The 58th Annual Country Music Association Awards were held on November 20, 2024, at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The ceremony was broadcast live on ABC and was available to stream the next day on Hulu and hosted by Lainey Wilson, Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning.
Singer Morgan Wallen lead the nominations with seven nominations, followed by Cody Johnson and Chris Stapleton wit five nominations each. Stapleton result as the most awarded artist with three awards while George Strait was honored with the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award.
The ceremony had faced cultural and racial controversy regarding the organization's decision not to allow Beyoncé's eighth studio album, Cowboy Carter, to be eligible for nomination despite it genre-blending country music.
Background On September 30, 2024, the association announced that Lainey Wilson, would join fellow CMA award winner Luke Bryan and NFL superstar Peyton Manning as the pair would once again return as the hosts for the upcoming ceremony. Nominee eligibility ran from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024. Voting for the CMA Awards Final Ballot ends Tuesday, Oct. 29.
George Strait was announced as the recipient of the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award on November 12, 2024. A statement by the CMA chief executive officer Sarah Trahern read “There have been few other artists as authentically Texas and authentically country as George Strait, and country music fans all over the world have been better for it. As a three-time CMA entertainer of the year and the most nominated artist of all time, he serves as an inspiration and icon to many of the great, new artists we know today. I am thrilled we are awarding him with this deserving honor.”
Winners and nominees On August 28, CMA announced that the list of nominees will be released on, Monday, September 9. Morgan Wallen leads in nominations with seven nods. The winner are listed in bold. Entertainer of the YearAlbum of the Year Morgan Wallen Luke Combs Jelly Roll Chris Stapleton Lainey Wilson Leather — Cody Johnson Higher — Chris Stapleton Deeper Well — Kacey Musgraves Fathers & Sons — Luke Combs Whitsitt Chapel — Jelly RollMale Vocalist of the YearFemale Vocalist of the Year Chris Stapleton Luke Combs Jelly Roll Cody Johnson Morgan Wallen Lainey Wilson Kelsea Ballerini Ashley McBryde Megan Moroney Kacey MusgravesVocal Group of the YearVocal Duo of the Year Old Dominion Lady A Little Big Town The Red Clay Strays Zac Brown Band Brooks & Dunn Brothers Osborne Dan + Shay Maddie & Tae The War and TreatySingle of the YearSong of the Year "White Horse" — Chris Stapleton “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” — Shaboozey “Watermelon Moonshine” — Lainey Wilson “Dirt Cheap" — Cody Johnson “I Had Some Help” — Post Malone (ft. Morgan Wallen) "White Horse" — Chris Stapleton, Dan Wilson “Burn It Down” — Hillary Lindsey, Parker McCollum, Lori McKenna and Liz Rose “Dirt Cheap — Josh Phillips “I Had Some Help” — Louis Bell, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome, Jonathan Hoskins, Post Malone, Ernest Keith Smith, Morgan Wallen and Chandler Paul Walters “The Painter” — Benjy Davis, Kat Higgins, Ryan LarkinsNew Artist of the YearMusician of the Year Megan Moroney Shaboozey Nate Smith Mitchell Tenpenny Zach Top Bailey Zimmerman Charlie Worsham, Guitar Tom Bukovac, Guitar Jenee Fleenor, Fiddle Paul Franklin, Steel Guitar Rob McNelley, GuitarMusic Video of the YearMusical Event of the Year “Wildflowers and Wild Horses” — Lainey Wilson “Dirt Cheap" — Cody Johnson “I Had Some Help” — Post Malone (ft. Morgan Wallen) “I'm Not Pretty" — Megan Moroney “The Painter” — Cody Johnson “You Look Like You Love Me” — Ella Langley (ft. Riley Green) "Cowboys Cry Too" — Kelsea Ballerini (with Noah Kahan) “I Had Some Help” — Post Malone (ft. Morgan Wallen) “I Remember Everything” — Zach Bryan (ft. Kacey Musgraves) “Man Made a Bar” — Morgan Wallen (ft. Eric Church)Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement AwardGeorge Strait
International Awards The international winners were announced on November 21, 2024. International Artist Achievement AwardGlobal Country Artist AwardLive Music Advancement Award Kip Moore Josh Ross Ron Sakamoto
