ACM Awards 2023: Date, Performers & Nominees

It's safe to say one of country music's most prestigious events was back with a bang and a Texas twang.

On May 11, the biggest and brightest stars in country descended on Frisco's Ford Center at The Star.

One of the many show-stopping moments was undoubtedly when Ed Sheeran brought his good pal, Luke Combs, on-stage for a heartfelt rendition of ‘Life Goes On’, taken from Sheeran's new album, Subtract.

Kane Brown also delivered a blistering performance of his new single, ‘Bury Me in Georgia’, while Lainey Wilson took the stage for to sing her electric, high-energy anthem, ‘Grease’.

They were joined by fellow heavy-hitters, Jason Aldean, Miranda Lambert, Ashley McBryde, Dolly Parton, HARDY Jelly Roll, Keith Urban, The War And Treaty and Bailey Zimmerman.

Morgan Wallen was originally due to perform, but he was later forced to withdraw due to being placed on six weeks of vocal rest. Although he did not end up attending the 2023 ACM Awards, Wallen was crowned Male Artist of the Year.

Lainey Wilson was the big winner of the night, taking home the gongs for Female Artist of the Year, Album of the Year (Bell Bottom Country), Visual Media of the Year and Music Event of the Year (both for ‘wait in the truck’ with HARDY).

HARDY also picked up three awards, while Cole Swindell triumphed in the categories for Single of the Year and Song of the Year. Chris Stapleton won the one they all want - ACM Entertainer of the Year.

Ashley Gorley, the man responsible for Wallen hits such as ‘You Proof’ and ‘Last Night’, Cole Swindell's ‘She Had Me At Heads Carolina’, Thomas Rhett's ‘Slow Down Summer’ and more, was deservedly crowned 2023 ACM Songwriter of the Year.

Also announced before Thursday's ceremony were the awards for New Male Artist of the Year and New Female Artist of the Year, which went to Zach Bryan and Hailey Whitters respectively.

Two of the most lustrous stars in the history of the genre, Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton, took over the hosting duties for this special instalment of the ACMs. The two country legends traded jokes back and forth throughout the evening, offering welcome doses of levity and playfulness into the ceremony's proceedings.

The illustrious roster of presenters for the 2023 ACM Awards included Breland, Brandy Clark, Jordan Davis, Mickey Guyton, Tyler Hubbard, TJ Osborne, Jon Pardi, Carly Pearce, MacKenzie Porter, Tanya Tucker, Keith Urban and Trisha Yearwood.

For the full list of 2023 ACM Awards Performers, see below:

Ed Sheeran

Luke Combs

Cody Johnson

Lainey Wilson

Kane Brown

HARDY

Jordan Davis

Dolly Parton

Jason Aldean

Ashley McBryde ft. Brandy Clark, Caylee Hammack, Pillbox Patti and John Osborne

Miranda Lambert

Jelly Roll

The War and Treaty

Cole Swindell & Jo Dee Messina

Bailey Zimmerman

Keith Urban

Carly Pearce & Trisha Yearwood

Hailey Whitters

For the full list of 2023 ACM Awards Nominees, see below (winners are in bold):

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

Jason Aldean

Kane Brown

Luke Combs

Miranda Lambert

Chris Stapleton (WINNER)

Carrie Underwood

Morgan Wallen

FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Kelsea Ballerini

Miranda Lambert

Ashley McBryde

Carly Pearce

Lainey Wilson (WINNER)

MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Kane Brown

Luke Combs

Jordan Davis

Chris Stapleton

Morgan Wallen (WINNER)

DUO OF THE YEAR

Brooks & Dunn

Brothers Osborne (WINNER)

Dan + Shay

Maddie & Tae

The War and Treaty

GROUP OF THE YEAR

Lady A

Little Big Town

Midland

Old Dominion (WINNER)

Zac Brown Band

NEW FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Priscilla Block

Megan Moroney

Caitlyn Smith

Morgan Wade

Hailey Whitters (WINNER)

NEW MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Zach Bryan (WINNER)

Jackson Dean

ERNEST

Dylan Scott

Nate Smith

Bailey Zimmerman

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Ashley McBryde - Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville

Lainey Wilson - Bell Bottom Country (WINNER)

Luke Combs - Growin' Up

Jon Pardi - Mr. Saturday Night

Miranda Lambert - Palomino

SINGLE OF THE YEAR

Lainey Wilson - Heart Like A Truck

Carly Pearce & Ashley McBryde - Never Wanted To Be That Girl

Cole Swindell - She Had Me At Heads Carolina (WINNER)

Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown - Thank God

Cody Johnson - 'Til You Can't

SONG OF THE YEAR

Morgan Wallen - Sand In My Boots

Cole Swindell - She Had Me At Heads Carolina (WINNER)

Cody Johnson - 'Til You Can't

HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson - wait in the truck

Chris Stapleton - You Should Probably Leave

VISUAL MEDIA OF THE YEAR

Kelsea Ballerini - HEARTFIRST

Cole Swindell - She Had Me At Heads Carolina

Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown - Thank God

Cody Johnson - 'Til You Can't

HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson - wait in the truck (WINNER)

