This year’s County Music Association Awards resembled a classic of the genre at times. There were problems, people left, and there was a lot of fighting and fighting.
However, the 54th edition of the awards went according to plan and was hosted by the Music City Center in Nashville with co-hosts Reba McEntire and Darius Rucker.
Eric Church was named Entertainer of the Year, while Maren Morris’s The Bones was Single of the Year. Album of the year was what you see is what you get from Luke Combs. The song of the year went to the songwriters of The Bones: Maren Morris, Jimmy Robbins and Laura Veltz. Morgan Wallen was the new artist of the year.
The biggest battle was whether the show would manage to put a number of stars on it. Today Rascal Flatts and Lady A canceled the show, citing fears of COVID-19. They join Florida Georgia Line’s Lee Brice and Tyler Hubbard on the sidelines, the latter after testing positive for the coronavirus.
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The CMAs also faced potential problems when they stated on a social media post that the show would be “a zone of no drama,” which some meant that artists were not allowed to express their political views. The CMA quickly overturned that decision, saying it would “welcome the right of every artist to express themselves”.
Earlier this week, CMA co-host Darius Rucker complained that despite a lot of success, he still felt like a fish out of water in the genre. Rucker, a black man who presented an award to country legend Charley Pride, an African-American pioneer, said he went to a radio station and warned that the audience would not like his race, an experience that opened his eyes .
The Associated Press’ decision not to address the CMA over access issues was the peak of the annus horribilis for the CMAs today. The AP, the country’s largest newswire, ruled that restrictions on the distribution of still images and screenshots of the show were one bridge too far.
The AP will not write, take pictures or make videos of the show, he told members. The decision leaves the coverage of the show dependent on the broadcast on ABC.
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