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With dancers ready for a pool party in swimsuits and lush palm trees against a sunset facade behind them, the musical duo traded verses as they sang and rapped about partying until the break of dawn in a “Fiesta Loca” — or crazy party — as the song’s title suggests. A slew of onstage pyrotechnics ended the fittingly hot performance before the rest of the awards show got underway.

“Fiesta Loca” was released in July and comes less than a year after El Alfa released his fifth studio album, Sagitario, in November 2022 and his June 2023 compilation album, Dembow Worldwide Hits Teteo 42. Quiles, meanwhile, hasn’t released an album since 2021’s La Última Promesa.

The 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards will feature additional performances from Bad Bunny, Calibre 50, Chiquis, Eddy Lover, Eladio Carrión, Farruko, Grupo Frontera, La Factoría, Los Ángeles Azules, Los Sebastianes, Manuel Turizo, Marc Anthony, Marshmello, Myke Towers, Nicki Nicole, Olga Tañon, Pepe Aguilar, Peso Pluma, Sky Rompiendo, Sofía Reyes, Tini, Ximena Sariñana, Yandel and Yng Lvcas.

Check back in to Billboard.com throughout the night to get the latest news on performances, special awards and more.

The 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards are here, with the biggest names in Latin music gracing the red carpet before the show on Thursday night (Oct. 5). Peso Pluma walked the carpet confident as the leader the pack with 21 nominations this year across 15 categories, including Artist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, […]

Last December, the Recording Academy convened a listening session of artists, label executives and stakeholders both in the United States and across Africa to discuss the rising influence of music coming from the continent. The meeting, which lasted several hours, was a key part of the process that led to the addition of a category that will be presented for the first time at the 66th Grammy Awards on Feb. 4: best African music performance.
“There’s a threshold that you like to see for a genre of music before it actually could make for a healthy category,” says academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr., who led the meeting alongside global music genre manager Shawn Thwaites. “When you talk about music coming from Africa, you’re seeing Afrobeats grow, you’re seeing amapiano and other genres coming out of the continent over the last three to five years. That started the discussions around, ‘Is it the right time?’ ”

The new category reflects the exploding commercial and cultural appeal of music by African artists in the United States. Its growth over the past few years has been almost linear: Davido’s 2017 single “Fall” was the first Nigerian song to be certified gold in the United States by the RIAA in 2020; Wizkid and Tems’ “Essence” became the first Afropop song to reach the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 in 2021; Burna Boy’s Love, Damini debuted at No. 14 on the Billboard 200 in 2022, becoming the highest-charting Afro-fusion album in chart history; and in May, Rema and Selena Gomez’s “Calm Down” became the first song to ever top both the U.S. Afrobeats Songs and Pop Airplay charts and peaked at No. 3 on the Hot 100. (“Calm Down” was released too early to be eligible.)

“I don’t think currently there’s better or more advanced music being made anywhere outside the continent,” says Seni Saraki, CEO and editor in chief of The NATIVE Networks, the Lagos, Nigeria-based media and content company that launched a joint venture with Def Jam in September 2022. “From what we call Afrobeats — which is, really, just popular music from Nigeria — through amapiano, the rap music, Afropop, I genuinely think this is some of the most exciting music in the world right now. And the academy is becoming cognizant of that.”

The new category is also an attempt to address some of the controversy that has arisen around the global music album award, renamed from best world music album in 2020 due to “connotations of colonialism,” but still seen as little more than a catchall for non-Western music. As the music industry has itself become more global, the academy recognized that the time had come to offer a home for music from the African continent. But it also goes beyond the popularity of Afrobeats, which itself is more of an umbrella term: The academy listed some 30 different genres that could qualify for the category, including alté, fuji and high life.

“People know about Afrobeats and they’re learning about amapiano, but they don’t realize there are so many other genres on the continent that are underserved, and they can’t just be put in a bulk category called ‘world music,’ ” says Tina Davis, president of EMPIRE, which has invested heavily in African music and artists. “And much respect to the Recording Academy because they actually took the time to want to find out. [Mason] went to the continent to just learn more about it.”

The industry has also taken notice. In the past few years, an explosion of new signings, joint ventures and licensing deals for African artists and labels from U.S.-based companies and distributors has brought a new generation of stars like Rema, Asake and Ayra Starr to join the continent’s established hit-makers. “There was a time a few years ago when I was at RCA and it seemed like we were the only ones on it,” says Def Jam chairman/CEO Tunji Balogun, who signed Tems and worked closely with Wizkid and Davido while an A&R executive at RCA and has since signed Adekunle Gold and Stonebwoy to Def Jam. “Now every week, there’s another label signing someone. The budgets are open.”

“I think you see more labels paying attention to it, you see the marketplace paying more attention to it; there’s a spotlight on it,” RCA co-president John Fleckenstein says. “The Grammys are the big leagues of awards, one of those artistic validations that many artists dream about. It’s a bit of an awakening that we are more global than we’ve ever been.”

