Ella Langley and Cody Johnson dominated this year’s Academy of Country Music Awards trophy winners on Sunday night (May 17) in Las Vegas, with Johnson picking up both male artist of the year and entertainer of the year, while Langley took home the lion’s share of the accolades, with song and single of the year (for “Choosin’ Texas”), female artist of the year, artist-songwriter of the year, and musical event of the year (for the Riley Green collab “Don’t Mind If I Do”).

Parker McCollum took home album of the year, while The Red Clay Strays picked up group of the year and Brooks & Dunn won duo of the year. When it came to performances, more than a dozen performances were packed into just over two hours, highlighting both multi-ACM Award winners such as Lainey Wilson and Miranda Lambert, to newcomers including Tucker Wetmore and Carter Faith.

Held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, the stars came out to play, as the performances leaned heavily on newer song releases from artists including Kane Brown, Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town, while there were also a plethora of ballads from artists including Dan + Shay, Carter Faith, and Riley Green.

Shania Twain hosted the awards ceremony, which was streamed again on Amazon Prime Video, and highlighted both established hitmakers and rising newcomers to the stage.

Billboard ranked every performance at Sunday night’s ACM Awards, counting down to the top performance.

The American Music Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.

Harry Styles has added a fourth and final Melbourne show to his Together, Together global residency run, Live Nation announced Monday (May 18), citing extraordinary demand for tickets.

The new date — Friday, Dec. 4 at Marvel Stadium — joins three previously announced Melbourne shows in Australia, on Nov. 27, Nov. 28 and Dec. 2, making Melbourne one of only seven cities on the entire 60-plus date tour.

Sydney shows follow at Accor Stadium on Dec. 12 and 13, with Fousheé supporting across all Australian dates alongside Baby J. General tickets for the new Melbourne date go on sale Friday, May 22 at 11 a.m. AEST via hstyles.co.uk/tour, with an American Express presale running Wednesday, May 20 at 11 a.m. and a Live Nation presale Thursday, May 21 at 11 a.m.

Together, Together is one of the most ambitious touring operations of 2026, comprising more than 60 performances across Amsterdam, London, São Paulo, Mexico City, New York, Melbourne and Sydney.

Highlights of the run include 30 consecutive nights at New York’s Madison Square Garden — Styles’ only U.S. shows — and a 12-night run at London’s Wembley Stadium, which the tour claims breaks the record for the most performances by any artist at the venue in a single calendar year.

Each show features an in-the-round stage production blending new material with career highlights, with support acts varying by city — including Robyn in Amsterdam, Shania Twain at Wembley, Jorja Smith in Mexico City and Jamie xx at MSG.

Styles is one of the biggest touring acts in Billboard Boxscore history. Love On Tour grossed $617.3 million and sold more than 5 million tickets across 169 shows, making it the fifth-highest-grossing tour in Boxscore history. His first three solo albums — Harry Styles (2017), Fine Line (2019) and Harry’s House (2022) — all debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. “As It Was” spent 15 non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it the fourth-longest-running No. 1 in the chart’s history and the longest ever by a UK act.

The tour supports Styles’ fourth studio album Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally., released earlier this year and executive-produced by Kid Harpoon. The album spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, while lead single “Aperture” topped the Billboard Hot 100. Styles launched the tour with the first two of 10 Amsterdam shows at Johan Cruijff ArenA over the weekend.

The tour’s charity partner is Choose Love, with whom Styles has partnered for a decade, supporting humanitarian aid including food, shelter and education for displaced people globally.

Cody Johnson caught up with Ellie Thumann & Billboard’s Tetris Kelly at the ACM Awards 2026.

No one was surprised when Ella Langley’s “Choosin’ Texas” won single of the year or song of the year at the 2026 Academy of Country Music Awards, which were presented at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday (May 17). The superbly crafted, universally relatable song is one of the biggest country crossover hits in history. It would have been a shock if it hadn’t won.

And many pundits figured The Red Clay Strays, Brooks & Dunn and Cody Johnson would repeat their CMA Awards win from Nov. 19 as group of the year, duo of the year and male artist of the year, respectively. Indeed, they all won here as well. The only handover in the top categories was female artist of the year. Lainey Wilson won in that category at the 2025 CMA Awards for the fourth year in a row. Langley took the award at the ACM Awards.

That doesn’t mean there weren’t some snubs and surprises among the results at the ACM Awards. It wouldn’t be an awards show without ’em.

