This year’s CMA Awards were marked by powerful female artist wins, as well as several first-time wins and a changing of the guard in certain categories.
Lainey Wilson earned her second entertainer of the year win (she previously won in 2023), as well as her fourth consecutive female vocalist of the year win, and her second album of the year win (this year for Whirlwind). Ella Langley‘s collaboration with Riley Green, “You Look Like You Love Me,” was named both single and song of the year.
Zach Top earned his first CMA Award win for new artist of the year, while the longtime winning streaks of both Chris Stapleton and Old Dominion shifted. The male vocalist of the year honor, held by Stapleton for the past four years (he’s won the category eight total times), went to first-time category winner Cody Johnson. Old Dominion’s seven-year winning streak in the vocal group of the year category was upended by newcomers The Red Clay Strays, who picked up their first CMA Award win. In the musician of the year category, celebrated steel guitarist Paul Franklin took home musician of the year for the first time, with 33 total nominations in the category, with his first nomination occurring in 1989.
As heartfelt and illustrious as many of this year’s awards-winning moments were, the evening’s performances were equally inspired, from Miranda Lambert and Chris Stapleton’s groovy, sultry collaboration, to Shaboozey teaming with Stephen Wilson Jr.
The evening also featured its share of medleys, as Kenny Chesney and Old Dominion both leaned on older hits for their performances, as Old Dominion celebrates a decade of hits, while Kenny Chesney is a newly-minted Country Music Hall of Fame inductee.
The evening was filled with electrifying performances, and here, Billboard counts down the night’s top performances.
Many of the awards presented at the 2025 CMA Awards, which went down at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Wednesday (Nov. 19), went just about as expected. Did anyone seriously think that Lainey Wilson wasn’t going to win her fourth consecutive award for female artist of the year?
And no one could have been too surprised that Brooks & Dunn took vocal duo of the year for the 16th time. Kix Brooks & Ronnie Dunn first set the record as the duo with the most wins in the category in 1999 when they won for the eighth time.
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But that doesn’t mean there weren’t any surprises at the 59th annualCMA Awards, which were broadcast on ABC for the 20th consecutive year. Just ask Old Dominion, which came up short in the voting for vocal group of the year, a category they won the last seven years running – the longest consecutive winning streak in the category’s history. Or Chris Stapleton, who lost male vocalist of the year for only the third time in the past 11 years. (He lost in 2019 and 2020 to Luke Combs.)
Wilson hosted the show, having co-hosted last year with Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning. She’s only the third woman to solo-host the show, following Dolly Parton (1988) and Reba McEntire (1991).
The awards are voted on by the 7,132 voting-eligible professional members of the Country Music Association, which include industry professionals, recording artists, songwriters, producers and musicians.
Here are some of the most notable snubs and surprises at the 2025 CMA Awards.
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Punk rock and EDM ruled at the 2025 ARIA Awards, presented Wednesday (Nov. 19) in Sydney, as Amyl and The Sniffers, Ninajirachi and Dom Dolla won big.
With four pointy trophies, Amyl and The Sniffers lauded over the 39th annual awards, including best group, best rock album, and the coveted album of the year, for Cartoon Darkness, their third studio LP.
If Amy Taylor and Co. were the best-kept secret in pub rock for the past several years, the secret is out. The foursome has emerged as darlings of the international festival circuit, they’ve collected Grammy and Brit Award nominations this year, and they’re opening for AC/DC on the Rock Hall heavyweights’ ongoing stadium tour of Australia.
Taylor always leaves an impression. On winning the ARIA for best cover art, awarded prior to the telecast, the band’s force-of-nature singer Amy Taylor quipped, “I know you just like it because I was flashing my titties.”
On collecting album of the year late in proceedings, Taylor quipped, “as the new prime minister of Australia, I’d like to say: all immigrants welcome. I’d like to say: land back, the dole’s going up and every pub gets a million dollars.” The album, she added, had “changed all of our lives.”
Ninajirachi, the rising “girl EDM” star, entered the ARIAs with a leading eight nominations, and is coming off a gold rush, snagging the Australian Music Prize and triple j’s J Award for her debut full-length album, I Love My Computer. The Hordern Pavilion proved to be another happy hunting ground for Ninajirachi (real name: Nina Wilson), as the electronic music artist, singer, songwriter and producer collected her first ARIAs, for best solo artist, the Michael Gudinski breakthrough artist and best independent release.
Dom Dolla was a winner before the ARIAs got underway. The high-flying Australian electronic music producer and DJ was announced Monday (Nov. 17) as the inaugural global impact recipient, which he collected during the early phases of the ARIAs. Dom, who entered these ARIAs with seven nominations, doubled up with the award for best dance/electronic release, marking his third consecutive win in that category.
