‘our Dna Is That We Take Risks’: Acm Awards Celebrate 60 years

At the first official Academy of Country Music Awards show in 1966 — held in Los Angeles and hosted by Bonanza actor Lorne Greene — Buck Owens took home top male vocalist, Bonnie Guitar won top female vocalist, and a young upstart named Merle Haggard snagged new male vocalist.

Two years prior, artist Tommy Wiggins, songwriter Eddie Miller and Red Barrel Niteclub owners (and married couple) Mickey and Chris Christensen had formed the ACM, then called the Country and Western Music Academy, to represent country music in the Western states, counterbalancing the Nashville-based Country Music Association, which launched in 1958.

Since then, the ACM has celebrated and advocated for the growth of country music, both domestically and abroad. In 2022, it moved its ­headquarters to Nashville, and the ­academy now boasts a membership of over 5,000 globally.

On May 8, the ACM will host the 60th edition of its awards show at Ford Center at the Star in Frisco, Texas. ACM CEO Damon Whiteside says the ceremony — which became the first major awards show to exclusively stream live for a global audience on Amazon Prime in 2022 — will celebrate the year’s top artists while also honoring past winners and award-show milestones. Those landmarks include Marty Robbins taking home the first artist of the decade award in 1969, Loretta Lynn becoming the first woman to win entertainer of the year in 1976, Garth Brooks snagging six awards in one night in 1991 (a feat since replicated by Faith Hill and Chris Stapleton) and Miranda Lambert leading all winners with 37 career trophies.

During the Frisco festivities, the academy will also highlight the important work of Lifting Lives, the ACM’s philanthropic partner that provides financial, disaster, mental and other aid to the country music community.

“We’re looking at developing a show that’s going to feel current because we obviously need to honor the current nominees,” Whiteside says, “but there’s also a real desire for us to showcase the legacy of the show because it’s always charted its own course. We want to showcase what differentiates us.

“It’s a little bit of a past/present/future approach,” Whiteside adds. “It’s going to be a really iconic night and a great way to look back and look forward and celebrate where we are right now as an industry.”

You moved the ACM’s headquarters to Nashville from Los Angeles in December 2022. How do you differentiate yourself from the Country Music Association, and how have you upheld the original mandate of representing Western states?

We really grappled with whether we should make the move when I came into the job [in 2020]. That was definitely one of my first orders of business, coming in, that the board asked me to do some research on. Over a few months, I looked at the pros and cons [of the Nashville move], what it meant from a historical perspective, a strategic perspective and a financial perspective in moving all of our operations and our staff and knowing we probably would lose staff by moving.

COVID then hit within that process, and we were out of the office for about two years. During that time, it became more and more apparent that it made sense to be in Nashville because probably over 90% of our constituents are in the Nashville market, from our board of directors to all of our industry members and artists.

What about the organization’s original mission?

When we started back in the ’60s, there was no support for artists on the West Coast — they were shunned, basically, by Nashville, and there was no one looking out for them or for their interests. Also, there wasn’t really a bridge between the studios and television and country music. That’s really why we were formed in the first place, to create that bridge. But over time there’s been less need to be in that role because, thankfully, country is ubiquitous now. It just made sense for us to move here strategically.

How did you decide where in town to relocate?

We did not even consider Music Row as a place to move — it just didn’t feel authentic for us. Nor did we want to encroach on traditional Music Row. Wedgewood Houston offered us an opportunity to be in an emerging area of town that’s still very convenient, and there’s a lot of music companies opening here. Our positioning is that we are the renegade organization, so we should be somewhere a little more gritty and edgy. That’s ultimately why we landed where we landed.

The ACM Awards’ previous slogan was “Country Music’s Party of the Year.” How have you moved away from that?

That was our tagline and position for many, many years. Especially being in Las Vegas [where the ACMs were held annually from 2003 to 2019, except for 2015], it made a lot of sense. During COVID, when we [presented] our first show in Nashville in September 2020, we did it at three venues [Grand Ole Opry House, Ryman Auditorium and The Bluebird Cafe], and we named that night “A Special Night of Heart and Hits.” That really changed the tone and the vibe of the show.

We carried that over the following year. And then when we went back to Vegas [at Allegiant Stadium in 2022], we sort of brought back the party of the year, but with being on a new platform with Amazon, they had a lot of feelings about how we could reposition ourselves.

And then, moving back to Texas in 2023 following the [awards’] 50th anniversary being there [in 2015], the feeling was we just have other sorts of stories to tell around what the show is beyond being a party. “Party” sells it a little short.

What comes after the 60th ­anniversary?

For 2026, we may do a major pivot again and define what’s the future of the ­academy. This year is a very special year, but next year is going to be kind of turning the page. It’ll be a fresh new year. We don’t know yet where we’ll be. We don’t know what [outlet] we’re going to be on. Everything’s a new day in 2026, so it’s going to be the evolution of the ACM Awards, but we’re excited about that because it’s a blank slate.

The show is co-owned by Dick Clark Productions. [DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.] What is the key to your working relationship?

