The 59th Academy of Country Music Awards nominations have been announced, with Luke Combs, Lainey Wilson, Megan Moroney and Morgan Wallen leading the pack.
The nods for Combs or Wilson highlight how the pair could reach the same level of country music superstardom as Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Chris Stapleton or Carrie Underwood.
Both performers are among the leaders in total nominations for the event airing exclusively on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch live from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 16 at 8 p.m. EDT/7 p.m. CDT/5 p.m. PDT.
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A 2024 win via Combs or Wilson's nomination for entertainer of the year would clinch the coveted triple crown award, which consists of an entertainer of the year win plus wins in an act's respective new artist (male, female, duo, or group) and artist (male, female, duo or group) categories.
The potential for Combs or Wilson's elevation to superstardom during May 16's festivities is notable. However, there are numerous breakout-star stories amid country's mainstream crossover moment that could be told during the evening.
As noted, Combs leads with eight nominations, including entertainer of the year, male artist of the year, album of the year, song of the year, single of the year and music event of the year.
Megan Moroney garnered the most ACM nods for a female artist with six nominations, including female artist of the year and new female artist of the year. Moroney's nominations include being highlighted for song of the year as artist and songwriter for "Tennessee Orange," visual media of the year, and music event of the year for "Can't Break Up Now" alongside Old Dominion.
Morgan Wallen, 2023's ACM male artist of the year, could repeat that success in 2024. Overall, the "One Thing At A Time" album performer has received six nominations and tied Luke Combs for receiving nods in the most categories, including album of the year and single of the year for Billboard's all-genre Hot 100 chart-topper "Last Night."
Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton and Wilson are also notable, as they received five nominations each, followed by Jelly Roll and Jordan Davis with four nominations.
For Jelly Roll, the dynamic strength of his surge to mainstream country stardom is reflected in how his 2024 entertainer of the year nomination is similar to Billy Ray Cyrus being nominated for the same award in 1992, as keyed by the success of his hit "Achy Breaky Heart."
Tracy Chapman's moment as a songwriter with a boundless legacy continues as she receives her first nomination for writing "Fast Car," which she originally released in 1988 before Combs released his version in 2023.
Cody Johnson's Texas-born independent-to-mainstream rise reaches its pinnacle to date. His five nominations aren't just the most ACM Award nominations he has ever received in one year—they also make him 2024's most ACM award-nominated Texas-born artist.
Consistency is also the name of the game for artists like Combs (fifth consecutive male artist of the year and entertainer of the year nominations), Stapleton (ninth successive nomination for male artist of the year), Old Dominion (ninth consecutive year being nominated for group of the year—the group has taken home the title every year for the last six years) and Brothers Osborne (tenth year in a row being nominated for ACM duo of the year).
Alongside Jelly Roll, first-time ACM award nominees for 2024 include Kassi Ashton, Tyler Childers, Ashley Cooke, Hannah Ellis, Flatland Cavalry, Kameron Marlowe, Kylie Morgan, Neon Union, Restless Road, Conner Smith and Tigirlily Gold.
The following is the full list of nominees for the ACM Main Awards, studio recording awards, and industry awards categories:
[Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company–Label(s)]
Producer: Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton, Luke Combs
Record Company-Label: River House Artists / Columbia Nashville
Producer: Chris Stapleton, Dave Cobb, Morgane Stapleton
Record Company-Label: Mercury Nashville
Producers: Trent Willmon
Record Company-Label: CoJo Music LLC / Warner Music Nashville LLC
Producers: Joey Moi, Cameron Montgomery, Charlie Handsome, Jacob Durrett
Record Company-Label: Big Loud Records / Republic Records / Mercury Records
Producers: Kelsea Ballerini, Alysa Vanderheym
Record Company-Label: Black River Entertainment
[Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company–Label(s)]
Producer: Jon Randall
Record Company-Label: MCA Nashville
Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton
Record Company-Label: River House Artists / Columbia Nashville
Producer: Joey Moi, Charlie Handsome
Record Company-Label: Big Loud Records / Republic Records / Mercury Records
Producer: Austin Nivarel
Record Company-Label: Stoney Creek Records / BMG Nashville
Producer: Paul DiGiovanni
Record Company-Label: MCA Nashville
[Awarded to Songwriter(s)/Publisher(s)/Artist(s)]
Songwriters: Tracy Chapman
Publishers: Purple Rabbit
Songwriters: Dallas Wilson, Lainey Wilson, Trannie Anderson
Publishers: Sony / ATV Countryside; Songs of Riser House; Songs of Wild Cat Well Music
Songwriters: Chase McGill, Greylan James, Jordan Davis, Josh Osborne
Publishers: Family Farm Songs; Hold On Can I Get A Number 1 Music; Songs of Universal Inc.
Songwriters: Benjy Davis, Kat Higgins, Ryan Larkins
Publishers: Big Music Machine; BMG Platinum Songs US; Nashblonde Music; Pompano Run Music; Songs for Ellie May; Sony / ATV Tree Publishing; Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Group; Well That Was Awkward Music
Songwriters: Ben Williams, David Fanning, Megan Moroney, Paul Jenkins
Publishers: 33 Creative; Bone Bone Creative; Sony / ATV Tree Publishing
[Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company–Label(s)]
Producers: Brad Tursi, Geoff Sprung, Matthew Ramsey, Trevor Rosen, Whit Sellers, Ross Copperman, Kristian Bush
Record Company-Label: Three Up Three Down, LLC / Columbia Nashville
Producer: Dann Huff
Record Company-Label: BMLG Records
Producer: Zach Bryan
Record Company-Label: Belting Bronco Records / Warner Records, Inc
Producer: Joey Moi
Record Company-Label: Big Loud Records / Mercury Records / Republic Records
Producers: Zach Crowell, David Ray Stevens
Record Company-Label: Stoney Creek Records / BMG Nashville
[Awarded to Producer(s)/Director(s)/Artist(s)]
Producers: Christen Pinkston &Wesley Stebbins-Perry
Director: Dustin Haney
Producer: Christen Pinkston &Wesley Stebbins-Perry
Director: Dustin Haney
Producer: Kacie Barton, Whitney Wolanin, Nicholas Robespierre, Ian Thorton, Silas House
Director: Bryan Schlam
Producer: Jamie Stratakis
Director: Running Bear (Stephen Kinigopoulos, Alexa Stone)
Producer: Lauren Starr, Saul Levitz, Laura Burhenn
Director: Jason Lester