The 59th Annual CMA Awards nominations have been announced. Relative newcomers dominated, with Ella Langley and Megan Moroney joining Lainey Wilson with the most nominations, with six apiece. Zach Top was close behind with five. Riley Green and Cody Johnson nabbed four nominations each, while Luke Combs, Chris Stapleton and Morgan Wallen, among others, each earned three nods. The awards show will broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena at 8:00pm local time on November 19 on ABC, streaming the next day on Hulu.  See the complete list of nominations below:

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

• Luke Combs
• Cody Johnson
• Chris Stapleton
• Morgan Wallen
• Lainey Wilson

SINGLE OF THE YEAR

• “4x4xU” – Lainey Wilson
• “Ain’t No Love In Oklahoma” – Luke Combs
• “Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
• “I Never Lie” – Zach Top
• “you look like you love me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

• Am I Okay? – Megan Moroney
• Cold Beer & Country Music – Zach Top
• F-1 Trillion – Post Malone
• I’m The Problem – Morgan Wallen
• Whirlwind – Lainey Wilson

SONG OF THE YEAR

• “4x4xU” – Lainey Wilson
• “Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
• “I Never Lie” – Zach Top
• “Texas” – Blake Shelton
• “you look like you love me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

• Kelsea Ballerini
• Miranda Lambert
• Ella Langley
• Megan Moroney
• Lainey Wilson

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

• Luke Combs
• Cody Johnson
• Chris Stapleton
• Zach Top
• Morgan Wallen

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR

• Lady A
• Little Big Town
• Old Dominion
• Rascal Flatts
• The Red Clay Strays

VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR

• Brooks & Dunn
• Brothers Osborne
• Dan + Shay
• Maddie & Tae
• The War And Treaty

MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR

• “Don’t Mind If I Do” – Riley Green (featuring Ella Langley)
• “Hard Fought Hallelujah” – Brandon Lake with Jelly Roll
• “I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
• “Pour Me A Drink” – Post Malone (feat. Blake Shelton)
• “You Had To Be There” – Megan Moroney (feat. Kenny Chesney)

MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR

• Jenee Fleenor – Fiddle
• Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
• Brent Mason – Guitar
• Rob McNelley – Guitar
• Derek Wells – Guitar

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR

• “Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
• “I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
• “Somewhere Over Laredo” – Lainey Wilson
• “Think I’m In Love With You” – Chris Stapleton
• “you look like you love me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR

• Ella Langley
• Shaboozey
• Zach Top
• Tucker Wetmore
• Stephen Wilson Jr.

Morgan Wallen accidentally hit Toronto Blue Jays legend Jose Bautista‘s wife with a baseball bat during his concert walkout on Friday. Wallen was trying to recreate Bautista’s iconic 2015 bat flip when he walked out with the former MLB star at Rogers Centre. After swinging the bat, Wallen tossed it and it accidentally struck Bautista’s wife Neisha, who was filming nearby. She laughed it off and confirmed she was fine, posting the video on Instagram with laughing emojis. The incident drew comparisons to Wallen’s previous legal troubles for throwing a chair from a Nashville rooftop. Despite the mishap, the concert continued without problems, and Wallen even wore a Roy Halladay jersey during the show as tribute to the late Blue Jays pitcher.

We know that Lainey Wilson made her acting debut on season 5 of “Yellowstone,” but she’s not stopping there! “I’m honestly getting pitched things right and left, which is cool,” she revealed. “Opportunities where I am a musician, opportunities where I’m not, opportunities just to write for shows.” The country singer admitted that she’s currently “entertaining a lot of things” as her options are “kinda endless at this point.” Nothing’s set in stone just yet, but we do already know that she’s making her feature film debut in the upcoming adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s “Reminders of Him.”

Lainey Wilson is being honored with corn mazes at 36 family farms across 25 states and Canada this fall. The tribute comes as she currently holds the CMA Entertainer of the Year award. The corn maze campaign invites guests to “get lost with Lainey” and continues a tradition that previously honored Reba McEntire in 2023 and Luke Bryan in 2024. Wilson, who grew up on a fifth-generation farm in Louisiana, said she was excited about the honor, saying she was “blessed to be raised playing in the dirt, riding in the tractor, and helping my daddy grow corn.” The mazes feature interactive games testing visitors’ knowledge about Wilson, life-sized photo opportunities, her music playing throughout, and recorded audio messages. Visitors can enter to win a grand prize trip to see Wilson perform at the National Finals Rodeo in December, plus individual farm winners will receive autographed copies of her “Whirlwind Deluxe” album.

• Today in 1954, Elvis Presley made his debut at the Grand Ole Opry. It was the only time he ever performed there.
• Today in 1961, the single, “I Fall To Pieces,” by Patsy Cline peaked at #12 on the pop singles chart.
• Today in 1973, Charlie Rich’s single, “Behind Closed Doors,” was certified gold.
• Today in 1981, the album, “Saddle Tramp,” by Charlie Daniels Band was certified gold.
• Today in 1981, George Strait’s album, “Strait Country,” was released.
• Today in 1984, John Anderson’s “Greatest Hits” album arrived in stores.
• Today in 1990, the “Rumor Has It” album by Reba McEntire was released.
• Today in 1991, Dottie West died at the age of 58 as a result of injuries she sustained five days earlier in a car accident. As the first female country GRAMMY winner, Dottie was considered by many as a trailblazer for female country performers.
• Today in 1998, Jo Dee Messina was certified for the first time, scoring a gold album for “I’m Alright” and a gold single for the double-sided hit “I’m Alright” and “Bye Bye.”
• Today in 2001, Jeff Carson’s album, “Real Life,” and Hal Ketchum’s “Lucky Man” project arrived in stores.
• Today in 2001, Trace Adkins and his wife, Rhonda, welcomed their second child, Brianna Rhea. The newest addition to the family joined the couple’s other daughter, Mackenzie and Trace’s two teenage daughters (from his previous marriage). Here’s a piece of fun trivia for you: while Brianna Rhea weighed in at 6-lbs, 6-oz at birth – ironically, her daddy is 6′, 6″ tall.
• Today in 2002, the Dixie Chicks’ album, “Home,” debuted at #1 on the multi-genre Billboard 200 chart and the “Billboard” Country Albums charts with the highest first full week’s sales of any female group in the SoundScan era. In fact, fans snapped up 779,828 copies of “Home” in its first week of release. The accomplishment also set the record for the highest first week sales for any female country artist and any country group. In case you were wondering, the previous record holder was the Chicks themselves. They previously held the title in both categories.
• Today in 2008, Trace Adkins performed the national anthem at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, where John McCain accepted the presidential nomination during the Republican National Convention.
• Today in 2012, Gary Allan’s single, “Every Storm (Runs Out Of Rain),” was released.
• Today in 2014, Garth Brooks officially ended his retirement from the road as he and Trisha Yearwood launched an 11-show run at the Allstate Arena in Chicago.

Country star Jelly Roll and his wife Bunnie XO celebrated their ninth wedding anniversary while on a trip to Cologne, Germany. The couple shared photos of themselves holding hands and laughing in a cathedral, writing “Life is ours, we live it our way” and “9 years of us” on their joint Instagram post. Jelly Roll reshared the post on his story with Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters” playing, adding that he loves her “more and more every single day.” The couple are still hoping to expand their happy family; they’re currently working to expand their family through IVF, with Bunnie being open about the physical and mental challenges of the process on social media.