Carly Pearce - What He Didn't Do

SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR

Nicolle Galyon

Ashley Gorley (WINNER)

Chase McGill

Josh Osborne

Hunter Phelps

ARTIST-SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR

Luke Combs

ERNEST

HARDY (WINNER)

Miranda Lambert

Morgan Wallen

MUSIC EVENT OF THE YEAR

Chris Young with Mitchell Tenpenny - At the End of a Bar

Cole Swindell & Jo Dee Messina - She Had Me At Heads Carolina [Remix]

Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown - Thank God

Dustin Lynch feat. MacKenzie Porter - Thinking 'Bout You

HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson - wait in the truck (WINNER)

The nominations have also been announced for both the 2023 Studio Recordings Awards and Industry Awards, which will be all be presented at 16th Academy of Country Music Honors, an event that will be held on August 23 at the Ryman Auditorium.

For the full list of 2023 Studio Recording and Industry Awards Nominations, see below:

BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Mark Hill

Tony Lucido

Steve Mackey

Lex Price

Craig Young

DRUMMER OF THE YEAR

Fred Eltringham

Miles McPherson

Jerry Roe

Aaron Sterling

Nir Z

ACOUSTIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Tim Galloway

Todd Lombardo

Danny Rader

Bryan Sutton

Ilya Toshinskiy

PIANO/KEYBOARDS PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Jim "Moose" Brown

Dave Cohen

Charles Judge

Billy Justineau

Alex Wright

SPECIALTY INSTRUMENT PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Dan Dugmore

Stuart Duncan

Jenee Fleenor

Josh Matheny

Justin Schipper

ELECTRIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Kris Donegan

Kenny Greenberg

Rob McNelley

Sol Philcox-Littlefield

Derek Wells

AUDIO ENGINEER OF THE YEAR

Drew Bollman

Josh Ditty

Gena Johnson

Justin Niebank

F. Reid Shippen

PRODUCER OF THE YEAR

Buddy Cannon

Luke Dick

Jay Joyce

Joey Moi

Jon Randall

Derek Wells

CASINO OF THE YEAR - THEATER

Deadwood Mountain Grand - Deadwood, SD

Golden Nugget - Lake Charles, LA

Resorts World Theatre at Resorts World Las Vegas - Las Vegas, NV

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino - Hollywood, FL

Soaring Eagle - Mount Pleasant, MI

CASINO OF THE YEAR - ARENA

Fallsview Casino Resort - Niagara Falls, ON

Harrah's - Council Bluffs, IA

Harveys Lake Tahoe - Stateline, NV

Mystic Lake Casino Showroom - Prior Lake, MN

Northern Quest Resort & Casino - Airway Heights, WA

Turning Stone Resort Casino - Verona, NY

FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR

C2C: Country to Country - UK

Carolina Country Music Fest - Myrtle Beach, SC

Country Concert - Fort Loramie, OH

Country Fest - Cadott, WI

Country Thunder Bristol - Bristol, TN

Stagecoach Festival - Indio, CA

Tortuga Music Festival - Fort Lauderdale, FL

FAIR/RODEO OF THE YEAR

Auburn Rodeo - Opelika, AL

Cheyenne Frontier Days - Cheyenne, WY

Florida Strawberry Festival - Plant City, FL

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo - Houston, TX

Iowa State Fair - Des Moines, IA

CLUB OF THE YEAR

Billy Bob's Texas - Fort Worth, TX

Coyote Joe's - Charlotte, NC

Grizzly Rose - Denver, CO

Gruene Hall - New Braunfels, TX

Joe's on Weed St. - Chicago, IL

THEATER OF THE YEAR

Crystal Grand Music Theatre - Wisconsin Dells, WI

Florida Theatre - Jacksonville, FL

Grand Ole Opry House - Nashville, TN

Orpheum Theater - Omaha, NE

Stiefel Theatre - Salina, KS

OUTDOOR VENUE OF THE YEAR

Bank of NH Pavilion - Gilford, NH

FirstBank Amphitheater - Franklin, TN

Greek Theatre - Los Angeles, CA

Santa Barabara Bowl - Santa Barbara, CA

St. Augustine Amphitheatre - St.Augustine, FL

The Wharf Amphitheater - Orange Beach, AL

ARENA OF THE YEAR

Denny Sanford PREMIER Center - Sioux Falls, SD

Dickies Arena - Fort Worth, TX

Hertz Arena - Estero, FL

Moody Center - Austin, TX

Simmons Bank Arena - Little Rock, AR

Thompson-Boling Arena - Knoxville, TN

DON ROMEO TALENT BUYER OF THE YEAR

Ron Pateras

Pat Powelson

Michelle Romeo

Stacy Vee

Troy Vollhoffer

PROMOTER OF THE YEAR

Patrick McDill

Aaron Spalding

Ed Warm

Adam Weiser

Jay Wilson

Once again, the 2023 ACM Awards will be available to watch live via Amazon Prime Video. The 2022 instalment of the ceremony was the first awards show in history to be exclusively live-streamed for a global audience.

For anyone not content with streaming the ceremony live, tickets to attend the 2023 ACM Awards in Frisco, Texas are available now, and can be purchased here.

For more on the 2023 ACM Awards, see below: