Category: Music

The Country Music Association announced the nominees for The 59th Annual CMA Awards on Monday afternoon during a livestream hosted on the CMA’s Facebook and YouTube. 

Ella Langley, Megan Moroney, and Lainey Wilson lead the pack with six nominations each. Close behind is Zach Top with five nods, followed by Riley Green and Cody Johnson with four apiece. Kristian Bush, Carson Chamberlain, Luke Combs, Charlie Handsome, Chris Stapleton, and Morgan Wallen each earned three nominations. 

Competing for the night’s top honor, CMA Entertainer of the Year, are Combs, Johnson, Stapleton, Wallen, and Wilson.

First-time CMA Awards nominees include Johnny Clawson, Jon Decious, Jessie Jo Dillon, Josh Dorr, Alexandra Gavillet, Lalo Guzman, Jimmy Harnen, Brandon Lake, Micah Nichols, John Park, Aaron Raitiere, Matt Rovey, Kyle Sturrock, Wales Toney, Tucker Wetmore, and Stephen Wilson Jr.

“Each year, the CMA Awards shine a light on the creativity, passion and dedication of our community,” says Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer. “The nominees announced today represent some of the most impactful work happening across Country Music, and we are deeply appreciative of our voting members for lending their time and expertise to this process. Their commitment helps ensure the CMA Awards remain a true reflection of the genre’s excellence. On behalf of CMA, congratulations to all of this year’s nominees.”  

The 59th Annual CMA Awards broadcasts live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena Wednesday, Nov. 19 (8:00 – 11:00 PM/EST) on ABC and next day on Hulu.  

The 59th Annual CMA Awards are determined by 7,132 voting-eligible CMA members, representing all facets of country music, from artists and songwriters to producers, musicians, and industry professionals.

Details surrounding the show, including hosts, performers, presenters, and more will be revealed in the coming weeks.

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
Luke Combs
Cody Johnson
Chris Stapleton
Morgan Wallen
Lainey Wilson

SINGLE OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artist(s), Producer(s) and Mix Engineer(s)
“4x4xU” – Lainey Wilson
Producer: Jay Joyce
Mix Engineers: Jason Hall, Jay Joyce
“Ain’t No Love In Oklahoma” – Luke Combs
Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton
Mix Engineer: Chip Matthews
“Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
Producer: Kristian Bush
Mix Engineer: Justin Niebank
“I Never Lie” – Zach Top
Producer: Carson Chamberlain
Mix Engineer: Matt Rovey
“you look like you love me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green
Producer: Will Bundy
Mix Engineer: Jim Cooley

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artist, Producer(s) and Mix Engineer(s)
Am I Okay? – Megan Moroney
Producer: Kristian Bush
Mix Engineer: Justin Niebank
Cold Beer & Country Music – Zach Top
Producer: Carson Chamberlain
Mix Engineer: Matt Rovey
F-1 Trillion – Post Malone
Producers: Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome, Hoskins
Mix Engineer: Ryan Gore
I’m The Problem – Morgan Wallen
Producers: Jacob Durrett, Charlie Handsome, Joey Moi
Mix Engineers: Charlie Handsome, Joey Moi
Whirlwind – Lainey Wilson
Producer: Jay Joyce
Mix Engineers: Jason Hall, Jay Joyce

SONG OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Songwriter(s)
“4x4xU”
Songwriters: Jon Decious, Aaron Raitiere, Lainey Wilson
“Am I Okay?”
Songwriters: Jessie Jo Dillon, Luke Laird, Megan Moroney
“I Never Lie”
Songwriters: Carson Chamberlain, Tim Nichols, Zach Top
“Texas”
Songwriters: Johnny Clawson, Josh Dorr, Lalo Guzman, Kyle Sturrock
“you look like you love me”
Songwriters: Riley Green, Ella Langley, Aaron Raitiere

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Ella Langley
Megan Moroney
Lainey Wilson

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Luke Combs
Cody Johnson
Chris Stapleton
Zach Top
Morgan Wallen

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
Lady A
Little Big Town
Old Dominion
Rascal Flatts
The Red Clay Strays

VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR
Brooks & Dunn
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Maddie & Tae
The War And Treaty

MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artists and Producer(s)
“Don’t Mind If I Do” – Riley Green (featuring Ella Langley)
Producers: Scott Borchetta, Jimmy Harnen, Dann Huff
“Hard Fought Hallelujah” – Brandon Lake with Jelly Roll
Producer: Micah Nichols
“I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
Producer: Trent Willmon
“Pour Me A Drink” – Post Malone (feat. Blake Shelton)
Producers: Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome
“You Had To Be There” – Megan Moroney (feat. Kenny Chesney)
Producer: Kristian Bush

MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR
Jenee Fleenor – Fiddle
Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
Brent Mason – Guitar
Rob McNelley – Guitar
Derek Wells – Guitar

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artist(s) and Director(s)
“Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
Directors: Alexandra Gavillet, Megan Moroney
“I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
Director: Dustin Haney
“Somewhere Over Laredo” – Lainey Wilson
Director: TK McKamy
“Think I’m In Love With You” – Chris Stapleton
Director: Running Bear
“you look like you love me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green
Directors: Ella Langley, John Park, Wales Toney

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Ella Langley
Shaboozey
Zach Top
Tucker Wetmore
Stephen Wilson Jr.

