NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED FOR THE 51st ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS® COUNTRY MUSIC’S PARTY OF THE YEAR®
51st ACM AWARDS® TO AIR LIVE FROM MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA IN LAS VEGAS
Sunday, April 3, 2016 at 8:00 PM ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network
Eric Church and Chris Stapleton Lead with Five Nominations; Cam, Chris Young and Little Big Town Each Receive Four Nominations, with Karen Fairchild Receiving An Additional Nod; Chris Janson, Miranda Lambert and Thomas Rhett Each Receive Three Nominations
ENCINO, CA (February 1, 2016) – Nominations were announced today for the 51st ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS®, Country Music’s Party of the Year®, honoring country music’s superstars and hottest emerging talent. Hosted by Dierks Bentley and reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Luke Bryan, the ACM Awards are produced for television by dick clark productions and will be broadcast LIVE from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, April 3, 2016 at 8:00 PM – 11:00 PM ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network.
Dierks Bentley announced the nominees for six categories including Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, Vocal Duo of the Year, Vocal Group of the Year, and Album of the Year live today on “CBS This Morning.” Additionally, “Entertainment Tonight” co-host Nancy O’Dell revealed nominees for the newcomer categories, Single Record of the Year, Video of the Year and Vocal Event of the Year on ETOnline.com
Eric Church is nominated in five categories, including his first for Entertainer of the Year and third for Male Vocalist of the Year. Also, Church is nominated for Album of the Year for Mr. Misunderstood, Video of the Year for “Mr. Misunderstood,” and Vocal Event of the Year for “Raise ‘Em Up” with Keith Urban.
Chris Stapleton earned five nominations, including his first-ever nods for Male Vocalist of the Year, New Male Vocalist of the Year, Vocal Event of the Year for “Hangover Tonight” with Gary Allan, and is twice nominated as both artist and producer in the Album of the Year category for Traveller.
Cam, first-time ACM Awards nominee, received four nominations, including New Female Vocalist of the Year, Video of the Year for “Burning House,” and is twice nominated as both artist and producer in the Single Record of the Year category for “Burning House.”
Chris Young received four nominations, including his first Album of the Year nomination for I’m Comin’ Over as both the artist and producer. Also, he received two nods as artist and producer in the Single Record of the Year category for “I’m Comin’ Over.”
Little Big Town, reigning Vocal Group of the Year, leads group nominations with four, including their 10th nomination for Vocal Group of the Year. The group earned nominations in the Single Record of the Year and Video of the Year categories for the song “Girl Crush.” Also, Little Big Town received a Vocal Event of the Year nomination for “Smokin’ And Drinkin’” with Miranda Lambert. Additionally, Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild received an individual nomination for Vocal Event of the Year for “Home Alone Tonight” with Luke Bryan.
First-time ACM Awards nominee, Chris Janson earned three nominations, including New Male Vocalist of the Year, and is twice nominated as both artist and producer in the Single Record of the Year category for “Buy Me A Boat.”
Reigning Female Vocalist of the Year, Miranda Lambert earned three nominations, including her fifth nomination for Entertainer of the Year and 10th consecutive nod for Female Vocalist of the Year. Additionally, she is nominated for Vocal Event of the Year for “Smokin’ And Drinkin’” featuring Little Big Town.
Thomas Rhett earned three nominations including his first in the Album of the Year category for Tangled Up and Single Record of the Year category for “Die a Happy Man.” Also, he received a nomination for New Male Vocalist of the Year.
Previously fan-voted, Entertainer of the Year and Newcomer categories, New Male Vocalist of the Year, New Female Vocalist of the Year and New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year, are now all incorporated into the professional membership voting process this year.
