Ladies Lead ACM Awards Nominations

0:00It's April 9th, I'm Corey, with the story. This is Music News Today, driven by AI and built for the culture. The nominees for the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards just dropped, and it's ladies night in a big way. Megan Moroni's out front with nine nominations, Miranda Lambert's right behind with eight, and Ella Langley plus Laney Wilson are tied at seven, each. Female power is running the show this year. Chris Stapleton snags six nods to keep the guys in the mix, Zack Topp got five, and Cody Johnson pulled four. It's a fresh wave of talent, mixing vets with newcomers across categories, like entertainer of the year, where names like Luke Combs, Morgan Wallen, and Laney Wilson are battling it out. Fans are buzzing online about this female lead slate, calling it a shift toward more diverse voices in country. New artists like Shabuze and Dasha are getting shine in rookie categories. All collabs like Miranda Lambert and Chris Stapleton's track Heat Up, Song of the Year.

1:01Performers already locked in include Cody Johnson, Casey Musgraves, Laney Wilson, Little Big Town, Miranda Lambert, and Riley Green, with more coming. Soon. Meanwhile, songwriters like Jesse Joe Dylan are up for Top Honors, too. The whole thing streams live on Prime Video, May 17, 2026 at APM, Eastern from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Vegas Kesta Global Party and see who takes home the hardware.