Sep
2011
6
2011
For the sixth year, the announcement of the final nominees in five of the 12 CMA Awards categories was made live on ABC News’ “Good Morning America” with The Band Perry and Jake Owen delivering the news from the heart of New York City’s Times Square. Finalists in the other seven categories were announced by Jerrod Niemann and CMA Vocal Duo and New Artist of the Year nominees Thompson Square from the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, which was home to the first broadcast of the CMA Awards in 1968.
Topping the list of final nominees are four artists with five nominations each for “The 45th Annual CMA Awards” including Jason Aldean, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton, and Taylor Swift. Right on their heels are The Band Perry and Zac Brown Band, who each received four nominations as a group while individual members Kimberly Perry (of The Band Perry), Coy Bowles and Zac Brown (of Zac Brown Band) each earned a solo nod as a songwriter.
Entertainer of the Year
- Jason Aldean
- Brad Paisley
- Blake Shelton
- Taylor Swift
- Keith Urban
Single of the Year
(Award goes to Artist and Producer(s))
- “A Little Bit Stronger”
Sara Evans
Produced by Tony Brown
RCA Nashville
- “Colder Weather”
Zac Brown Band
Produced by Keith Stegall and Zac Brown
Southern Ground Artists/Atlantic Records
- “Don’t You Wanna Stay”
Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson
Produced by Michael Knox
Broken Bow Records
- “Honey Bee”
Blake Shelton
Produced by Scott Hendricks
Warner Bros. Nashville
- “If I Die Young”
The Band Perry
Produced by Paul Worley
Republic Nashville
Album of the Year
(Award goes to Artist and Producer(s))
- All About Tonight
Blake Shelton
Produced by Scott Hendricks
Warner Bros. Nashville
- My Kinda Party
Jason Aldean
Produced by Michael Knox
Broken Bow Records
- Speak Now
Taylor Swift
Produced by Nathan Chapman and Taylor Swift
Big Machine Records
- This Is Country Music
Brad Paisley
Produced by Frank Rogers
Arista Nashville
- You Get What You Give
Zac Brown Band
Produced by Keith Stegall and Zac Brown
Southern Ground Artists/Atlantic Records
Song of the Year
(Award goes to Songwriter(s))
- “Colder Weather”
Zac Brown, Wyatt Durrette, Levi Lowrey, and Coy Bowles
- “Dirt Road Anthem”
Brantley Gilbert and Colt Ford
- “If I Die Young”
Kimberly Perry
- “Mean”
Taylor Swift
- “You and Tequila”
Matraca Berg and Deana Carter
Female Vocalist of the Year
- Sara Evans
- Miranda Lambert
- Martina McBride
- Taylor Swift
- Carrie Underwood
Male Vocalist of the Year
- Jason Aldean
- Kenny Chesney
- Brad Paisley
- Blake Shelton
- Keith Urban
Vocal Group of the Year
- The Band Perry
- Lady Antebellum
- Little Big Town
- Rascal Flatts
- Zac Brown Band
Vocal Duo of the Year
- The Civil Wars
- Montgomery Gentry
- Steel Magnolia
- Sugarland
- Thompson Square
Musical Event of the Year
(Award goes to each Artist)
- “As She’s Walking Away”
Zac Brown Band featuring Alan Jackson
Southern Ground Artists/Atlantic Records
- “Coal Miner’s Daughter”
Loretta Lynn, Sheryl Crow, and Miranda Lambert
Columbia Records Nashville
- “Don’t You Wanna Stay”
Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson
Broken Bow Records
- “Old Alabama”
Brad Paisley featuring Alabama
Arista Nashville
- “You and Tequila”
Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter
BNA Records
Musician of the Year
- Sam Bush – Mandolin
- Jerry Douglas – Dobro
- Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
- Dann Huff – Guitar
- Mac McAnally – Guitar
Music Video of the Year
(Award goes to Artist and Director)
- “Honey Bee”
Blake Shelton
Directed by Trey Fanjoy
- “If I Die Young”
The Band Perry
Directed by David McClister
- “Mean”
Taylor Swift
Directed by Declan Whitebloom
- “Old Alabama”
Brad Paisley featuring Alabama
Directed by Jim Shea
- “You and Tequila”
Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter
Directed by Shaun Silva
New Artist of the Year
- The Band Perry
- Luke Bryan
- Eric Church
- Thompson Square
- Chris Young
“The 45th Annual CMA Awards” airs live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Wednesday, Nov. 9 on ABC. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will return to host the show for the fourth time.
CMA Broadcast Personality of the Year
National
- “American Country Countdown with Kix Brooks” (Kix Brooks) - Citadel Media
- “Big D & Bubba Show” (Derek Haskins and Sean Powell) – Premiere Radio Networks
- ”The Lia Show” (Lia Knight) – Dial Global
Major Market
- “Ben & Matt Show” (Ben Campbell and Matt McAllister) – KNIX, Phoenix, Ariz.
