The Country Music Association Awards, also known as the CMA Awards or CMAs, are presented to

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artists and broadcasters to recognize outstanding achievement in the country music industry. The televised annual presentation ceremony features performances and award presentations by popular country music artists, with occasional appearances from pop and rock artists. The CMA Awards were first presented in 1967, and televised for the first time the following year.

History

The first CMA awards were presented at an untelevised ceremony at the

Nashville Municipal Auditorium The Nashville Municipal Auditorium is an indoor sports and concert venue in Nashville, Tennessee. It opened October 7, 1962 with both an arena and exhibition hall. The former exhibition hall has been permanent home to the Musicians Hall of Fame ...

in 1967; the Entertainer of the Year award that night went to Eddy Arnold. The second annual CMA awards were presented in October 1968; NBC taped the ceremony and televised it a few weeks later. Since then, the awards have been televised live, usually in October or November, by NBC from 1969 through 1971, by CBS from 1972 through 2005, and by

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

beginning in 2006. Starting in 1968 they were held at

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

(initially at Ryman Auditorium, and from 1974 through 2004 at the new Grand Ole Opry House). In 2005, the awards show was held at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Since 2006, they have been held at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena. In 2020, due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the 54th CMA Awards were held at Nashville's Music City Center. Since 2017, the ceremony was held on the second Wednesday of November. Prior to 2017, the awards were generally held on the first Wednesday of November. However, since then the awards have been rescheduled for later in the month to avoid conflict with a possible game seven of

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

, since the 2016 ceremony aired the same night as

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

’s eventual telecast of game seven of the 2016 Series, which beat the CMA Awards in the ratings. In June 2021, the Country Music Association announced that they would extend its broadcast contract with ABC through 2026. Following the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Country Music Association announced that the 55th CMA Awards on November 10, 2021, would require ticketed audience members to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and to wear appropriate face coverings.

Eligibility and voting

Albums and songs released between July 1 of the previous calendar year and June 30 of the award show's year are eligible for consideration. More than 7,300 individuals from the Country Music Association trade group vote for the nominees and winners through three rounds of balloting.

Awards

Annual awards are given in the following twelve categories: Entertainer, Male Vocalist, Female Vocalist, New Artist (previously known as the Horizon Award until 2008), Vocal Group, Vocal Duo (introduced in 1970), Single, Album, Song, Musical Event (split off from the Vocal Duo award in 1988 as Vocal Event), Music Video (introduced in 1985), and Musician. The distinction between the Duo and Event awards is that the former is presented to two artists who normally perform together, while the latter was specifically created to honor one-off collaborations. Nine awards are also given to radio broadcasters for Station of the Year and Personality of the Year (divided into four categories each, based on market size), as well as National Personality of the Year to the host of a nationally syndicated show. Since 2012, the ceremony features a Lifetime Achievement Award. Vince Gill, and Alan Jackson are the only individuals to win Entertainer of the Year, Male/Female Vocalist of the Year or Group/Duo of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year all in the same year.

Major awards

''Country Music Association Award for International Achievement''

The Country Music Association Award for International Achievement is presented to international artists and executives.

International Artist Achievement Award

Formerly presented as the International Touring Artist Award, this award recognizes outstanding achievement by a U.S.-based artist who has demonstrated the most significant creative growth, development and promotion of the country music industry outside of the United States during the eligibility period. The

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and E ...

were the first artists to receive the award twice. 2008 is the only year in which there were multiple winners. *2022:

Ashley McBryde Ashley McBryde (born July 29, 1983) is an American country music singer–songwriter. Raised in Arkansas, she was drawn to various types of music from a young age. She also developed a passion for writing songs and later moved to Nashville, Tennes ...

*2021:

Luke Combs Luke Albert Combs (; born March 2, 1990) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Born and raised in North Carolina, Combs began performing as a child, most notably performing at Carnegie Hall. After dropping out of college to pursue a ...

*2020: Keith Urban *2019: Kacey Musgraves *2018: Little Big Town *2017:

Carrie Underwood Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American singer. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of ''American Idol'' in 2005. Her single "Inside Your Heaven" made her the only country artist to debut atop the ''Bill ...

*2016: Kacey Musgraves *2015: Not presented *2014: Brad Paisley *2013:

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...

*2012: Lady Antebellum *2011: Brad Paisley *2010: Not presented *2009:

*2008: Dierks Bentley and

Brooks & Dunn Brooks & Dunn are an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1990 through the suggestion of Tim DuBois. Before their formation, both members were solo ...