The post Ella Langley, Megan Moroney, and Lainey Wilson Lead 2025 CMA Awards Nominations appeared first on Country Now.

​Country Now

Darius Rucker just gave fans a peek into his love life with what you might call a “hard launch.” The country star went Instagram official with his girlfriend, Emily Deahl, marking the first time they’ve shared a post together.

According to her bio, Deahl is a singer, songwriter, and content creator who splits her time between London and Nashville. Rucker’s pups, Larry and Freddie, often make appearances on her page, and he hasn’t been shy about engaging with her posts.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Darius Rucker (@dariusrucker)

Rucker’s caption read: “Wizard of Oz at @spherevegas with my love & my boys. 1000/10!!!!!” He also tagged Deahl in the post, seemingly making the relationship social media official.

This comes as Rucker has been spending time abroad. Earlier this year, he revealed that he’d moved to London, following a string of cryptic posts about his new chapter.

Rucker was previously married to Beth Leonard. The couple wed in 2000 and announced their split in 2020. The couple announced their split in 2020. Together, they share two children: Daniella (born in 2001) and Jack (2004). Rucker also has a daughter, Carolyn, from a prior relationship.

He opened up about the painful end of his marriage in his book Life’s Too Short, later telling Tamron Hall that writing about it was difficult “because to realize how awful I was as a husband was hard to write. To realize she did everything she could. She’s so wonderful, she’s still an amazing human, amazing person. I love her so much. But I was just, a rockstar, and I lived that life.” 

He later added, “I wanted to tell the truth, but sometimes the truth sucks. It sucks for me and in writing about her, I just wanted the world to know that it was all me. She was awesome. It was all me.”

When Rucker set out to write his memoir, he vowed to be completely honest, no matter how hard it was.

“I always said that if I ever wrote the book, I was going to be honest as I could be,” he shared during a conversation with Country Now and other outlets. “There’s some stuff that’s over the top, but I just wanted to tell the story and I wanted people to understand the hard stuff and the good stuff. All this stuff made me who I am today and so when I was writing the book, I wanted it to be you to read it like we were sitting at a bar and I telling you my life story and so that’s how we wrote it.”   

The “Beers and Sunshine” singer is back in the states and has a full list of tour dates planned throughout the fall.

The post Darius Rucker Goes Instagram Official With Girlfriend Emily Deahl: ‘My Love’ appeared first on Country Now.

​Country Now

Carrie Underwood returned to Sunday Night Football this weekend, kicking off her 13th season as the voice of the show’s iconic opening.

Her performance of “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night” premiered ahead of the Ravens-Bills playoff rematch during the SNF season opener on NBC and Peacock.

The high-energy opening featured a brand-new video showing Underwood backstage, stepping into an elevator, and making a grand entrance to the stage. Surrounded by cheerleaders and background performers, she strutted confidently as flashing lights, cityscapes, and game-day footage of the Ravens and Bills were interwoven throughout the sequence.

According to The New York Times, Underwood recorded the vocals for the new opening over the summer on a rainy day in a Nashville studio. She laid down 80 different variations of the song, each with subtle lyric changes. For instance, one version shortened “Jacksonville Jaguars” to “Jags,” while another added “the” before “Dolphins” when referencing the Miami Dolphins.  

Waited all day and ALL SUMMER to hear the SNF anthem! 🎤 pic.twitter.com/F7G9PiM7cr

— Sunday Night Football on NBC (@SNFonNBC) September 8, 2025

“It’s just all about flow and the rest of the sentence,” Underwood explained. “You get in there and sometimes you’ll sing something and it sounded clunky, and then somebody will be like, ‘Why don’t you switch the names or switch the order?’”

Underwood shot the new Sunday Night Football opening at The Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas, the same venue where she made history with her record-breaking residency, REFLECTION. Now in its third year and selling out shows through April 2025, it stands as the longest-running Las Vegas residency by a solo female country artist.

“For the 20th season of SNF, we wanted to set the tone for the night by reimagining the anthem sound in a way that plays to Carrie’s powerhouse vocals, while visually creating a seamless blend of stylized shots and behind-the-scenes moments evoking the national roadshow that is Sunday Night Football, week after week in the fall,” Tripp Dixon, creative director of the SNF show open for each of the past 13 years, shared.

“We had a blast shooting the new opening at The Resorts World Theatre again,” Underwood said. “As always, Tripp and the creative team continue to raise the bar, bringing the high energy and stunning visuals that the Sunday Night Football audience has come to expect year after year. I can’t wait for the world to see it!”

Underwood will return to Sunday Night Football next week.

The post Carrie Underwood Marks 13th Season on Sunday Night Football with New High-Energy Opening appeared first on Country Now.

​Country Now

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Kidman’s not just a film superstar who happens to be married to Keith Urban. She’s a HUGE fan of the country genre, too. Continue reading…

​The Boot – Country Music News, Music Videos and Songs

Turner, who was known as the ‘Man of Steel,’ played on nine Waylon Jennings albums and also worked with Chris Stapleton, Willie Nelson and more. Continue reading…

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