- “Edwards & Lee” (Chuck Edwards and Linda Lee) – WYCD, Detroit, Mich.
- “Kelly Ford & Rider” (Kelly Ford and Mark Newman) – KYGO, Denver-Boulder, Colo.
- “Laurie DeYoung Morning Show” (Laurie DeYoung) – WPOC, Baltimore, Md.
- “Paul Schadt Morning Show” (Paul Schadt, Meg Butterly, and Geof Knight) – WKKT, Charlotte/Gastonia, N.C.; Rock Hill, SC
Large Market
- “Chris Carr & Company” (Chris Carr, Jeffrey “Maverick” Bolen, and Jason Statt) – WUBE, Cincinnati, Ohio
- “Coffee, Country & Cody” (Bill Cody) – WSM-AM, Nashville, Tenn.
- “Jeff Roper in the Morning” (Jeff Roper and Angie Ward) – WTQR, Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Pont, NC
- “Jess, Brian, and Amanda” (Jess Tyler, Brian Phillips, and Amanda Leonardo) – WCTK, Providence/Warwick/Pawtucket, RI
- ”Q Morning Crew” (Mike Wheless, Marty Young, and Janie Carothers) – WQDR, Raleigh/Durham, NC
Medium Market
- “Kevin Richards Show” (Kevin Richards) – WGNA, Albany/Schenectady/Troy, N.Y.
- “Mornings with Brian and Kellie” (Brian Pierce and Kellie Michaels) – KFDI, Wichita, Kan.
- ”The 97 Country Breakfast Club” (Tom O’Brien, Roger Todd, Melissa Moran) – WPCV, Lakeland/Winter Haven, Fla.
- ”The Kat 103 Morning Show” (Steve Lundy and Gina Melton) – KXKT, Omaha, Neb./Council Bluffs, Iowa
- “Ellis and Bradley Morning Show” (Bill Ellis and Beth Bradley) – WSSL, Greenville/Spartanburg, SC
Small Market
- “Barrett, Fox & Berry” (Bill Barrett, Tim Fox, and Tracy Berry) – KKNU, Eugene/Springfield, Ore.
- “Bearman and Ken in the Morning” (Benny “Bearman” Martin, Ken Hicks, Daniel Wyatt) – WUSY, Chattanooga, Tenn.
- “Scotty and Carissa in the Morning” (Scotty Cox and Carissa Loethen) – KCLR, Columbia, Mo.
- ”The Eddie Foxx Show” (Eddie Foxx and Sharon Green) – WKSF, Asheville, NC
- ”The Good Morning Guys” (Brian Gary, Todd Harding, and Susan Moore) – KUAD, Ft. Collins/Greeley, Colo.
CMA Radio Station of the Year
Major Market
- KMLE – Phoenix, Ariz.
- KNIX – Phoenix, Ariz.
- WKKT – Charlotte/Gastonia, N.C./Rock Hill, SC
- WMZQ – Washington, DC
- WYCD – Detroit, Mich.
Large Market
- KASE – Austin, Texas
- KVET – Austin, Texas
- WFMS – Indianapolis, Ind.
- WQDR – Raleigh/Durham, NC
- WUBE – Cincinnati, Ohio
Medium Market
- KATM – Modesto, Calif.
- KFDI – Wichita, Kan.
- KUZZ – Bakersfield, Calif.
- WBBS – Syracuse, NY
- WYRK – Buffalo/Niagara Falls, NY
Small Market
- KCLR -Columbia, Mo.
- KUAD – Ft. Collins/Greeley, Colo.
- WKSF – Asheville, NC
- WKXC – Augusta, Ga.
- WUSY – Chattanooga, Tenn.
41 Comments »
Ann says
It would be nice if Keith Urban won for a change. He totally deserves it……. :)
September 6th, 2011
Denise B says
Hoping Toby gets nominated since he is usually overlooked time after time.
September 6th, 2011
E says
Seriously no EOTY for Kenny Chesney…
September 6th, 2011
Ashley says
This NEEDS to be Keith Urban’s year!!!! GO KEITH, so happy for him!
September 6th, 2011
Mel says
Keith is amazing in concert and I’d love to see him rewarded! I think most of the nominations are spot on, although I wish Rascal Flatts had been included in EOTY, although I think everyone nominated is deserving on that nomination. I’m anxious to see the song and album nominations.
September 6th, 2011
Karin says
I still don’t understand what makes someone a “new” artist. I wouldn’t consider Luke “new”
September 6th, 2011
Drew says
Sara Evans <3
September 6th, 2011
lorie kosier says
no jake owen? come on..
