Country music’s biggest night is officially gearing up for a historical milestone. The Country Music Association has unveiled the official nominees for “The 60th Annual CMA Awards,” setting the stage for an unforgettable celebration of six decades of excellence. Determined by CMA’s 7,083 voting-eligible Professional members, this year’s lineup showcases both iconic powerhouses and an exciting wave of fresh talent shaping the genre.
Leading the charge is powerhouse Ella Langley, who dominates this year’s ballot with a staggering nine nominations. Langley’s banner year includes nods for Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, and Album of the Year for Dandelion. She also pulled off double nominations in both the Single of the Year and Song of the Year categories for her hits “Be Her” and “Choosin’ Texas,” alongside a Musical Event nomination for “I Can’t Love You Anymore” with Morgan Wallen and a Music Video nod. This impressive haul brings her career total to 16 nominations.
Following closely behind is country icon Miranda Lambert with seven nominations, extending her historic record as the most-nominated female artist in CMA history with 70 career nods. Lambert secures a Female Vocalist of the Year nomination, a Song of the Year nod for co-writing “Choosin’ Texas,” and two Musical Event nods for “A Song to Sing” (with Chris Stapleton) and “Horses and Divorces” (with Kacey Musgraves). She also shines behind the scenes, picking up three production nominations across the Single and Album of the Year categories.
Kacey Musgraves and first-time nominee Ben West both capture five nominations each. Musgraves earns nods for Album of the Year (Middle of Nowhere), Female Vocalist, Song and Music Video of the Year for “Dry Spell,” and Musical Event for her collaboration with Lambert. Meanwhile, West makes a massive splash in his debut showing, earning production credits on top single, album, and musical event tracks.
The race for the night’s highest honor, CMA Entertainer of the Year, features a stacked lineup of arena-headlining talent: Luke Combs, Cody Johnson, Ella Langley, Chris Stapleton, and Lainey Wilson. Johnson and Stapleton enter the night with four nominations each, while Stephen Wilson Jr. also collects four nods, including New Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for “Gary.” Combs and Wilson hold three nominations apiece, joined by acclaimed mix engineer Dave Clauss.
Highlighting the growth of the genre, thirteen artist and industry members earned their first-time CMA Awards nominations this year, including Smith Ahnquist, Avery Anna, Jack Antonoff, Tim Cofield, Carter Faith, Austin Goodloe, Muscadine Bloodline, Emily Ann Roberts, Caylee Robillard, Laura Sisk, Joybeth Taylor, Thelma & James, and Ben West.
“The 60th Annual CMA Awards” broadcasts live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, Nov. 18 (8:00–11:00 PM/EST) on ABC and Disney+, streaming the next day on Hulu.
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