Shania Twain hosted this year’s awards show, which was held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The show streamed live via Prime Video for the fifth consecutive year.

Here are some of the biggest snubs and surprises at the 2026 ACM Awards.

The ACM Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.

Ella Langley won a record seven awards at the 2026 ACM Awards, which were presented at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday (May 17). This surpasses the old record of six wins in one year achieved by Garth Brooks in 1991, Faith Hill in 1999 and Chris Stapleton in 2016.

Langley won five awards at last year’s ACM Awards. No other artist in ACM Awards history has amassed 12 awards in just two years. The old record was held by Hill, who won 10 awards across the 1998 and 1999 ceremonies.

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(Only awards won in competition count toward the ACM’s official tallies. Another complication: Artists win two awards in some categories if they also served in other capacities, such as producer or songwriter.)

Langley won female artist of the year, breaking Lainey Wilson’s three-year hold on that award; artist-songwriter of the year; music event of the year for “Don’t Mind If I Do,” a reunion collab with Riley Green (with whom she shared the award last year for “you look like you love me”); single of the year (as both artist and producer); and song of the year (as both artist and songwriter). The latter two awards were for her crossover smash “Choosin’ Texas.”

Langley is just the fifth artist to win back-to-back awards for single of the year. She won last year for “you look like you love me,” her collab with Green. Here’s a full list of artists who have won back-to-back ACM Awards for single of the year.

Langley won female artist just one year after winning for new female artist of the year. She’s the fifth woman to step up from new female artist of the year to female artist of the year in just one year, following Crystal Gayle, K.T. Oslin, Carrie Underwood and Lainey Wilson. But note: One woman, Gretchen Wilson, won top female vocalist of the year and top new artist of the year (as the categories were known that year) the same year (2005).

Shania Twain hosted this year’s awards show, which was held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The show streamed live via Prime Video for the fifth consecutive year.

Here are other artists who set records at the 2026 ACM Awards.

The ACM Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.

The 2026 ACM Awards paused its evening of celebration for its ACM Lifting Lives segment in order to honor Ben Vaughn, the late president and CEO of Warner Chappell Nashville, who died at age 49 in January 2025, and share an important message.

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As presenter Lauren Alaina, who was the runner-up in season 10 of American Idol, shared, shared Vaughn had been an important figure in her life as well as that of performers Dan + Shay. During the emotional introduction, Alaina at one point paused to collect herself after tearing up to remind viewers that anyone who is dealing with mental health issues should know that there are people willing to listen and help however they can, and to speak out for help.

With that, she threw it to the country music duo for their performance of “Say So,” which Alaina noted was “inspired by the heartbreaking loss of Ben Vaughn.”

“If your light burns out and you’re in the dark/ If you can’t pick up the pieces/ If the world you trusted falls apart/ If your heart’s run out of reasons/ I’ll be there every time you call,” the pair sing in the emotional chorus. “Pick you up every time you fall/ If you’rе going through hell, you’re not alone/ If you need somеbody, say so.”

The track is the lead single off Dan + Shay’s upcoming album Young, which is set to arrive on Aug. 21. “Young is by far our most personal album yet, and we are beyond excited for our fans to hear it,” the duo said in a statement when announcing the album. “Every song is inspired by a true story, and gives a real-time snapshot of exactly where we are in our lives.”

ACM Lifting lives, the academy’s philanthropic partner, this year celebrates its 20th anniversary. In its two decades, it has helped fund programs for the health and well-being of those in country music. Since 2006, it has donated more than $12 million to help with everything from natural disaster recovery, illnesses and more.

If you or anyone you know is in crisis, reach out to the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988 24/7 or visiting the website for free, confidential support and resources.

The ACM Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.


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Blake Shelton led Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena in a singalong of an anthem rightly referred to by host Shania Twain as “one of the greatest songs of all time” on Sunday night (May 17) at the 2026 Academy of Country Music Awards: “The Gambler.”

Shelton, introduced by Twain as “one of our very very best, and such a beautiful man,” performed the timeless country classic as a tribute to its songwriter, Don Schlitz, who passed away in April at age 73. As the country great crooned the tried-and-true lyrics about knowing when to hold ’em and when to fold ’em, fellow genre luminaries like Chris Stapleton and Little Big Town and of course Twain could be seen in the crowd belting along.

In addition to writing “The Gambler,” Schlitz wrote a total of 16 songs that topped Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs listing, including such other all-timers as “When You Say Nothing at All” (for Keith Whitley) and “Forever and Ever, Amen” (for Randy Travis). “The Gambler” hit No. 1 on the chart in 1978 as recorded by crossover superstar Kenny Rogers, who also took the song to No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song would remain a signature tune for Rogers until his death in 2020.