September 6th, 2011
jessica mccorkel says
Can’t believe Jake Owen wasn’t nominated for male vocalist! He is blowing up right now! Still hoping for a song/single nom for BBJN. It seems the same people are nominated every year! We need some fresh blood CMAs! And only one of the best new artist noms are new lol. Everyone else has 2 or 3 albums out!
September 6th, 2011
Chelsea says
I agree with Karin. The only person/group I would consider new is Thompson Square.
September 6th, 2011
Monique C says
I love the nominations so far…all of my favorites especially in the Vocal Group Of The Year are there.Hope Keith Urban could win Entertainer Of The Year for a change,not always Taylor Swift.
September 6th, 2011
Glenda S says
Ok, no entertainer of the year nomination for Lady A. They have had the best year, better than Taylor
September 6th, 2011
Mel says
Please no Keith!! Brad or Blake for EOTY. MOY yes, it has to be KENNY, he puts on awesome concert and affortable!! GOTY ZacBrownBand, they are great, and have come up to bigger and better things! Don’t really care about the new ones, cause like u said some of them aren’t new and there are some good ones there. Keep my fingers crossed for my fav’s!!!!
September 6th, 2011
Ashley says
Excuse me Mel, but what is wrong with Keith? Have you ever seen him live? apparently not
September 6th, 2011
Lucy says
What is going on Kenny Chesney should have been nominated for EOTY. He deserves it and has earned it again this year. You can tell fans didn’t vote for this. It must be pull name out of the hat year.
September 6th, 2011
Granna says
Keith is the best entertainer out there, IMO. He doesn’t have to have all the props and spectacles that some have on stage with them. It’s all about the music with Keith and I’m rooting for him. His reviews have been awesome. Congrats to all.
September 6th, 2011
Lissa says
I’m hoping Keith gets recognized.. for once.. I was so blessed to be able to see him this year, I’ve never seen anyone run out into the audience several times, or pull fans up on stage to sing with him… He is nothing but impressive. And such a stand up guy, too.
September 6th, 2011
Ryan says
What a joke. They should call it the PCMA’s – its all Political
September 6th, 2011
Don says
I agree Ryan.Too political.
and Ashley I have seen Keith live and I agree with Mel that he should not win.It’s just one long boring guitar solo after another.It all sounds the same.
September 6th, 2011
Deb says
Really? No Kenny Chesney for EOTY? Did the CMA peeps not see how many tickets he sold? Or how awesome his show is? Nothing agains the nominees but REALLY???
September 6th, 2011
Scott says
Bleed Red should have been nominated for Song of the Year
September 6th, 2011
Flora says
Keith would be a more than deserving Entertainer Of The Year. I go to tons of shows and I haven’t seen anybody connect with people through songs the way Keith connects with people at his shows. That’s no diss on anybody else. It’s just Keith doesn’t need any gimmicks or flash, he keeps his show simple and he makes people feel every word he’s singing.
Deb: When Kenny was winning EOTY it was obviously because of his show and # of tickets he was selling. But now apparently being an opening act like Blake is good enough and they’ve decided having the biggest country tour doesn’t matter any more.
It’s definitely very political when you look at some of the people who were nominated and some who weren’t. The awards shows are losing their prestige by being so obviously political.
September 6th, 2011
Michelle says
what about the radio nominees
September 6th, 2011
Jennifer says
How about Carrie Underwood for Entertainer of the Year?? I don’t understand why the CMA people hate her so much but still let her host their show. Her concerts are beyond amazing!
September 6th, 2011
CountryMusicIsLove says
Michelle – The Broadcast nominees have been added to this post. Thanks!
September 6th, 2011
Flora says
@Jennifer Last year’s a great example of where Carrie not only should’ve been nominated, she should’ve won Entertainer Of The Year but they didn’t nominate her because of politics. It wasn’t just fans who thought it was wrong, you had people from Entertainment Weekly, Chet Flippo at CMT, and USA Today all writing articles mentioning how wrong that was. I think people would say Carrie’s had a quiet 2011 by her standards so if they couldn’t be bothered to nominate her last year they weren’t going to nominate her this year.
But this is where you can see the huge inconsistency. Carrie had huge album sales on her debut album and she had 2 HUGE, award winning singles with Jesus Take The Wheel and Before He Cheats. But back then the justification for not nominating her for EOTY was that she wasn’t headlining. Fast forward to 5 years later and now having a big song like Miranda and Lady A did last year or being on a big TV show like Blake is considered enough to be EOTY even if you’re just an opening act.
That’s why I say we can look at the criteria but it’s obvious these awards show voters aren’t looking at the criteria to justify their votes. They vote for who they feel like based on politics. They obviously think Kenny’s won EOTY enough and so suddenly everything he’s doing doesn’t matter to them anymore.
