Hosted by Reba McEntire, the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards just wrapped in Frisco, Texas.
While many artists have been nominated for some exciting awards, only seven were in the running for the coveted Entertainer of the Year award.
Kane Brown
This isn’t the Tennessee-native’s first rodeo. Kane Brown has been nominated for fifteen ACM awards during his career in country music, and his song “Worldwide Beautiful” earned him the Video of the Year award in 2021.
Luke Combs
Being nominated for Entertainer of the Year is a big deal for any artist, but for Luke Combs and Lainey Wilson, this award could mean so much more. The 34-year-old is in the running for the Triple Crown Award. This award is given to any artist who wins Entertainer of the Year, New Artist of the Year(Male, Female, Duo or Group), and Artist of the Year (Male, Female, Duo or Group). Luke Combs leads the nominees this year with eight nominations.
Jelly Roll
Jelly Roll is celebrating his first year being nominated for an ACM Award, starting out strong with four nominations. This is the first time an artist went from zero nominations to an Entertainer of the Year nomination since Billy Ray Cyrus did it in 1992.
“The Entertainer of the Year [nomination], that’s crazy talk… I just couldn’t wrap my head around being nominated four times,” Jelly Roll shared in an interview with Audacy’s Katie Neal. “Before I even seen what the four noms were, I seen the stat that it was the first time someone went from zero nominations to EOTY nomination since Billy Ray Cyrus in 1993.”
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Cody Johnson
The “Dirt Cheap” singer has been nominated for ten ACM Awards in his career, but has yet to win an ACM Award. This year, Cody Johnson has earned five of those nominations; Male Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Visual Media of the Year, and Entertainer of the Year.
Chris Stapleton
Chris Stapleton has earned thirteen ACM wins over the years, and a whopping 36 nominations. Winning six of those awards in one year, Stapleton tied Garth Brooks and Faith Hill for the most ACM awards won in a single year. The “Tennessee Whiskey” singer has been nominated for Entertainer of the Year six times, and has won one time.
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Morgan Wallen
Tied with Luke Combs for nominations in the most categories, Morgan Wallen has been nominated for six awards this year. Among those nominations is Single of the Year for his hit song “Last Night” which spent 16 weeks at the top of the Hot 100 chart earning the title of the longest-running #1 solo song in Hot 100 history.
Lainey Wilson
Lainey Wilson is the reigning Female Artist of the Year. She has five nominations in four categories this year, and is the only female nominated for Entertainer of the Year, a title she currently holds for the Country Music Association. Alongside Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson is also eligible for the Triple Crown Award.
The winner of the 2024 ACM Awards Entertainer of the Year is…. Lainey Wilson!
This win means Lainey Wilson is now a Triple Crown winner!
“I remember being a little girl, and I would climb out on the top of our roof…and I would count all the stars, and I would look up and I would see the planes flying over my little town of 200 people. And I’d dream about being up there in one of those planes…The funny thing is, I still feel like that little girl…I still climb out on the roof, and I look at the stars, except I feel like I’m a little more eye-level with ’em now,” Lainey shared after accepting her award from legendary country group Alabama.