The Academy of Country Music announced the nominees for the April 18th ceremony. My much, much, much, much beloved Lady Antebellum is up for seven awards – the most of any nominees, thank you so very much. Lady Antebellum was followed by Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood who have 6 nominations each. Taylor Swift is up for 5. I’m not sure how the Zac Brown band can’t be up for at least as many but they may just fall into the same area Montgomery Gentry and Trace Adkins always have – the fans love them to distraction and back, but the ACMAs aren’t entirely sure what to make of them. I’d walk across glass then go back and eat every piece to see any of them perform.
The entire list of nominees is below – I’ve colored my favorites red because… well, I can. I have a few ties that I just couldn’t decide between. Let me know in the comments who your favorites are.
The List of ACMA Nominees
Entertainer of the Year:
• Kenny Chesney • Toby Keith • Brad Paisley • George Strait • Taylor Swift • Carrie Underwood • Keith Urban •Zac Brown Band
Top Male Vocalist:
• Kenny Chesney • Brad Paisley • Darius Rucker • George Strait • Keith Urban
Top Female Vocalist:
• Miranda Lambert • Reba McEntire • Taylor Swift • Carrie Underwood • Lee Ann Womack
Top Vocal Group:
• Lady Antebellum • Little Big Town • Randy Rogers Band • Rascal Flatts • Zac Brown Band
• Luke Bryan • Jamey Johnson • Chris Young (nothing but love for Jamey too, though!)
Top New Vocal Duo:
• Bomshel • Joey + Rory • Steel Magnolia
Top new Vocal Group:
• Eli Young Band • Gloriana • The Lost Trailers
Album of the Year:
• American Saturday Night – Brad Paisley • Lady Antebellum – Lady Antebellum • Play On – Carrie Underwood • Revolution – Miranda Lambert • The Foundation – Zac Brown Band
Single Record:
• Need You Now – Lady Antebellum • People Are Crazy – Billy Currington • Red Light – David Nail • Toes – Zac Brown Band • White Liar – Miranda Lambert
Song:
• Cowboy Casanova – Carrie Underwood • Need You Now – Lady Antebellum • People Are Crazy – Billy Currington • White Liar – Miranda Lambert • You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift
Video:
• Boots On – Randy Houser • Need You Now – Lady Antebellum • Welcome To The Future – Brad Paisley • White Liar – Miranda Lambert • You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift
Vocal Event:
• Hillbilly Bone – Blake Shelton featuring Trace Adkins • Honky Tonk Stomp – Brooks & Dunn featuring Billy Gibbons • I Told You So – Carrie Underwood featuring Randy Travis • I’m Alive – Kenny Chesney with Dave Matthews • Seeing Stars – Jack Ingram featuring Patty Griffin
I seriously try to keep things positive – I have an inner Mary Poppins, you know. But, I have to just ask – how in the world did You Belong with Me find itself in the nominations? It’s not Taylor’s best and it certainly isn’t Country Music’s best. Oh, well, I don’t want to end on a negative note, so I’ll just say how proud I am of the ACMAs for recognizing Lady Antebellum, The Zac Brown Band, Miranda Lambert, and Hillbilly Bone.
I also want to say a big CONGRATULATIONS to Joey + Rory! As much as I love Montgomery Gentry, I wouldn’t be upset at all if they won the category. Of course… come on…. we all know who will. Not only do the ACMAs love, love, love Brooks & Dunn, they’re more likely than ever to give them the award since they announced that they’re breaking up.
Congrats to all of the nominees – just about all of them are very well-deserved. A few categories (like to new solo vocalist for example) could, literally, go any way. It’s been an outstanding year in Country Music!
There’s a little controversy surrounding Taylor Swift’s wins at that Grammy’s. There’s a little controversy surrounding Taylor Swift’s performance at the Grammy’s. There’s a little controversy surrounding the fact that there’s a little controversy.
Are there better, pure, natural singers out there? Sure. Taylor doesn’t quite own the range or perfection that the vocal gods saved for…. say, Martina McBride, Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Faith Hill or Carrie Underwood. However, lets give the young lady her dues: She writes just about all of her own material (and is a wonderful songwriter, especially considering the fact that she has only 19 years of experience to draw upon), she sings from the heart, there is nothing at all fake about her, and she has a wonderful girl-next-door quality that I hope and pray she never loses.
If you’re one of the ones who questions her dues, look at record sales. The girl is outselling everyone – how are you going to question that? Maybe, just maybe, what most of us want isn’t necessarily a perfect voice (whatever that is) or a perfect pitch (oooh, exciting). Maybe we want someone who sings the song like the song means something to them. Maybe we’re all tired of the overly-pampered, ridiculous holier-than-thou divas with their lists of demands and notebooks filled with what the world owes them. Maybe we’re totally over the trashy, good for absolutely nothing trouble makers who only amuse themselves.