Kevin Parker added a brace of ARIAs, nabbing engineer – best engineered release, and producer – best produced release, for his work on the latest Tame Impala collection, Deadbeat. In a taped acceptance speech, Parker revealed that the engineering stage was “probably the thing I spend the longest on when making music.” On scoring the producer trophy, he remarked, “there’s some amazing minds” in the music community. “It’s getting harder and harder to keep up with what’s going on in Australia.”
Other winners included Troye Sivan (best Australian live act), Taylor Swift (most popular international artist), BOY SODA (best soul/R&B), BARKAA (best hip-hop/rap release), Thornhill (best hard rock/heavy metal album), and the Teskey Brothers, who collected a fourth best blues & roots album trophy, a record for that category.
Thelma Plum performed “Nobody’s Baby” from her second album I’m Sorry, Now Say It Back and made a second trip to the stage to collect best pop release, presented by Tyra Banks, the American supermodel and television personality who now calls Sydney home. “I can’t believe Tyra Banks just gave me an ARIA,” Plum remarked. “This feels like a fever dream.”
After shifting roughly 200,000 tickets on its latest national jaunt, the beloved Laneway Festival was confirmed as Australia’s favorite fest by scooping the inaugural best music festival award, introduced this year to recognize and celebrate the critical role Australian music festivals play in the music ecosystem.
Performers at the ARIAs, the Australian recorded music industry’s flagship event, included Olivia Dean, Keli Holiday, Thelma Plum, Missy Higgins, and alternative rock heroes You Am I, who were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame and had the final word on the night with a two-song performance of “Heavy Heart” and “Berlin Chair.” The nation’s prime minister Anthony Albanese paid tribute to the band in a video package, pointing out that, “along the way, you’ve added to who we are.”
Sponsored by Spotify, the ARIA Awards streamed live across Paramount+, followed by a special presentation on the free-to-air network 10 with performances and moments available on the trade body’s social channels.
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Some artists didn’t just win at the 59th annual CMA Awards, which were held on Wednesday (Nov. 19) at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. They made history.
Of course, acts have been making history at the CMA Awards for years.
In 1971, Charley Pride became the first (and is still the only) Black artist to win entertainer of the year. The following year, Loretta Lynn became the first woman to win the award.
In 2016, Garth Brooks became the first person to win entertainer of the year five times. He won two more times before he graciously removed himself from further consideration for the award.
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In 2014, Miranda Lambert became the first woman to win female vocalist of the year five times. In 2022, Chris Stapleton became the first man to win male vocalist of the year six times. (Both artists have since added more wins to their tallies.)
In 1984, The Statler Brothers became the first group to win vocal group of the year nine times. (That’s still the record in that category.) In 1999, Brooks & Dunn became the first duo to win vocal duo of the year eight times. They are still the leaders in that category, though their win tally in the category currently stands at 16.
In 2008, with Troubadour, George Strait became the first artist to win album of the year five times. In 2024, with “White Horse,” Stapleton became the first artist to win single of the year three times. Both of these records still stand.
That’s enough looking back. Here are six artists who made CMA history this year.
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Rapper-turned-country hitmaker BigXthaPlug and longtime genre superstar Luke Combs rocked the CMA Awards together on Wednesday night (Nov. 19) with the live TV debut of their teamup “Pray Hard.”
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Introduced by host Lainey Wilson (who called Combs her “camper trailer buddy”), the pair lit up the Bridgestone Arena stage in a semi-literal sense with their rousing rendition of the anthemic I Hope You’re Happy track, as flames licked the back of the stage, shooting up during Combs’ soaring chorus. At times, the pair perhaps even got a little too animated, as entire seconds of the performance were bleeped out on the broadcast, with the offending words being unclear.
It was the second performance of the night for Combs, who also kicked off the evening with a rendition of his Country Airplay chart-topping current hit “Back in the Saddle.” Combs was a three-time nominee on the evening, but went home empty-handed, as he lost male vocalist of the year to Cody Johnson and single of the year (for “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma”) to Ella Langley’s Riley Green-featuring “You Look Like You Love Me” — and shortly after his and BigX’s performance, Lainey Wilson denied him a third career entertainer of the year with her own second win of the coveted award.
BigXthaPlug is still relatively new to country music, with Happy marking his first full-length foray into the genre. “All the Way,” his teamup with country star Bailey Zimmerman, peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 earlier this year, a career-best showing for both artists.
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With country legend Vince Gill taking home the prestigious Willie Nelson lifetime achievement award at the 2025 CMA Awards on Wednesday (Nov. 19), it’s only fitting that a who’s who of country stars would show him their love.
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First up, Americana star Brandi Carlile gave a plaintive rendition of Gill’s “When I Call Your Name.” Dressed in simple yet sleek maroon suit and tie, Brandi kept her eyes trained on Gill as she belted out his moving ballad. Soon, she was joined on stage to turn the song into a rare duet with country star Patty Loveless for a moving final beat.