Performances Performer(s)Song(s)Post MaloneChris Stapleton"California Sober"Megan Moroney"Am I Okay?"Shaboozey"Highway""A Bar Song (Tipsy)"Ella LangleyRiley Green"You Look Like You Love Me"Thomas RhettTeddy Swims "Somethin' 'Bout a Woman""Lose Control"Luke Combs"Ain't No Love in Oklahoma"Kelsea BalleriniNoah Kahan"Cowboys Cry Too"Cody JohnsonCarrie Underwood"I'm Gonna Love You"Chris Stapleton"What Am I Gonna Do"Kacey Musgraves"The Architect"Brooks & DunnJelly Roll"Believe"Post Malone"Yours"Lainey Wilson"4x4xU"Bailey Zimmerman"New To Country"Lainey WilsonJamey JohnsonMiranda LambertParker McCollumGeorge StraitChris StapletonAce in the Hole BandWillie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award honoring George Strait"Amarillo By Morning" (with Jenee Fleenor and Charlie Worsham)"Give It Away""Troubadour""Honky Tonk Hall of Fame"Ashley McBrydeTribute to Kris Kristofferson"Help Me Make It Through the Night"Luke Bryan"Love You, Miss You, Mean It"Eric Church"Darkest Hour"Jelly RollKeith Urban"Liar"Dierks BentleyMolly TuttleSierra HullBronwyn Keith-Hynes"American Girl"
Presenters Presenter(s)NotesBilly Bob Thornton and Mark ColliePresented Single of the YearJordan Davis, Carly Pearce, and Daniel SunjataPresented Song of The YearClint Black and Caleb PressleyPresented New Artist of the YearThe Oak Ridge BoysPresented Vocal Group of the YearDon Johnson and Katharine McPheePresented Album of the YearMitchell Tenpenny and Taylor Frankie PaulPresented Vocal Duo of the YearLittle Big Town and Freddie FreemanPresented Male Vocalist of the YearSimone BilesPresented Female Vocalist of the YearJeff BridgesPresented Entertainer of the Year
Milestones Little Big Town holds the longest consecutive nomination streak for Vocal Group. They have been on the final ballot since 2006, nineteen years in a row. Old Dominion set the record for consecutive Vocal Group of the Year wins this year with their seventh consecutive win. Lainey Wilson became just the sixth woman to win Female Vocalist of the Year three years in a row. Only Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire, and Tammy Wynette have accomplished the feat. Chris Stapleton won his eighth award and extends his record as the most decorated Male Vocalist of the Year. Brooks & Dunn and Chris Stapleton became the most decorated CMA Awards artists of all time with nineteen each: Brooks & Dunn winning Vocal Duo of the Year and Chris Stapleton winning Single of the Year, Song of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year. Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood had their nomination streak ended after nearly two decades of being nominated in every ceremony since 2005 and 2006 respectively.
Controversy Following the Country Music Association's announcement of the nominations, numerous US and international publications and music websites criticized the awards ceremony's decision not to nominate Beyoncé and her eighth studio album Cowboy Carter, as well as the lead single "Texas Hold 'Em", in their respective categories, despite the perceived cultural impact and commercial performance. Several publications attributed this to conservatism and racism against Black artists in the country music industry.
On September 17 in an interview with Variety, nine-time CMA award winner and Cowboy Carter collaborator Dolly Parton spoke on Beyonce's apparent snub, "She's a country girl in Texas and Louisiana, so she grew up with that base. It wasn't like she just appeared out of nowhere [...] There's so many wonderful country artists that, I guess probably the country music field, they probably thought, well, we can't really leave out some of the ones that spend their whole life doing that [...] I think it was just more of what the country charts and the country artists were doing, that do that all the time, not just a specialty album." Cowboy Carter collaborator Shaboozey, who received his first two CMA Awards nominations, expressed his gratitude for Beyoncé following the lack of nominations, writing: "Thank you Beyoncé for opening a door for us, starting a conversation, and giving us one of the most innovative country albums of all time".
References