The Academy of Country Music Awards Are Here

Reba McEntire will host the Academy of Country Music Awards on Thursday, promising a night of memorable performances, including a tribute to Toby Keith.

When McEntire takes the stage at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, just north of Dallas, it will be the record 17th time she has hosted the show.

“I love the awards show because it’s almost like a family reunion,” she recently told the Associated Press.

This year’s nominees range from veteran artists to new talent, including the much-loved Jelly Roll. This year marks her first ACM nomination; he’s up for artist of the year, male artist of the year, single of the year (for “Need a Favor,” which won big at the CMT Music Awards last month) and musical event of the year, for “Save Me” with Lainey Wilson . The last time a musician was up for entertainer of the year in his first round of ACM award nominations was Billy Ray Cyrus in 1992.

The ACM festivities actually kicked off before Thursday’s event, when the New Artist of the Year awards were handed out at Tuesday’s ACM Country Kickoff fan festival at The Star: Megan Moroney took home New Female Artist of the Year year, Nate Smith won the men’s category and Tigirlily Gold took home the award for new duo or group.

Here’s what you need to know before the ACMs headliner begins.

The 2024 ACM Awards will stream on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch Live at 8 p.m. ET. A feed of the red carpet will be available on Prime Video, the Amazon Music Channel on Twitch, and Amazon Live at 7 p.m. ET.

Luke Combs leads the 2024 nominations with eight nominations. For the fifth year in a row, he is a candidate for male artist of the year and artist of the year.

Combs’ eight nominations include a first-time nomination for Tracy Chapman. Her cover of “Fast Car” is up for song of the year, a category that recognizes songwriters and publishers, as well as artists. Last year, Chapman’s 1988 song won song of the year at the Country Music Awards for Combs’ cover, making her the first black songwriter to win in the category.

Morgan Wallen and Moroney closely follow Combs’ nominations with six each, while Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton and Wilson are tied with five.

Jordan Davis and Jelly Roll have four nominations.

Jason Aldean will pay tribute to Keith, who passed away in February.

“I have been a fan of his since the beginning and his songs are some of the first songs I played in clubs early in my career, including the one I will perform on the show,” he said in a statement. “It means a lot to be able to honor him and properly celebrate his iconic career and legacy. He was unique.

In addition to Aldean: Kane Brown, Jelly Roll, Miranda Lambert, Thomas Rhett, Post Malone, Parker McCollum, Johnson, McEntire, Wilson and Stapleton will also perform during the broadcast.

Fans can also expect some interesting collaborations – Kelsea Ballerini with Noah Kahan; Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani and Smith with Avril Lavigne.

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Associated Press writer Gary Hamilton contributed to this report.

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For more coverage of this year’s ACM Awards, visit