*2007: Dwight Yoakam *2006:

*2005: Keith Urban *2004:

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

*2003:

*2002: Bellamy Brothers *2001:

Lonestar Lonestar (formerly known as Texassee) is an American country music group from Nashville, Tennessee. The group consists of Drew Womack (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), Michael Britt (lead guitar, background vocals), Dean Sams (keyboards, acousti ...

*2000 -

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music singer and actress. Dubbed " the Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Since the 1970s, McEntire has placed over 100 single ...

*1999:

Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...

*1998: Trisha Yearwood *1997:

The Mavericks The Mavericks are an American country music band from Miami, Florida. The band consists of Raul Malo (lead vocals, guitar), Paul Deakin (drums), Eddie Perez (lead guitar), and Jerry Dale McFadden (keyboards). Malo and Deakin founded the band in ...

*1996: BR5 49

Global Country Achievement Award

Named in honor of Jeff Walker, this award recognizes outstanding achievements by a country music artist signed outside of the United States. The artist must have furthered the popularity of country music as well as brought attention to the country music format in their territory. This award was first presented in 2003 and has been presented annually since, with the exception of 2015. The Global Country Achievement Award has been most frequently won by Australian artists. *2021: The Shires (UK) *2020:

Ilse DeLange Ilse Annoeska de Lange (born 13 May 1977), better known as Ilse DeLange, is a Dutch country and pop rock singer-songwriter. As a member of The Common Linnets, she finished in second place at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014. Biography Ilse An ...

(The Netherlands) *2019:

Travis Collins Travis William Collins (born 4 May 1985, Campbelltown) is an Australian country music singer-songwriter and guitarist. Three of his albums have reached the ARIA Albums Chart top 20, ''Hard Light'' (2016), ''Brave & the Broken'' (2018) and ...

(Australia) and Ward Thomas (UK) *2018: Dean Brody (Canada) *2017: The Shires (UK) *2016: Gord Bamford (Canada) *2015: Not presented *2014: Morgan Evans (Australia) *2013: Gord Bamford (Canada) *2012: Jasmine Rae (Australia) *2011: The McClymonts (Australia) *2010: Tommy Emmanuel (Australia) *2009:

Catherine Britt Catherine Elisabeth Britt (born 31 December 1984) is an Australian country music artist who has had success in both her native Australia and in the United States. She started her career in Newcastle in 1999, she moved to Nashville from 2002 to ...

(Australia) *2008: Troy Cassar-Daley (Australia) *2007: Adam Harvey (Australia) *2006:

Jason McCoy Jason McCoy (born Jason Dwight Campsall on August 27, 1970) is a Canadian country singer-songwriter. He has won the 2001 Male Vocalist of the Year at the Canadian Country Music Awards, 3 SOCAN Song of the Year awards, 19 CCMA nominations and ...

(Canada) *2005:

Paul Brandt Paul Rennée Belobersycky (born July 21, 1972), known professionally as Paul Brandt, is a Canadian country music artist. Growing up in Calgary, he was a pediatric RN at the time of his big break. In 1996, he made his mark on the country music c ...

(Canada) *2004:

Kasey Chambers Kasey Chambers (born 4 June 1976) is an Australian country singer-songwriter and musician born in Mount Gambier. She is the daughter of fellow musicians, Diane and Bill Chambers, and the younger sister of musician and producer, Nash Chambers. ...

and

Slim Dusty Slim Dusty, AO MBE (born David Gordon Kirkpatrick; 13 June 1927 – 19 September 2003) was an Australian country music singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He was an Australian cultural icon and one of the country's most awarded stars, ...

(Australia) *2003:

Lee Kernaghan Lee Kernaghan OAM (born 15 April 1964) is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. Kernaghan has won four ARIA Awards and three APRA Awards, and has sold over two million albums, and as of 2021, has won 38 Golden Guitars at ...

(Australia)

International Broadcaster of the Year

This award recognizes outstanding achievement by a radio broadcaster outside the United States who has made important contributions for the development of country music in their country. Up to three recipients may be named in any year. Each recipient must represent a different territory. *2021: Baylen Leonard (UK) *2020: Ben Earle (UK) *2019: Baylen Leonard (UK) *2018: Chris Stevens (UK) *2017: Bob Harris (UK) *2016: Paul McGuire (Canada) *2015: Not presented *2014: Ricky Ross (UK) *2013: Bob Harris (UK) *2012: David Burton (Australia), Takehisa Matsuda (Japan) and Lee Williams (UK) *2011:

Ken McLeod Ken McLeod (born 1948) is a senior Western translator, author, and teacher of Tibetan Buddhism. He received traditional training mainly in the Shangpa Kagyu lineage through a long association with his principal teacher, Kalu Rinpoche, whom he met ...