Once the pair stepped off the stage, the King of Country himself, George Strait, stepped up to offer a tribute of his own to Gill. Instead of singing, though, Strait gave a speech celebrating Gill’s pioneering work in the country industry. “There’s not a lot more to say about this man that hasn’t been said, or that you don’t already know,” Strait offered. “But his guitar playing is amazing, his songwriting is amazing, his singing is amazing, he can sing higher than anyone I know … there’s not a more deserving person to receive this great honor.”
For his part, Gill thanked Carlile and Loveless for their tribute, joking that “it’s not lost on me that they had to have girls come out here and sing for me tonight — none of the boys can get up that high.” He also took the moment to revel in being honored with a lifetime achievement award that very few other artists have received.
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“I think this has been give to nine or 10 people, and that list is astounding,” he said. “The man whose name is on this is a long, long friend. Fifty years we’ve known each other, shared stages and all that. I adore him.”
Lainey Wilson, along with serving as host during the ceremony, earned six nominations at the awards — the most of any artist in 2025, alongside fellow nominees Ella Langley and Megan Moroney. Meanwhile, stars including Luke Combs, Shaboozey, Brandi Carlile, Kelsea Ballerini and more took to the stage for their own performances.
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WINNER: “You Look Like You Love Me”; Songwriters: Riley Green, Ella Langley, Aaron Raitiere
Female Vocalist of the Year
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Ella Langley
Megan Moroney
WINNER: Lainey Wilson
Male Vocalist of the Year
Luke Combs
WINNER: Cody Johnson
Chris Stapleton
Zach Top
Morgan Wallen
Vocal Group of the Year
Lady A
Little Big Town
Old Dominion
Rascal Flatts
WINNER: The Red Clay Strays
Vocal Duo of the Year
WINNER: Brooks & Dunn
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Maddie & Tae
The War And Treaty
Musical Event of the Year
Award goes to Artists and Producer(s)
“Don’t Mind If I Do” – Riley Green (featuring Ella Langley); Producers: Scott Borchetta, Jimmy Harnen, Dann Huff
“Hard Fought Hallelujah” – Brandon Lake with Jelly Roll; Producer: Micah Nichols
“I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood); Producer: Trent Willmon
WINNER: “Pour Me a Drink” – Post Malone (feat. Blake Shelton); Producers: Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome
“You Had To Be There” – Megan Moroney (feat. Kenny Chesney); Producer: Kristian Bush
Musician of the Year
Jenee Fleenor – Fiddle
WINNER: Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
Brent Mason – Guitar
Rob McNelley – Guitar
Derek Wells – Guitar
Music Video of the Year
Award goes to Artist(s) and Director(s)
“Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney; Directors: Alexandra Gavillet, Megan Moroney
“I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood); Director: Dustin Haney
“Somewhere Over Laredo” – Lainey Wilson; Director: TK McKamy
“Think I’m In Love With You” – Chris Stapleton; Director: Running Bear
WINNER: “You Look Like You Love Me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green; Directors: Ella Langley, John Park, Wales Toney
New Artist of the Year
Ella Langley
Shaboozey
WINNER: Zach Top
Tucker Wetmore
Stephen Wilson Jr.
2025 CMA Broadcast Awards
CMA Broadcast Awards winners will be determined by a final round of judging this month. Entries are judged by a panel of broadcast professionals, representing all market sizes and regions. The winners were revealed on Tuesday Oct. 7. Recipients will be celebrated at the CMA Awards.
Broadcast Personality of the Year (by market size):
Weekly National
WINNER: “Country Countdown USA with Lon Helton” (Lon Helton) – LH Productions
“The Country Top 40 With Fitz” (Cory “Fitz” Fitzner) – Hubbard Broadcasting
“The Original Country Gold” (Rowdy Yates) – Syndicated Media
“Today’s Country Radio” (Kelleigh Bannen) – Apple Music Radio
“Y’all Access with Kelly Sutton” (Kelly Sutton) – Compass Media Group
Daily National
“Big D & Bubba” (“Big D” Derek Haskins, “Bubba” Sean Powell, Carsen Humphreville, Jonathan Shaffer, and Garrett Freche) – Silverfish Media
“Highway Mornings With Cody Alan” (Cody Alan and Lauryn Snapp) – SiriusXM
“Ridin’ With Rowdy” (Rowdy Yates) – SuiteRadio / RFC Media
WINNER: “The Rob and Holly Show” (Rob Stone and Holly Hutton) – Audacy
“Wilhite and Wall Show” (Darren Wilhite and Tim Wall) – Ebert Productions
Major Market
WINNER: “Chris Carr & Company” (Chris Carr, Sam Sansevere, and “Dubs” Michael Wilczynski) – KEEY, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
“Hawkeye and Michelle” (“Hawkeye” Mark Louis Rybczyk and Michelle Rodriguez) – KSCS, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
“The Lo Show” (Lauren “Lo” Barker) – KKBQ, Houston
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