There is, however, a little reticence around the new category; in the past, artists from genres like hip-hop, R&B and some of the Latin sectors have looked at the genre categories as boxes that merely nod to their music while gatekeeping them from the more prestigious general-field categories like song, record or album of the year. Further, a category called best African music performance, while welcome, is itself incredibly broad, covering a continent with 54 countries and 1.4 billion people.

“It’s a really important moment for the Grammys,” says Temi Adeniji, managing director of Warner Music Africa and senior vp of strategy for Sub-Saharan Africa. “But then the next step is, how do you actually roll this thing out? Even regionally — East Africa, Southern Africa, West Africa — it would be great to see a diversity of nominees, and that would reflect a real understanding from the Grammys of how large the continent is and how diverse the sounds are that are coming out.”

Talks of additional categories around African music, as well as a possible African Grammys, could be part of a future that Mason says this category is just the start of. “We want to serve music people, regardless of where they are,” he says. “I don’t know what that means yet, but we will continue to try and make sure that we are reaching as many music people regardless of their geography.”

The Potential Nominees?

Five songs that are in strong contention for a nod for the inaugural best African music performance Grammy.

Wizkid feat. Ayra Starr, “2 Sugar” (Starboy/RCA)

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Following the crossover success of his “Essence” (featuring Tems) was this breakout hit from the Nigerian superstar’s More Love, Less Ego album, featuring a powerful vocal from Starr, who is herself blossoming into a major force in African music.

Libianca, “People” (5K/RCA)

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With an arresting, emotional vocal performance, the 22-year-old Cameroonian American singer — who previously appeared on season 21 of The Voice — has captivated fans and the industry alike. “People” spawned remixes by artists such as Ayra Starr, Omah Lay and Becky G on the way to a long-running No. 2 peak on the U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart.

Davido feat. Musa Keys, “Unavailable” (Davido Music Worldwide/RCA)

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The lead single from one of the year’s best albums in any genre, “Unavailable” showcases Davido at his irresistible best, combining Magicsticks’ amapiano production with a slick verse from South Africa’s Musa Keys to craft one of 2023’s more enduring anthems.

Adekunle Gold feat. Zinoleesky, “Party No Dey Stop” (Def Jam)

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Insistent, urgent and eminently catchy, Gold’s debut Def Jam single blends the street melodies of fellow Nigerian Zinoleesky with his own knack for songwriting for a club banger with substance. It’s aspirational yet relatable, much like the album on which it appears.

Asake feat. Olamide, “Amapiano” (YBNL/EMPIRE)

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Asake’s meteoric rise over the past few years led to a headlining slot at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center in September. This track, alongside label boss and Nigerian music legend Olamide, is among his best, celebrating his trademark amapiano vibe and orchestral backing vocals, yet elevating both artists.

This story will appear in the Oct. 7, 2023, issue of Billboard.

The CMT Music Awards are headed back to the Lone Star State. The 2024 CMT Music Awards will return to the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, on Sunday, April 7, 2024, airing on CBS Television Network, and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+ with Showtime. The awards show will air from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET.

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“We couldn’t be more excited to bring the CMT Music Awards on CBS back to Austin in 2024! From the electrifying, sold-out Moody Center crowd to fans packing the streets for our outdoor Congress stage, and Bevo himself walking the Red Carpet, our Texas-sized welcome proved to be one of our biggest and most unforgettable shows yet,” CMT Music Awards executive producers Margaret Comeaux, John Hamlin and Leslie Fram said in a statement. “We’re thankful to our incredible partners at Moody and the City of Austin and thrilled to bring CMT’s signature blend of world premieres, genre-blending surprises and once-in-a-lifetime collaborations back this April!”

Jeff Nickler, sr. vp, Oak View Group, added, “Oak View Group and Moody Center are honored to welcome CMT, CBS and Paramount back to Austin. We look forward to building upon the success of last year’s record-breaking event and to hosting another sold-out audience for Country Music’s biggest party.”

Jelly Roll was the big winner in 2023, taking home CMT Music Awards trophies for male video of the year (“Son of a Sinner”), breakthrough male video of the year (“Son of a Sinner”), and CMT digital-first performance of the year (“Son of a Sinner”).

Meanwhile, artists including Jelly Roll, Kelsea Ballerini, Wynonna Judd and Ashley McBryde provided some of the 2023 awards show’s most talked about moments. Performers and nominees for the 2024 CMT Music Awards will be revealed at a later date.

In 2022, the CMT Music Awards shifted from its longtime home on CMT to CBS, and in 2023, the CMT Music Awards earned its biggest audience yet. The 2023 show was the first to be held at the Moody Center.