(Scotland),

Felicity Urquhart Felicity Ann Urquhart (born 4 May 1976) is an Australian country and western music singer-songwriter, and a TV and radio presenter. Her single "Big Black Cloud", co-written with Randy Scruggs, reached No. 1 on Country Tracks National Top&nb ...

(Australia) and

Brian D'Arcy Brian D'Arcy CP OBE (born 1 June 1945) is an Irish Passionist priest based in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. A writer, newspaper columnist, broadcaster and preacher. He is the author of several books of trite musings including ...

(Northern Ireland) *2010: Sandy Harsch (Ireland), Larry Cann (Australia) and Alan Watkiss (UK) *2009:

Grant Goldman Grant Goldman (3 February 1950 – 17 January 2020) was an Australian radio and television presenter. He worked as both a voice-over and live presenter. Goldman was the father of Mike Goldman, also a TV and radio personality and voice-over art ...

(Australia), Casey Clarke (Canada) and

Brian Clough Brian Howard Clough ( ; 21 March 1935 – 20 September 2004) was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is one of four managers to have won the Englis ...

(UK) *2008: Pio McCann (Ireland), John Bond (Australia) and Joe Fish (UK) *2007: Nick Erby (Australia), Jackie-Rae Greening (Canada) and Georges Lang (France) *2006: Tim Rogers (UK), Ian Holland (Australia) and Helen Macpherson (Scotland) *2005: The Odd Squad (Canada), Ray Hadley (Australia) and

Bryan Burnett Bryan Burnett is a Scottish television and radio presenter, currently best known for his work with BBC Radio Scotland. Burnett began his career at Northsound Radio in Aberdeen, before spending six years with Radio Clyde in Glasgow, where he pre ...

(Scotland) *2004:

Trevor Campbell Trevor Campbell (born 24 July 1954) is a Jamaican sprinter. He competed in the men's 4 × 400 metres relay at the 1972 Summer Olympics. He won a silver medal in the 4 x 400 metres relay at the 1971 Pan American Games * The year 1971 had ...

(UK), Bob Harris (UK) and Nikos Garavelas (Greece) *2003: Pat Geary (Scotland), Johnnie Walker (UK) and John Laws (Australia) *2002: Stuart Cameron and David Allan (UK) *2001: Gary Beattie (Australia) and Bill Black (UK) *2000:

Thomas Jeier Thomas Jeier (born 24 April 1947 in Minden) was raised in Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as ...

(Germany), Korneliusz Pacuda (Poland), John Nutting (Australia) and Dick Barrie (Scotland) *1999: Trevor Smith (Australia), Dieter Vulpus and Bernd Schroeder (Germany), Country FM (The Netherlands) *1998: Ruud Hermans and

Jan de Jong Jan de Jong (1942 – c. 28 April 2009) was the ice master of the Thialf skating stadium in Heerenveen, Netherlands. De Jong was responsible for the ice in the pre-eminent Dutch skating rink from 1967 when it opened as an outdoor 400-metre oval (t ...

(The Netherlands),

Lloyd Cole Lloyd Cole (born 31 January 1961) is an English singer and songwriter. He was lead singer of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions from 1984 to 1989 and subsequently worked solo. Early life Cole was born in Buxton, Derbyshire, England. He grew up in ne ...

(Wales) and Kirsten Helm Petersen (Denmark) *1997: Walter Fuchs (Germany), Nick Erby and John Laws (Australia)

CMA Awards hosts

The first ceremony in 1967, which was not televised, was co-hosted by Sonny James and Bobbie Gentry.

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist b ...

hosted the awards from 1992 to 2003. Brad Paisley and

have co-hosted the ceremonies from 2008 to 2018. For the 2019 ceremony,

hosted alongside

and

. McEntire returned to host the 2020 ceremony with Darius Rucker.

Luke Bryan Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan (born July 17, 1976) is an American country music, country singer, songwriter, and television personality. He began his music career writing songs for Travis Tritt and Billy Currington before signing with Capitol Reco ...

will be hosting 2021 show solo. Bryan returned to host the 2022 ceremony with

Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...

