The CMA Awards, short for the Country Music Association Awards, are prestigious annual awards presented to honor outstanding achievements in the country music industry. Established in 1967, the CMA Awards are one of the most coveted honors in the country music world. The awards ceremony recognizes and celebrates the achievements of country music artists, songwriters, producers, musicians, and other professionals.
The CMA Awards are organized by the Country Music Association, a trade organization that represents the country music industry in the United States. The awards ceremony typically takes place in November and features live performances by top country music artists, collaborations, and special tributes to legends in the genre.
This year’s awards take place on tonight at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville and will be hosted for a second year by Luke Bryan and NFL star Peyton Manning. You can watch the show live on ABC or stream it on Hulu from tomorrow. In the UK there will be a highlights package on BBC4 on the 17th November and various recorded audio highlights on BBC Sounds.
Here are our predictions for the winners – in bold!
Entertainer of the year
- Luke Combs (Might be pushed hard by Morgan Wallen but will ultimately win out)
- Chris Stapleton
- Carrie Underwood
- Morgan Wallen
- Lainey Wilson
Single of the year
- “Fast Car” – Luke Combs (Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton, Mix Engineer: Chip Matthews)
- “Heart Like A Truck” – Lainey Wilson (Producer: Jay Joyce, Mix Engineers: Jason Hall, Jay Joyce) (‘Fast Car’ was a phenomena & might sneak it but we think it’s Lainey’s year)
- “Need A Favor” – Jelly Roll (Producer: Austin Nivarel, Mix Engineer: Jeff Braun)
- “Next Thing You Know” – Jordan Davis (Producer: Paul DiGiovanni, Mix Engineer: Jim Cooley)
- “wait in the truck” – HARDY (feat. Lainey Wilson) (Producers: HARDY, Joey Moi, Jordan Schmidt, Derek Wells, Mix Engineer: Joey Moi)
Album of the year
- “Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville” — Ashley McBryde
- “Bell Bottom Country” — Lainey Wilson (What did we say about it being Lainey’s year?)
- “Gettin’ Old” — Luke Combs
- “One Thing At A Time” — Morgan Wallen
- “Rolling Up the Welcome Mat” — Kelsea Ballerini
Song of the year
- “Fast Car” — Songwriter: Tracy Chapman (This is where Luke wins out but it’s really the songwriter who wins!)
- “Heart Like A Truck” — Songwriters: Trannie Anderson, Dallas Wilson, Lainey Wilson
- “Next Thing You Know” — Songwriters: Jordan Davis, Greylan James, Chase McGill, Josh Osborne
- “Tennessee Orange” — Songwriters: David Fanning, Paul Jenkins, Megan Moroney, Ben Williams
- “wait in the truck” — Songwriters: Renee Blair, Michael Hardy, Hunter Phelps, Jordan Schmidt
Female vocalist of the year
- Kelsea Ballerini
- Miranda Lambert
- Ashley McBryde
- Carly Pearce
- Lainey Wilson (Might be pushed all the way by Ashley McBryde)
Male vocalist of the year
- Luke Combs
- Jelly Roll
- Cody Johnson
- Chris Stapleton (If he’s nominated, he wins. Any of the other four could take it though!)
- Morgan Wallen
Vocal group of the year
- Lady A
- Little Big Town
- Midland
- Old Dominion
- Zac Brown Band (The comeback is compete and Old Dominion miss out for the first time in a while)
Vocal duo of the year
- Brooks & Dunn
- Brothers Osborne (the domination continues. Could be pushed by Da+Shay but not sure they’ve schmoozed Nashville enough on the ‘Bigger Houses’ album?)
- Dan + Shay
- Maddie & Tae
- The War And Treaty
Musical event of the year
- “Save Me” — Jelly Roll (with Lainey Wilson) (Producers: Zach Crowell, David Ray Stevens)
- “She Had Me At Heads Carolina (Remix)” — Cole Swindell & Jo Dee Messina (Producer: Zach Crowell) (An absolute phenomena for the last year and deserves recognition)
- “Thank God” — Kane Brown (with Katelyn Brown) (Producer: Dann Huff)
- “wait in the truck” — HARDY (feat. Lainey Wilson) (Producers: HARDY, Joey Moi, Jordan Schmidt, Derek Wells)
- “We Don’t Fight Anymore” — Carly Pearce (featuring Chris Stapleton) (Producers: Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne, Carly Pearce)
Musician of the year
- Jenee Fleenor
- Paul Franklin
- Rob McNelley
- Derek Wells
- Charlie Worsham (Franklin & Fleenor are ubiquitous but Worsham deserves the nod this year)
Music video of the year
- “Light On In The Kitchen” — Ashley McBryde (Director: Reid Long)
- “Memory Lane” — Old Dominion (Directors: Mason Allen, Nicki Fletcher)
- “Need A Favor” — Jelly Roll (Director: Patrick Tohill)
- “Next Thing You Know” — Jordan Davis (Director: Running Bear)
- “wait in the truck” — HARDY (feat. Lainey Wilson) (Director: Justin Clough) (A lesson in how to make a Country music video. Oh, the drama!)
New artist of the year
- Zach Bryan
- Jelly Roll ( A tough one but Bryan’s rabid fan base aren’t CMA voters and there’s love for Jelly everywhere!)
- Parker McCollum
- Megan Moroney
- Hailey Whitters