I can’t believe they nominated Blake’s 6 pack over Kenny and Keith’s albums. Does anybody really believe that 6 pack was better than what Kenny and Keith put out? Come on now!
September 6th, 2011
cat says
Chesney only sold so many tickets because of ZBB–they should be nominated!!
September 6th, 2011
lorendasue says
The issue that arises when so many artists get multiple nominations is that the number of artists who should be featured on the show becomes limited. This results in an attempt by the show’s producers and the network to bring in people to be on the show that are believed to be capable of “bringing in viewers.” Then, you have country “purists” going “if THAT person is on the show, I’m not watching…” Just wait to see who shows up on the show that appeals to the 18-35 age bracket.
September 6th, 2011
Abbi says
I believe the noms are done for ratings. If the same people were nominated the ratings would be lower. I don’t think someone should be nominated EOTY when they aren’t even headlining a tour IMO. I think Jason Aldean should win a couple of awards, he’s been overlooked for years. He also had a big year with his album, Kelly Clarkson duo and I believe sold out shows. Just looking at the noms, shows that the voting could go any way!
September 6th, 2011
GRAMMA says
You know I have to agree with you Cat, Zbb is rockin’ this year! They tour constantly and are sold out shows everywhere!
September 6th, 2011
Annie says
Why on earth is taylor swift nominated for entertainer of the year?! What has she done for country music except putting a few banjos one song and rewriting what country music is about!
September 6th, 2011
Kim says
I’m not surprised by anything on these awards shows anymore. It is all political. It isn’t truly based on the #’s. If so, Rascal Flatts would have been at least nominated for EOTY for the past 5 years. Sell out of Madison Square Garden 3 years in a row, one of the top 10 tours every year since they started headlining, 13 #1 hits, 6 multi-platinum albums…the list could go on and on. But nope, not even a nod. It’s not about who’s the best that year and did the most, it’s about who you know and who your label is. And like everything else that’s wrong in the world – money! If I watch, it’s to see the performances. And usually I just DVR it so I can fast forward. I hate to be so negative, but I’ve just had it with all awards shows. They’ve just become ridiculous.
September 6th, 2011
Your Name Karen Montanaro says
I would LOVE to see Keith Urban win Entertainer Of The Year!!! He is long over due to win that award!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
September 6th, 2011
Kevin Bowman says
Go LUKE!!
September 6th, 2011
Miranda says
@Kim AMEN!
September 7th, 2011
Nancy Abernathy says
What’s wrong with some of these people…ZBB is the best band around these days but the big awards always go to Lady A…I wonder if that has something to do with who their relatives are???Not that they aren’t good, it’s just that sometimes you would like to see someone else win..
September 7th, 2011
Thoughts on the meaning of Celebration…and same thoughts of 10 years ago « Djmattsexton’s Blog says
[...] http://www.countrymusicislove.com/2011/09/45th-annual-cma-awards-nominees-revealed.html [...]
September 9th, 2011
sheila says
I would love to see Keith win EOTY, and Jason Aldean win male vocalist. I also think Carrie has not done much this year as she toured so much last year and got nothing out of it, when she should have. So this year I think her chances are very slim indeed. Please not TS or SE. for female artist. I wish Remind me was up for nomination but I guess it wasnt released in time. To Bad because I think it would win.
September 10th, 2011
Brianne says
Would love to see the ever deserving Jason Aldean win Entertainer of the Year…and every other category he’s nominated in. He rocks, and his voice is like butta!
November 9th, 2011
Jay says
Barefoot Blue Jean Night!? No Jake Owen!? Outrage!
November 30th, 2011
Your Name says
George Strait …not up for anything …come on guys …He is the KING OF COUNTRY MUSIC ….this year’s award seem to be a JOKE!!
March 4th, 2012
Camilla & Whitney Duncan
LeAnn Rimes
Justin Moore
Rodney Atkins
Chuck Wicks
George Strait
Contest
Carrie Underwood
Brad Paisley
Kenny Chesney
Julianne Hough
Kellie Pickler
Zac Brown Band
Chris Young
Jake Owen
Billy Currington
Jerrod Niemann
Sara Evans
Trace Adkins
Darius Rucker
Keith Urban
Lady Antebellum
Scotty McCreery
Blake Shelton
Grand Ole Opry
Gloriana
Dierks Bentley
Little Big Town
Montgomery Gentry
Alan Jackson
Garth Brooks
The Band Perry
Sugarland
Craig Morgan
Taylor Swift
Faith Hill
Randy Houser
Rascal Flatts
Martina McBride
Jamey Johnson
Josh Thompson
Tim McGraw
Reba McEntire
Eric Church
Luke Bryan
Miranda Lambert
Jason Aldean
David Nail
Thompson Square
Brooks & Dunn
Toby Keith