Shelton is a six-time winner at the Academy of Country Music Awards, having most recently taken home single of the year for his top 20 Hot 100 hit “God’s Country” in 2019. His other wins include male vocalist of the year in 2011, and song of the year for “Over You” in 2012, as performed (and co-written) by his then-wife Miranda Lambert.


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Ella Langley spent quite a lot of time on stage at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Sunday (May 17). Aside from performing her Billboard Hot 100 No. 2 hit “Be Her” (which was kept from the top spot by her own nine-week No. 1 hit “Choosin’ Texas”), the rising country superstar nabbed five Academy of Country Music Awards at the 2026 ACM Awards, including the coveted female artist of the year ACM Award.

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Earlier in the night, while accepting song of the year, Langley said she was “at a loss for words.” When she was named the female artist of the year by presenter T.J. Osborne (who thanked the ACM Awards for inviting his “gay ass” on stage), Langley truly was unable to speak for a moment. Her eyes welling with tears, Langley sniffled and paused a moment to collect herself. “I’m trying to get to say something but I can’t,” she whispered.

“This is a weird thing to do. I was having a strange day,” she shared, admitting that awards shows sometimes lead to her having “strange days in the morning.” She found solace, however, in “the women in this category, the women in this life.” Langley continued, “I walked right into Lainey’s (Wilson) room and she hugged me. And all of a sudden, here comes Miranda Lambert in her pink hat. I would not be standing up here without the encouragement of so many women.” Langley also thanked Kelsea Ballerini, her parents, her “family, for showing up and being weird as always,” and Jesus, “for letting me do this for a living.”

The American Music Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.

Kacey Musgraves was literally “sitting on the washing machine” when she took the stage for her performance of “Dry Spell” at the 2026 ACM Awards on Sunday (May 17) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

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Drawing inspiration from her music video from the song off new album Middle of Nowhere — which arrived on March 11 — Musgraves brought the suggestiveness of the visual to the stage for her first-ever performance at the ACMs, though toned down and brightened up for the awards ceremony’s 61st edition. Rather than the oversized camo hoodie, black gym shorts, white socks and slides in the video, the country star rocked a white tank top, Daisy Dukes and strappy silver heels to deliver the first single off her latest release.

“For a late-night call, for a real good time/ Ain’t no new notches on my belt/ And I’m tired of keeping my hands to myself,” she crooned as she walked around the grocery-store set on stage. “911, it’s officially a cry for help/ Y’all, I’m going through a dry spell, yep.”

“Dry Spell” has so far reached a high of No. 55 on the Billboard Hot 100. She has so far charted eight songs on the all-genre tally.

Musgraves was not nominated for an ACM Award this year, but previously won album of the year in 2019 for her 2018 album, Golden Hour. The set debuted and peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 in 2018, and stayed on the chart for 94 weeks.

Shania Twain hosted the 2026 ACM Awards; it was her first time helming the show.

The ACM Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.


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Ella Langley could’ve easily hit the dancefloor for her victory lap at the ACM Awards on Sunday night (May 17) — but instead, she went the other direction with her performance of current crossover smash “Be Her.”

On record, the song — which reached a new No. 2 peak on the Billboard Hot 100 this week (dated May 16) — rides a double-clapping disco groove. But for the ACMs stage in Las Vegas, Langley went fully unplugged, performing the envy anthem on acoustic guitar with just another pair of backing guitarist-singers for accompaniment. The unexpectedly stripped-down and minor-sounding arrangement really brought out the hurt and yearning in the song, giving its “I just wanna be her so bad” pleas a near-“Girl Crush” level of emotional electricity.

Even before performing, Langley had been dominating the ACM Awards all evening, already being presented the trophies for song and single of the year (both for her globe-conquering smash “Choosin’ Texas”), as well as music event of the year (for “Don’t Mind If I Do” with Riley Green). Before the telecast, she had already won artist-songwriter of the year — and before the telecast was over, she also added one more statue to her haul with a W for female artist of the year.

“Be Her” is one of three hits Langley currently boasts in the top 10 of the Hot 100. While that hit climbs from No. 5-2 on the Hot 100 this week, it remains stuck behind her own “Choosin’ Texas” at No. 1 (for the ninth week total), and six spots ahead of her “I Can’t Love You Anymore” with Morgan Wallen at No. 8.


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