Eric Church, Maren Morris, and Chris Stapleton top the list of final nominees for The 50th Annual CMA Awards with five nominations each. This yearโs finalists represent the depth and range of country music over the past five decades from soulful traditionalists to contemporary groundbreakers.
โI am very excited about this yearโs list of nominees,โ said Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer. โWe have artists who received their first CMA Awards nominations decades ago alongside first-timers; we have critically-acclaimed songwriters and artists who have reset the bar for country music. This is going to be an exciting year in addition to celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the CMA Awards.โ
Dierks Bentley, Carrie Underwood, and Keith Urbanreceived four nominations and Tim McGraw received three nominations for trophies that will be handed out on Country Musicโs Biggest Nightโข.
โThe 50th Annual CMA Awardsโ will be hosted by Brad Paisley and Underwood and broadcast live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Wednesday, November 2nd from 8-11 pmย ET on the ABC Television Network.
For the first time on ABCโs Good Morning America, the announcement of the final nominees in six of the 12 CMA Awards categories was made live from the historic stage of the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, which was home to the annual CMA Awards broadcast from 1974 to 2004. The announcement was made by Bentley, Cam, and Urban. Following Good Morning America the six remaining categories were announced by the nominated trio of artists on GoodMorningAmerica.com on Yahoo! as well as the Good Morning Americaย Facebook page through Facebook Live โ making the announcements a complete ABC takeover for the second year.
Churchโs nominations include Male Vocalist; Album of the Year for Mr. Misunderstood, which was produced by Jay Joyce and Arturo Buenahora, Jr.; Single of the Year for โRecord Year,โ which was produced by Joyce and mix engineered by Joyce and Jason Hall; Song of the Year for โRecord Year,โ which was written by Church and Jeff Hyde; and Music Video of the Year for โRecord Year,โ which was directed by Reid Long and John Peets. Church is a top nominee for the second year in a row, matching the five nominations he received in 2015. He now has a total of 22 nominations since his first in 2011 for New Artist of the Year.
Morris didnโt just score her first nomination this year; she scored five, which ties her with Deana Carter (1997), K.T. Oslin (1988), and Gretchen Wilson (2004) for five nods in a debut year by a female artist. Only Kacey Musgraves has more, having received six nominations in 2013.
Morris received nominations for Female Vocalist; Album of the Year for Hero, which was produced by busbee, Brad Hill, and Morris; Single of the Year for โMy Church,โ which was produced by busbee and Morris and mix engineered by busbee and Dave Clauss; Song of the Year for โMy Church,โ which was written by Morris and busbee; and New Artist of the Year. Morris only receives one nomination each for Album and Single of the Year, but can receive additional trophies as producer.
After Stapletonโs breakout year in 2015 when he had three nominations and went home with four trophies for Album (including producer), Male Vocalist, and New Artist of the Year, he is back in 2016 with five nominations, including his first for Entertainer of the Year.
His list of nods this year also includes Male Vocalist; Single of the Year for โNobody To Blame,โ which was produced by Stapleton and Dave Cobb and mix engineered by Vance Powell; Music Video of the Year for โFire Away,โ which was directed by Tim Mattia; and Musical Event of the Year with life and stage partner Morgane Stapleton (her first nomination) for โYou Are My Sunshine.โ Stapleton only receives one nomination for Single of the Year, but can receive an additional trophy as producer.
Winners of โThe 50th Annual CMA Awardsโ will be determined in a final round of voting by eligible voting CMA members. The third and final ballot will be emailed to CMA members Monday, Octoberย 10th. Voting for the CMA Awards final ballot ends Tuesday, October 25th at 6ย pmย CT. Ballots will be tabulated by the professional services organization Deloitte & Touche LLP.
Entertainer Of The Year
Garth Brooks
Luke Bryan
Chris Stapleton
Carrie Underwood
Keith Urban
Single of the Year
(Award goes to Artist, Producer(s), and Mix Engineer(s))
โDie a Happy Man,โ Thomas Rhett
Produced by Dann Huff and Jesse Frasure
Mix Engineered by Justin Niebank
The Valory Music Co.
โHumble and Kind,โ Tim McGraw
Produced by Byron Gallimore and Tim McGraw
Mix Engineered by Byron Gallimore
Big Machine Records
โMy Church,โ Maren Morris
Produced by busbee and Maren Morris
Mix Engineered by Dave Clauss and busbee
Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville
โNobody To Blame,โ Chris Stapleton
Produced by Dave Cobb and Chris Stapleton
Mix Engineered by Vance Powell
Mercury Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville
โRecord Year,โ Eric Church
Produced by Jay Joyce
Mix Engineered by Jay Joyce and Jason Hall
EMI Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville
Album of the Year
Dierks Bentley, Black
Maren Morris, Hero
Eric Church, Mr. Misunderstood
Keith Urban, Ripcord
Carrie Underwood, Storyteller
Song of the Year
(Award goes to Songwriter(s))
โBurning House,โ Camaron โCamโ Ochs, Tyler Johnson, Jeff Bhasker
โDie a Happy Man,โ Sean Douglas, Thomas Rhett, and Joe Spargur
โHumble and Kind,โ Lori McKenna
โMy Church,โ busbee and Maren Morris
โRecord Year,โ Eric Church and Jeff Hyde
Female Vocalist of the Year
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Maren Morris
Kacey Musgraves
Carrie Underwood
Male Vocalist of the Year
Dierks Bentley
Eric Church
Tim McGraw
Chris Stapleton
Keith Urban
Vocal Group of the Year
Lady Antebellum
Little Big Town
Old Dominion
Rascal Flatts
Zac Brown Band
Vocal Duo of the Year
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Florida Georgia Line
Joey + Rory
Maddie & Tae
Musical Event of the Year
โDifferent For Girls,โ Dierks Bentley feat. Elle King
โHome Alone Tonight,โ Luke Bryan featuring Karen Fairchild
โThe Fighter,โ Keith Urban (featuring Carrie Underwood)
โThink Of You,โ Chris Young (duet with Cassadee Pope)
โYou Are My Sunshine,โ Morgane Stapleton with Chris Stapleton
Musician of the Year
Jerry Douglas, Dobro / Lap Steel Guitar
Paul Franklin, Steel Guitar
Dann Huff, Guitar
Brent Mason, Guitar
Derek Wells, Guitar
Music Video of the Year
โBurning House,โ Cam
โFire Away,โ Chris Stapleton
โHumble and Kind,โ Tim McGraw
โRecord Year,โ Eric Church
โSomewhere On A Beach,โ Dierks Bentley
New Artist of the Year
Kelsea Ballerini
Brothers Osborne
Maren Morris
Old Dominion
Cole Swindell