Since 1965, The Academy of Country Music has honored the incredible accomplishments of our treasured artists every year, and on May 11th, the tradition continues. We want to share with you everything you'll need to know about this year's epic event, and a little trivia you might not know..
Firstly, did you know that the ACMs was initially founded to bring recognition to the amazing country music artists from the western states? We owe much to the Bakersfield sound, and honky tonk music from the Texahoma area and bordering states. It should come as no surprise that one of our favorite sons from Bakersfield was one of the very first to be honored with ACM gold!
Of course, I am talking about Merle Haggard, who won the first ACM Male Vocalist of the Year Award in 1965.
The previous year in 1964, Merle had earned his first top ten Billboard hit with My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers. It was a song written by Lynn Anderson's momma Liz, who coincidentally wrote some of Merle's biggest hits.
Moving forward to 1975, The ACM's made history when they awarded the Entertainer of the Year Award to Miss Loretta.
Loretta made history as she was the first woman to win the award. 1975 was quite a year for The Coal Miner's Daughter as she had the dubious honor of being banned on 60 radio stations for her song "The Pill". The controversy catapulted the infamous song to Loretta's highest charting pop hit, and it went to number one in Canada.
Our last piece of trivia is more of an acknowledgment on how The Academy of Country Music is positively impacting the world. Through their philanthropic arm ACM Lifting Lives have financially supported music therapy for veterans, as well as Children's Hospitals, and a variety of other programs to aid in the overall wellness of patients.
ACM Lifting Lives has donated over 10 million dollars to 150+ charities since 2006. They also provided over 3 million in aid during the COVID19 pandemic. Country music is a community, and we encourage our readers to support wellness through music by partnering with The Academy of Country Music's Lifting Lives initiative here.
So here are all the deets on the 58th ACM Country Music Awards! The show will be held on Thursday, May 11th, 2023 in Frisco, Texas. You can see the live show at the Star in the Ford Center, which is at 9 Cowboy Way. As of this posting there were still tickets available. Parking is free, but you should become familiar with the facility's bag policy. The Omni Frisco Hotel is next door to The Star, but if you are looking for something not so pricey, The Hampton Inn is a good alternative.
If you can't make it to the event this year, you can watch it live, and for free on Amazon Prime, and on Amazon's Music Channel on Twitch at 6:00 PM (CST).
The incomparable Dolly Parton, and Garth Brooks will be hosting this year.
Here are the top categories and our picks. We did update the Male Artist pick because we really think Morgan should win one this year.
Check back to see how we did!
Entertainer Of The Year | Miranda Lambert | Actual Winner | Chris Stapelton | |
Female Artist Of The Year | Lainey Wilson | Actual Winner | Lainey Wilson | |
Male Vocalist Of The Year | Morgan Wallen | Actual Winner | Morgan Wallen | |
Duo Of The Year | Brothers Osbourne | Actual Winner | Brothers Osborne | |
Group Of The Year | Old Dominion | Actual Winner | Old Dominion | |
New Female Artist Of The Year | Megan Moroney | Actual Winner | Hailey Whitters | |
New Male Vocalist Of The Year | Bailey Zimmerman | Actual Winner | Zachlane Bryan | |
Album Of The Year | Miranda Lambert | Actual Winner | Lainey Wilson | |
Single Of The Year | Carly & Ashley | Actual Winner | Cole Swindell | |
Song Of The Year | Hardy & Lainey | Actual Winner | Cole Swindell | |
Music Event Of The Year | Kane & Katelyn | Actual Winner | Hardy & Lainey | |
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Don't forget to follow the action on Twitter by using #acmawards to live tweet during the show. Good luck to all!
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