The first performers for Nov. 18 are out. Ella Langley leads this year’s nominations with nine.
At first glance, it’s a normal awards-show announcement: a list of names, a date and a TV channel. But this year the CMA Awards turn 60, and it will be the first ceremony since Dolly Parton’s death.
The Country Music Association announced the first round of performers on Nov. 5. Cody Johnson, Ella Langley, Kacey Musgraves, Miranda Lambert, The Red Clay Strays, Tim McGraw, Tucker Wetmore and Zach Top will take the stage, Billboard reported. The show will also pay tribute to Parton. And this is only the first round, so more names are coming.
The night belongs, first of all, to Ella Langley. She leads the nominations with nine, including Entertainer of the Year and Female Vocalist of the Year. Two of her songs, “Be Her” and “Choosin’ Texas,” are both up for Single and Song of the Year, American Songwriter notes. In February, she became the only woman to top the Billboard Hot 100, Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts at the same time, according to the Associated Press.
By the way, Miranda Lambert on the same stage is not a coincidence. She is Langley’s mentor: she co-produced her album “Dandelion” and co-wrote “Choosin’ Texas.” Lambert has six nominations of her own and is already the most-winning woman in CMA history, with 14 trophies.
The rest of the list mixes generations. Kacey Musgraves has five nominations, and Cody Johnson is also in the race for Entertainer of the Year. Zach Top is nominated for Male Vocalist and for Album of the Year with “Ain’t In It For My Health.” Tucker Wetmore is up for New Artist of the Year, and The Red Clay Strays for Vocal Group of the Year. Tim McGraw comes to the show as a new member of the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Then there is the tribute. Parton died on Aug. 25 at 80, after a brief battle with cancer, the AP reported. She wrote hundreds of songs, including “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors” and “I Will Always Love You,” and the CMA named her Female Vocalist of the Year in 1975 and 1976. In October, the association already gave her a two-hour TV special, “CMA Presents I Will Always Love You: A Celebration of Dolly Parton,” with Reba McEntire, Carrie Underwood, Lainey Wilson and Langley among the performers, Holler reported. Who will sing for her on Nov. 18 hasn’t been announced yet.
Lainey Wilson, the reigning Entertainer of the Year, will host for the third year in a row. The show airs live from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Wednesday, Nov. 18, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+, and on Hulu the next day.
So, sixty editions in, the CMA Awards will look in two directions at once: back at the woman who wrote “I Will Always Love You,” and forward at Ella Langley, who could become the face of the next ten years. If you have never watched “Country Music’s Biggest Night,” this is a good year to start. Save the date, Nov. 18, and if you miss it, Hulu has you covered the next morning.
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