February 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

Big Machine Label GroupBrett Young may be known for heartstring-tugging ballads like “In Case You Didn’t Know” and “Lady,” but the singer proves he’s equally adept at writing uptempo earworms with his brand new “You Got Away With It.”

Full of twang and catchy, lovestruck lyrics, “You Got Away With It” is a flirty ode to finding romance in unexpected places. Brett co-wrote the tune, and he says it’s the first taste of a new musical chapter he can’t wait to share.

“We’ve been recording a ton of music over the last year and I couldn’t wait any longer to share some of the material from this new chapter,” the singer says. “This song was a blast to write, and ultimately pushed me into a bit of a new sonic territory in the studio that I’m really proud of.”

Brett has long mined his personal life for musical inspiration, and “You Got Away With It” is no exception: The song speaks to the singer’s relationship with his wife, Taylor. The country star couple recently announced that they’re expecting their second child this summer.

Meanwhile, their first daughter, Presley, celebrated her first birthday last October. Presley and Taylor are the inspiration behind Brett’s latest chart-topper, “Lady,” which recently notched RIAA gold certification in the U.S. and Canada.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

February 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

ABC/Image Group LAFor her contribution to Amazon Orginal’s slate of Black History Month content, Mickey Guyton opted to record her spin on pop superstar Beyonce’s 2008 hit, “If I Were a Boy.”

Mickey says that the song’s meaning to her is especially personal, and has changed over the course of her fight to be recognized in the country music industry.

“It was important for me to record ‘If I Were a Boy’ because I have been fighting in country music for so long just to be accepted for who I am,” Mickey explains. “This song represents the release and the birth of something new. Really this song means so much more to me, and has a completely different meaning, than when I first heard it.”

To create the single art for her cover performance, Mickey enlisted Jamilla Okubo, who she discovered through Instagram. “When people see the cover art for my version of ‘If I Were a Boy,’ I really hope that people don’t see me, but that they see themselves,” the singer notes.

As she releases her new song, Mickey has more than one reason to celebrate: She’s nominated for New Female Artist of the Year at the upcoming 2021 ACM Awards. During last year’s awards show, Mickey became the first solo Black female artist to perform on the ACMs stage, with her powerful “What Are You Gonna Tell Her?“

This year, Mickey is one of four Black artists to be nominated, a record for the ACMs. Also up for awards at the ceremony are Kane Brown, Jimmie Allen and John Legend. Additionally, director Gabrielle Woodland is nominated for Video of the Year, for her work on Maren Morris’ “Better Than We Found It.”

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

February 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

ABCWhen the nominations were announced for the 2021 ACM Awards on Friday, one name was glaringly absent from the list: Carrie Underwood.

While Carrie did score a mention for Video of the Year for “Hallelujah,” her duet with John Legend, it was a big surprise not to see her name in the big-ticket, end-of-night categories. She’s typically in the running for either Entertainer of the Year or Female Artist of the Year, but for the 2021 ceremony, she’s been shut out of both

Carrie has been nominated for either Entertainer of the Year or Female Artist of the Year every single year since 2006. 2021 is the first time in 15 years that Carrie has not scored a mention in either of those categories.

Carrie is the reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year, having won the award in a tie with Thomas Rhett in 2020. She previously won that award in 2010 and 2009. 2009 was Carrie’s biggest year: She took home the Entertainer of the Year trophy as well as winning Female Vocalist of the Year.

While that was the only year that she won both awards, Carrie enjoyed a winning streak from 2007-2010, taking home at least one of the major trophies each year during that stint.

There are no women in the Entertainer of the Year category for the upcoming awards show: The nominees are Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett and Chris Stapleton.

However, the nominees list does include a milestone for female artists in its Single of the Year category: For the first time in history, every nominee features a female artist.

Carrie’s latest country single, “Drinking Alone,” peaked just outside the Top 10 on Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart last May.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

February 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

Courtesy of the Academy of Country MusicMaren Morris and Chris Stapleton both cleaned up when the nominees for the 56th annual ACM Awards were announced on Friday morning, racking up six mentions apiece. That ties the two stars for most-nominated at this year’s ceremony.

In addition to being nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year for the fifth time, Maren also scored mentions for her songs “The Bones” and “Better Than We Found It,” the latter song earning her her first-ever Video of the Year nomination. Maren is also up for Group of the Year as a member of her band The Highwomen.

Meanwhile, Chris earned nominations in both the Male Artist of the Year and the Entertainer of the Year categories, as well as an Album of the Year mention for his newest release, Starting Over. The title track of that record also notched Song of the Year nods for Chris as both a performer and a songwriter.

Miranda Lambert followed close on both acts’ heels with five nominations this year. She remains the most-nominated artist in ACM history, extending her streak with 68 career nominations.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

February 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

Academy of Country MusicKelsea Ballerini and Brothers Osborne revealed the first nominees for the 56th ACM Awards Friday on CBS This Morning. Here are the contenders for the annual show, with airs Sunday, April 18 at 8 p.m. ET, live from Nashville on CBS: 

New Female Artist of the Year
Ingrid Andress
Tenille Arts
Gabby Barrett
Mickey Guyton
Caylee Hammack

New Male Artist of the Year
Jimmie Allen
Travis Denning
HARDY
Cody Johnson
Parker McCollum

Songwriter of the Year
Ashley Gorley
Michael Hardy
Hillary Lindsey
Shane McAnally
Josh Osborne

Video of the Year
“Better Than We Found It” — Maren Morris
“Bluebird” — Miranda Lambert
“Gone” — Dierks Bentley
“Hallelujah” — Carrie Underwood and John Legend
“Worldwide Beautiful” — Kane Brown 

Music Event of the Year
“Be a Light” — Thomas Rhett featuring Reba McEntire, Hillary Scott, Chris Tomlin, and Keith Urban
“Does to Me” — Luke Combs featuring Eric Church
“I Hope You’re Happy Now” — Carly Pearce and Lee Brice
“Nobody But You” — Blake Shelton featuring Gwen Stefani
“One Beer” — HARDY featuring Lauren Alaina and Devin Dawson
“One Too Many” — Keith Urban and P!nk

Group of the Year
Lady A
Little Big Town
Old Dominion
The Cadillac Three
The Highwomen

Duo of the Year
Brooks and Dunn
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Florida Georgia Line
Maddie and Tae

Female Artist of the Year
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Ashley McBryde
Maren Morris
Carly Pearce

Male Artist of the Year
Dierks Bentley
Eric Church
Luke Combs
Thomas Rhett
Chris Stapleton

Single of the Year
“Bluebird” — Miranda Lambert
“I Hope” — Gabby Barrett
“I Hope You’re Happy Now” — Carly Pearce and Lee Brice
“More Hearts Than Mine” — Ingrid Andress
“The Bones” — Maren Morris

Song of the Year
“Bluebird” — Miranda Lambert
“One Night Standards” — Ashley McBryde
“Some People Do” — Old Dominion
“Starting Over” — Chris Stapleton
“The Bones” — Maren Morris

Album of the Year
Born Here Live Here Die Here — Luke Bryan
Mixtape Vol. 1 — Kane Brown
Never Will — Ashley McBryde
Skeletons — Brothers Osborne
Starting Over — Chris Stapleton

Entertainer of the Year
Luke Bryan
Eric Church
Luke Combs
Thomas Rhett
Chris Stapleton

By Stephen Hubbard
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.