The 55th Academy of Country Music Awards were held in Nashville, Tennessee, on September 16, 2020. Keith Urban was the host for the show. The event was originally planned to air on April 5 of the same year in Las Vegas, Nevada, but was postponed and relocated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The show was broadcast from the Grand Ole Opry House, Ryman Auditorium, and the Bluebird Café in Nashville, becoming the first major in-person award event to take place in the United States since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. With her Vocal Event win, Miranda Lambert won her thirty-fifth award, extending her record as the most awarded artist in ACM history. The ceremony also featured the first tie ever in ACM history for the highest honor of the evening, Entertainer of the Year, with both Thomas Rhett and Carrie Underwood claiming its title.
Winners and nominees Winners are shown in bold. Entertainer of the YearAlbum of the YearCarrie Underwood Thomas Rhett Luke Bryan Luke Combs Eric ChurchWhat You See Is What You Get – Luke Combs Center Point Road – Thomas Rhett Girl – Maren Morris Heartache Medication – Jon Pardi Wildcard – Miranda LambertFemale Artist of the YearMale Artist of the YearMaren Morris Kelsea Ballerini Miranda Lambert Kacey Musgraves Carrie UnderwoodLuke Combs Dierks Bentley Thomas Rhett Chris Stapleton Keith UrbanGroup of the YearDuo of the Year Old Dominion Lady A Little Big Town Midland The Highwomen Dan + Shay Brooks & Dunn Brothers Osborne Florida Georgia Line Maddie & TaeSingle of the YearSong of the Year"God's Country" – Blake Shelton "One Man Band" – Old Dominion "Rainbow" – Kacey Musgraves "Rumor" – Lee Brice "What If I Never Get Over You" – Lady A "One Man Band" – Josh Osborne, Matthew Ramsey, Trevor Rosen, Brad Tursi "10,000 Hours" – Dan Smyers, Shay Mooney, Justin Bieber, Jessie Jo Dillon, Jason Boyd, Jordan Reynolds "Girl Goin' Nowhere" – Ashley McBryde, Jeremy Bussey "God's Country" – Devin Dawson, Jordan Schmidt, Michael Hardy "Some of It" – Eric Church, Jeff Hyde, Clint Daniels, Bobby PinsonNew Female Artist of the YearNew Male Artist of the YearTenille Townes Caylee Hammack Gabby Barrett Ingrid Andress Lindsay EllRiley Green Cody Johnson Jordan Davis Morgan Wallen Russell DickersonSongwriter of the YearVideo of the Year Hillary Lindsey Ashley Gorley Josh Osborne Michael Hardy Shane McAnally "Remember You Young" – Thomas Rhett; Dir. TK McKamy "10,000 Hours" – Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber; Dir. Patrick Tracy "God's Country" - Blake Shelton; Dir. Sophie Muller "One Man Band" – Old Dominion; Dir. Mason Allen "Sugar Coat" – Little Big Town; Dir. Alexa Kinigopoulos, Stephen KinigopoulosMusic Event of the Year "Fooled Around and Fell in Love" – Miranda Lambert and Maren Morris, Ashley McBryde, Tenille Townes, Caylee Hammack, Elle King "10,000 Hours" – Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber "Dive Bar" – Garth Brooks and Blake Shelton "Old Town Road" – Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus "What Happens in a Small Town" – Brantley Gilbert and Lindsay Ell
There was a tie between Rhett and Underwood for Entertainer of the Year. The first tie in ACM award history.
Performances Performer(s)Song(s) Luke BryanEric ChurchLuke CombsThomas RhettCarrie UnderwoodEntertainer of the Year Nominees Medley"Rain Is a Good Thing" (Bryan)"Drink in My Hand" (Church)"When It Rains It Pours" (Combs)"It Goes Like This" (Rhett)"Before He Cheats" (Underwood)Jimmie Allen"Make Me Want To"Old DominionMedley of Hits"One Man Band""Song for Another Time""Hotel Key""Make It Sweet" Luke Bryan"One Margarita"Kelsea Ballerini"Hole in the Bottle"Miranda LambertNatalie HembyLuke Dick"Bluebird"Morgan Wallen"Whiskey Glasses"Thomas RhettJon Pardi"Beer Can't Fix"Blake SheltonGwen Stefani"Happy Anywhere"Carrie UnderwoodTribute to the 95th Anniversary of the Grand Ole Opry"Crazy""You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)""I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool""Why'd You Come in Here Lookin' Like That""The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia""A Broken Wing"Luke Combs"Better Together"Tenille Townes"Somebody's Daughter"Gabby Barrett Cade Foehner"I Hope" "The Good Ones" Dan + Shay"I Should Probably Go to Bed"Riley Green"I Wish Grandpas Never Died"Kane Brown"Worldwide Beautiful"Maren Morris"To Hell & Back"Taylor Swift"Betty"Eric Church "Ragged Old Flag" "Voice" "Stick That in Your Country Song"Tim McGraw"I Called Mama"Mickey Guyton"What Are You Gonna Tell Her?"Keith UrbanPink(prerecorded)"One Too Many"Trisha Yearwood"I'll Carry You Home"Florida Georgia Line"I Love My Country"
Presenters Presenters were announced September 14, 2020, two days before the ceremony.
AwardPresenter(s) Song of the YearBobby BonesSingle of the YearCamAlbum of the YearDarius RuckerTop Vocal Group of the YearLily AldridgeTop Male Artist of the YearLauren AlainaTop Vocal Duo of the YearClint Black & Lisa Hartman BlackTop Female Artist of the YearCeCe WinansEntertainer of the YearKeith Urban
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