ACM Awards Nominees for 2026 Announced

The Academy of Country Music has just released the list of their nominees for this year’s award

ceremony. Many notable things about this list are sure to make this year’s ceremony a monumental and iconic one. With many great albums and singles released over the past few months, competition is certain to be prevalent throughout the night. The biggest category, Entertainer of the Year, will be a hard-fought battle amongst Luke Combs, Jelly Roll, Cody Johnson, Megan Moroney, Chris Stapleton, Morgan Wallen, and Lainey Wilson.

Amber Asaly

One of the most notable things about this list is that women are leading the ballot. Megan Moroney has the most nominations this year with nine total, followed by Miranda Lambert with eight, and Ella Langley and Lainey Wilson with seven. They have placements in notable categories like Female Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, Single of the Year, Music Event of the Year, Visual Media of the Year, Artist-Songwriter of the Year, and more.

This will also be Miranda Lambert’s most nominated year since 2015 upon the release of her album, Platinum, and she will receive her seventeenth nomination for Female Artist of the Year. She has won that category nine times, all consecutively from 2010 to 2018. Reba McEntire will also receive her first nomination since 2021, when she was nominated for Music Event of the Year for “Be a Light.” She will be nominated for the same category this year for her song “Trailblazer” alongside Miranda Lambert and Lainey Wilson.

Chris Stapleton will be the most-nominated male artist this year, with six nominations. He will receive his seventh nomination for Entertainer of the Year (he has won once) and his tenth consecutive nomination for Male Artist of the Year (he has won four times). Other male artists, Zach Top, Cody Johnson, Riley Green, and Luke Combs, have also received notable nominations and will face off against Stapleton in the category for Male Artist of the Year.

Courtesy of Academy of Country Music Awards

Rascal Flatts, Old Dominion, and Brothers Osborne will also continue their longstanding run of nominations for Duo of the Year or Group of the Year. The ceremony will feature first-time nominations for 49 Winchester, Avery Anna, Mackenzie Carpenter, Carter Faith, Caroline Jones, Vincent Mason, Emily Ann Roberts, Thelma & James, Hudson Westbrook, and Stephen Wilson Jr.

Tune in on May 17th to see who will take home an ACM Award in a night full of achievement for country music.