Following is the list of final nominees. Note, nominees for Song of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, Studio Recording Awards and Industry Awards will be announced at a later date. The Academy of Country Music’s professional membership selects the nominees and winners of the Academy of Country Music Awards. Winners in each of the categories, except where noted, will be presented with an ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARD during the live television broadcast:
Entertainer of the Year
Jason Aldean
Garth Brooks
Luke Bryan
Eric Church
Miranda Lambert
Male Vocalist of the Year
Jason Aldean
Dierks Bentley
Eric Church
Brett Eldredge
Chris Stapleton
Female Vocalist of the Year
Kelsea Ballerini
Jana Kramer
Miranda Lambert
Kacey Musgraves
Carrie Underwood
Vocal Duo of the Year
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Florida Georgia Line
Joey + Rory
Maddie & Tae
Vocal Group of the Year
Eli Young Band
Little Big Town
Old Dominion
Rascal Flatts
Zac Brown Band
Album of the Year
Mr. Misunderstood, Eric Church
Montevallo, Sam Hunt
Tangled Up, Thomas Rhett
Traveller, Chris Stapleton
I’m Comin’ Over, Chris Young
New Male Vocalist of the Year
Brett Eldredge
Chris Janson
Thomas Rhett
Chase Rice
Chris Stapleton
New Female Vocalist of the Year
Kelsea Ballerini
Cam
Mickey Guyton
RaeLynn
New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year
A Thousand Horses
Brothers Osborne
Maddie & Tae
Old Dominion
Parmalee
Video of the Year (Awarded to Producer(s) / Director(s) / Artist(s))
“Biscuits,” Kacey Musgraves (Director: Mark Klasfeld / Producer: Nicole Acacio)
“Burning House,” Cam (Director: Trey Fanjoy / Producer: Trent Hardville)
“Girl Crush,” Little Big Town (Director: Karla Welch and Matthew Welch / Producer: Amanda Prunesti)
“Mr. Misunderstood,” Eric Church (Director: Reid Long and John Peets / Producer: Megan Smith)
“Riser,” Dierks Bentley (Director: Wes Edwards / Producer: Jennifer Rothlein)
Vocal Event of the Year (Awarded to Artist(s) / Producer(s) / Record Label(s))
“Hangover Tonight,” Gary Allan feat. Chris Stapleton (Producer: Gary Allan, Greg Droman / Record Label: MCA Nashville)
“Home Alone Tonight,” Luke Bryan feat. Karen Fairchild (Producers: Jeff Stevens, Jody Stevens / Record Label: Capitol Nashville)
“Raise ‘Em Up,” Keith Urban feat. Eric Church (Producers: Nathan Chapman, Keith Urban / Record Label: Hit Red, Capitol Nashville)
“Smokin’ and Drinkin’,” Miranda Lambert feat. Little Big Town (Producers: Chuck Ainlay, Frank Liddell, Glenn Worf / Record Label: RCA Nashville)
“Wild Child,” Kenny Chesney with Grace Potter (Producer: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney / Record Label: Blue Chair, Columbia Nashville)
Single Record of the Year (Awarded to Artist(s) / Producer(s) / Record Label(s))
“Burning House,” Cam
“Buy Me a Boat,” Chris Janson
“Die a Happy Man,” Thomas Rhett
“Girl Crush,” Little Big Town
“I’m Comin’ Over,” Chris Young
“Take Your Time,” Sam Hunt
Song of the Year
TBA
Songwriter of the Year
TBA
IMPORTANT NOTE: Awards counts for artists reflect categories in which they have been recognized as individuals or as part of their duo or group. In some cases, an artist may receive more than one nomination which factors into their official count. For example, Chris Young received two nominations in the Album of the Year category—one each as artist and producer—because that category recognizes both. Award recipients in each category are noted above parenthetically in the Album of the Year, Single Record of the Year, Video of the Year and Vocal Event of the Year.
About the Academy of Country Music Awards
The 51st Academy of Country Music Awards is dedicated to honoring and showcasing the biggest names and emerging talent in the country music industry. The show is produced for television by dick clark productions and will broadcast LIVE from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, April 3, 2016 at 8:00 PM live ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are executive producers. Bob Romeo is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music. Press credential applications to cover the awards in Las Vegas, NV are available from the Media Center at www.ACMcountry.com.