Country music is having a major mainstream moment.
Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” spent 16 nonconsecutive weeks from March to August at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, claiming the undisputed song of the summer crown — and is one of four country songs to top both the Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs charts in 2023, the most in a year since 1975.

And Wallen’s success story is far from the genre’s only recent standout. Thanks to artists like Luke Combs, whose cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” spent eight weeks at No. 2 on the Hot 100, and Zach Bryan, whose breakthrough single, “Something in the Orange,” reached the top 10 of the Hot 100 while his album American Heartbreak reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200, country music consumption surged in the United States for the first half of 2023. According to Luminate, it was up 20.3% compared with 2.5% growth during the same period in 2022 — and that was before Jason Aldean’s polarizing track, “Try That in a Small Town,” hit No. 1 on the Hot 100; before Appalachian breakout Oliver Anthony Music dominated headlines with his viral populist anthem, “Rich Men North of Richmond”; and before Bryan topped both the Hot 100 and Billboard 200.

Whether that commercial surge will translate to Grammy nominations on Nov. 10 — and in particular to a long overdue showing for country artists in the general-field categories — could prove one of the more compelling narratives this awards season, particularly with country outliers Anthony and Bryan potentially leading the way.

“Country music [is at] peak awareness right now, and the industry people that vote have an opportunity to recognize that or not,” says Joey Moi, Big Loud partner/president of A&R, as well as Wallen’s producer. “You’re looking at two or three artists [from the country format] that are hanging up there with the big kids.”

Country has often been neglected when it comes to Grammy nominations in the general-field categories — album, record and song of the year and best new artist, for which all 13,000 Recording Academy members can vote. (Starting with the 2024 Grammys, the so-called Big Four becomes the Big Six, with the addition of songwriter of the year, non-classical and producer of the year, non-classical moving into the general field.)

Five Grammy Award cycles have occurred since nominations in the Big Four categories were increased from five to eight and then to 10 contenders, and there have been 196 total Big Four nominations in that time — yet only six have gone to mainstream country artists or projects, with just one victory: Kacey Musgraves’ album of the year trophy for Golden Hour in 2019. (The nominees will revert to eight per category for the 2024 awards.)

But recognition of many of these songs beyond only country audiences could shift the dynamic this year. Anthony went from obscurity to instant household name with “Rich Men North of Richmond,” which debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100 in August. “Rich Men” was submitted for record and song of the year, though not in any country categories, nor was Anthony entered into consideration for best new artist. (His manager did not respond to a request for comment on the submissions.)

Should “Rich Men” receive a song or record of the year nod — or even a win — it would not be the first time voters have marked their ballots for a song with a message. At the 2019 ceremony, Childish Gambino’s commentary on institutional racism, “This Is America,” won song and record of the year. Two years later, “I Can’t Breathe,” H.E.R.’s poignant take on George Floyd’s murder, won song of the year.

But though “Rich Men” has enjoyed a kind of flashpoint notoriety — the song was even referenced at the Republican presidential debate in August — that may not translate to Grammy votes.

“Artists who have huge moments still have to consider who’s voting,” one Grammy consultant says, noting that voters aren’t the fans who propelled “Rich Men” to No. 1 but creatives who make music. And while the timing of Anthony’s breakthrough means he is fresh in voters’ minds as they mark their ballots, that could also work against him. “I don’t know if the industry is going to wait and hold off to see if [he] has legs or it’s a flash in the pan,” one Grammy voter says. “If this happened in March or April and maintained through the year, we’d have a much clearer story. [He’s] kind of starting the race about five minutes later than everybody else.”

Bryan — who, unlike Anthony, is entered in several country categories as well as album, song and record of the year — may have a different experience. Unlike the self-released Anthony, he is signed to Warner Records, which has the infrastructure to run a campaign for him. His success has built steadily over the past 18 months and extends beyond one song and one format, or as the Grammy voter puts it: “He has had a career that has grown and gathered some roots.” Bryan and past Grammy favorite Musgraves debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100 with their duet, “I Remember Everything,” from his self-titled album that entered the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums at No. 1. And when it comes to the general-field categories, he could draw from a particularly broad base of voters: His self-titled set, which arrived Aug. 25, also launched atop the Top Rock Albums, Top Rock & Alternative Albums and Americana/Folk Albums charts.

By creating their own nontraditional paths, Anthony and Bryan could, ironically, achieve recognition that some of country’s most respected artists have not: None of Miranda Lambert’s 27 career Grammy nods have been in the general-field categories, while only one of Chris Stapleton’s 17 nominations has been. Whether they also end up distracting from the work of their more conventional country peers in the general categories remains to be seen. Adds the Grammy voter: “I don’t know if people are aware of a lot of the other great country records that may have been out there over the year — they’ve taken up so much air in the room.”

Additional reporting by Jessica Nicholson.

This story will appear in the Oct. 7, 2023, issue of Billboard.