Maybe we’re looking for someone who we actually like and we want to listen to.
The next time someone gets bent out of shape over Taylor Swift, I challenge them to swing around their radio dial and listen to some of the other popular artists (male and female from every genre). The bottom line is, Taylor sounds as good as any of them and better than a lot. She’s as apt to suffer jitters in live performances as anyone…. she’s 19!
Personally, I think she’s experiencing something that the Yankees, Microsoft, UK Basketball, the Lakers, and McDonald’s experience. When you’re on top, people come after you with magnifying glasses and criticism. Why not just realize that if someone’s on top, they didn’t get there by making a wish. They worked for it, they paid their dues, they have fan bases in the millions, and they earned it. Enjoy them!
Below are a few beautiful photographs of Taylor Swift from All Posters. Great pics! Talent, beauty, style… and she appears to be one of the sweetest, most down to earth entertainers as well. Who couldn’t be a fan of Taylor Swift?!?!
When I think of the name George Jones, I think of him belting out the lyrics, “I don’t need no rocking chair!….”
With all due respect, maybe he does.
He recently lashed out at two of the freshest stars in Country music, Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood. He told the Associated Press, “they’ve stolen our identity.” And, he maintains, they need to give it back and move on to another genre. “They had to use something that was established already, and that’s traditional country music. So what they need to do really, I think, is find their own title, because they’re definitely not traditional country music.”
In another recent interview, he lashed out at country radio – again, it doesn’t have what he wants to hear. He said, “It’s good to know that we still do traditional country music. Alan Jackson still does it, so does George Strait. We still have it, and there’s quite a few of us that are going to hope that it comes back one of these days.”
The best I can figure is that George Jones and others like him wanted Country Music to keep on “crying in it’s beer” while, thankfully, in reality, it has gotten up off of the stool, dried its tears, and headed out for the dance floor.
If it had stayed the way he wanted, it would make about as much sense as he does these days.
In a recent interview, Jay Z summed up what everyone else has been trying to get their minds around for weeks. When asked in an interview about his friend, Kanye West’s infamous “I’m gonna let you finish…” broo ha ha – Jay Z (who said that Kanye was like a little brother to him) said that it was rude of Kanye to do what he did. He also said that it was Taylor Swift’s moment and he shouldn’t have taken it away from her.
Jay Z pointed out that no one was harmed, no one was killed, so that it’s time to move on… Amen!
I love his quote (below):
“At the end of the day, we’re going to celebrate him for his passion more than vilify him. Because his passion is the same thing that causes him to make Graduation and all these great records… and it’s the thing that causes him to step out of line sometimes.” – Jay Z about Kanye West
For the third week in a row, Fearless by Taylor Swift is Number 1 on Billboard’s album chart with 330,000 in sales, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
In second place is A Different Me by Keyshia Cole. “A Different Me” sold 322,000 in its first week!
Jamie Foxx’s Intuition reached No. 3 with 265,000, (impressive) while Fall Out Boy’s newFolie A Deux debuted at No. 8 with 150,000.
Each of these are supposedly amazing albums. The only one I’ve listened to, so far, is Taylor’s – and it is, front to back, all it’s cracked up to be.
I’m going to pick up Keyshia’s today and I’ll grab Jamie’s and F.O.B.’s next week. I’ll let you know how great they are. I know they will be!
Elsewhere on Billboard’s chart, Britney Spears’s Circus, surprisingly, dropped two spots to No. 4 with 196,000 sales. It’s some of Britney’s best work yet. Unusual You, My Baby, Womanizer, and Circus are addictively good.
I love seeing Beyonce, Britney, and Akon back on top again. Does every song Akon touches have to be so addictive? I’m guessing yes (na na na).
My only beef with this list is, where in the world’s Kanye? Please, a top 10 without Kanye West isn’t a legit top 10 – it’s a… well, it’s a top 10 with 1 shmuck or shmuckette who jumped in his spot.
by Taylor Swift is Number 1 on Billboard’s album chart with 330,000 in sales, according to Nielsen SoundScan. 
by Keyshia Cole. “A Different Me” sold 322,000 in its first week!
reached No. 3 with 265,000, (impressive) while Fall Out Boy’s new
debuted at No. 8 with 150,000. 
, surprisingly, dropped two spots to No. 4 with 196,000 sales. It’s some of Britney’s best work yet. Unusual You, My Baby, Womanizer, and Circus are addictively good.
sits at No. 5 with 195,000 and Nickelback’s 
is at No. 6 with 194,000.