Award milestones

Most wins

Most nominated

Won four main awards in single year

Only two artists have won the top four awards in a single year: ''Entertainer of the Year'', ''Album of the Year'', ''Male Vocalist/Female Vocalist/Group/Duo of the Year'' and ''Song of the Year'': Vince Gill, in 1993 and Alan Jackson, in 2002.

Controversies

Charlie Rich "lights up" John Denver

When presenting the

award at the 1975 ceremony,

Charlie Rich Charles Allan Rich (December 14, 1932July 25, 1995) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. His eclectic style of music was often difficult to classify, encompassing the rockabilly, jazz, blues, country music, country, sou ...

, who appeared to be intoxicated after drinking backstage and was allegedly taking pain medication for a broken foot, opened the envelope to reveal the winner. When he saw that

John Denver Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor, activist, and humanitarian whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singe ...

had been chosen, Rich pulled out his lighter and burned the envelope, sarcastically declaring that the winner was "my friend, Mr. John Denver". Many saw Rich's actions as a protest towards pop artists crossing over into country music and it remains one of the most talked about moments in CMA history.

Kathy Mattea's AIDS speech

During a time when the rest of the entertainment industry were wearing red ribbons to signify solidarity and promote awareness of the

AIDS epidemic The global epidemic of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of 2021, HIV/AI ...

, in an attempt to steer clear of controversy, the CMA instead encouraged guests to wear green ribbons to signify environmental awareness. This did not sit well with Kathy Mattea, who had lost several friends to the disease, and she requested the CMA's help in drafting a short speech on the issue but they ignored her request and she took matters into her own hands. At the 1992 ceremony while presenting an award, Mattea wore three red ribbons and one green one and announced the names of her friends who had passed and delivered an impassioned speech that created a discussion and elevated AIDS awareness among the Nashville community. Mattea went on to become a staunch advocate for the cause, releasing the album ''

Red Hot + Country ''Red Hot + Country'' (or ''RH+C'') was the follow-up to ''No Alternative'' in the Red Hot Series of compilation albums, a series produced to raise awareness and money to fight AIDS/HIV as well as other related health and social issues. This com ...

'' two years later to raise funds for AIDS charities.

Alan Jackson's 1999 performance

On May 8, 1999, George Jones released "

Choices A choice is the range of different things from which a being can choose. The arrival at a choice may incorporate motivators and models. For example, a traveler might choose a route for a journey based on the preference of arriving at a given ...

", a song written by Mike Curtis and Billy Yates, that featured an accompanying music video which depicted his struggles with substance abuse. The song subsequently became a Top 30 hit for Jones and was nominated for Single of the Year at the 1999 CMA Awards, with the CMA inviting him to perform a shortened version at the ceremony. Jones felt insulted that the CMA requested he remove part of the song and so he passed on the invitation.

Alan Jackson Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for blending traditional honky-tonk and mainstream country pop sounds (for a style widely regarded as "neotraditional country"), as well as penning many o ...

, who was slated to perform his current single "

Pop a Top "Pop a Top" is a country song written and originally recorded by Nat Stuckey in 1966. The first hit version was released by Jim Ed Brown in May 1967 as the third and final single from his album ''Just Jim''. The song was a number 3 Billboard coun ...

", was offended that the CMA had denied Jones the opportunity to sing the full song and so, during his performance, he stopped his own band mid-song and instead sang a chorus of "Choices", which went on to earn a standing ovation from the crowd.

Dixie Chicks 50th anniversary performance

At the 50th CMA Awards in 2016, the

returned the CMA stage for the first time since their comments about George Bush resulted in them being blacklisted from the industry. They were joined by

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

to perform a medley of "

Daddy Lessons "Daddy Lessons" is a song recorded by the American singer Beyoncé for her sixth studio album, ''Lemonade'' (2016). The song was written and produced by Wynter Gordon, Beyoncé, Kevin Cossom and Alex Delicata. The song's music video is part of a o ...

" from her 2016 '' Lemonade'' album and their own 2002 hit " Long Time Gone". While many viewers and critics praised the performance, it garnered criticism from some country traditionalists, who stated that Beyoncé, a pop/R&B artist had no place at a country music awards show. The comments polarized opinions, with some noting that they could be seen as a racist attack, as previous collaborations with non-country artists had not received the same amount of criticism and some suggesting that old grudges against the Dixie Chicks had fueled the extreme responses to their performance. Many artists including Dierks Bentley and Karen Fairchild defended the performance while others did not, including

who reportedly walked out of the arena.

References

External links

Official site
{{Musicawards American music awards Awards established in 1967 1967 establishments in Tennessee