The relationship started in 1979, which is pretty incredible to think about. Dick Clark hosted many times and then came on as executive producer in ’79, and shortly after that his son [R.A. “RAC” Clark] got involved. He was with us for all those decades as well, and now we have Raj Kapoor [as showrunner]. It’s been a really great partnership. Both sides bring so much to the table.

We consider ourselves the country music experts, and we’re the ones running the award side of it, making sure our members and industry are engaged. We lean in for a lot of the talent asks and make sure our brand and the industry are being represented properly. Dick Clark Productions provides all the production resources and really puts the show together from a television/streaming perspective. We both have an equal seat at the table.

In 2022, you became the first major awards show to move to a streaming platform when you debuted on Prime Video. What did you learn from that first year?

That’s probably one of my top moments in my five years. The first year going into it, none of us had any idea what we were doing in terms of what the impact would be on the show. How do you suddenly produce a live show with no commercial breaks? Typically, you’re using those breaks to make set changes.

But what we found was it actually improved the process of booking the show, planning the show and the show experience itself. Because it was such a quick two hours, top to bottom, it forced everyone to be even more on their toes in terms of the show’s pace and, because of it being jam-packed with music, it felt like a true music concert. I think what we’ve carried forward is keeping the show really tight. There’s no time to get bored because you’re constantly moving.

The challenge of streaming is that they do not report viewership. The music industry wants to know how many people are watching. I don’t know the numbers. [But] if you’re feeling the bump, then does it matter how many people are watching?

We do have a sense that we’re on par with where we’ve traditionally been with the show, if not more than that. Plus, we’re global. We’re in over 230 countries and territories, live and on demand. Now we’re getting a much larger international reach.

How much does the show’s status as a ­global event influence picking a host? It was Dolly Parton for two years — once with Garth Brooks — and now it’s Reba McEntire, who hosted or co-­hosted 12 times between 2002 and 2019.

Dolly Parton’s a global superstar. In any market around the world, if you saw your Prime Video home screen with Dolly, you’re probably going to be interested. Reba is very similar. She’s a legend as well. This is her 18th time hosting [or co-­hosting]. The other part is both of them are multigenerational. They’re relevant now. The multigeneration piece is big because it brings in all audiences.

Reba came to us prior to last year and really wanted to be part of the 60th-anniversary legacy of this show because she feels very connected to it, and she’s had a huge impact on what this show is. That’s when we signed her to a two-year deal to [host in 2024 and 2025].

We are seeing more labels in New York and Los Angeles sign country acts, while artists including Post Malone, Beyoncé and Ringo Starr are incorporating elements of country into their music. How does the ACM embrace that, in terms of the awards show and the organization?

We haven’t addressed it yet. We have had a lot of conversations with our board about it, and everyone is in agreement that we need to figure it out. But we need to do it in the right way and not make a rush move, because we want to make sure we’re protecting the integrity of the vote and that the members spend a majority of their time in country music versus a one-off project.

Long term, we’ll likely figure out a way to allow those “coastal labels” in as long as they meet the criteria that those individuals spend a majority of their time in country music. We will find a way to incorporate them into our membership and then [they will] be able to vote.

What is something from the past 60 years that you consider sacred and don’t ever want to change about the awards show?

Our DNA of this show has always been — and always will be — that we’re a little out of the box. We’re a little left of center. In the ’60s, we had all the television celebrities hosting and we’ve really held on to that. We’ve always had a lot of film and TV talent involved in the show, so that carries through.

We’ve held on to the fact that we really maximize the out-of-genre opportunities by having out-of-genre artists collaborating. Our DNA is that we take risks. We’re progressive. We’ve [leaned] very forward in diversity the past several years ­especially, and we’ll continue to do that. While the artists change over the years, our identity and the DNA of the show has remained consistent. We want the show to be fun and the fans to have a great time and let loose.

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ACM Winners’ Favorite Award Show Moments

Artists and executives look back on the Academy of Country Music’s brightest nights.

Bill Anderson, two-time ACM Award winner: “The academy first began recognizing songwriters in 2007 with the advent of their Poet’s Award, and they gave me their very first one. It’s always cool to be the first at anything, and when you look at the names of some who have followed it makes it even more special: Merle Haggard, Don Schlitz, Cindy Walker, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and more. I had come to Nashville 50 years earlier with dreams of being a songwriter. Nothing could be more special than having those dreams come true… and the ACM Poet’s Award to confirm it.”

Miranda Lambert, 37-time ACM Award winner: “It’s an honor to get any award and be recognized by my peers, but getting the album of the year award is always extra special. [Lambert won the honor five times between 2008 and 2017.] Country music is about storytelling, and knowing that people took the time to listen to an album top to bottom — and love it — means a lot to me.”

Shane McAnally, two-time ACM songwriter of the year winner: “It feels very special that the ACM honors songwriters with their own category. We are usually the ones behind the scenes, but it’s always a privilege to be recognized amongst your peers. Nashville was built on great songwriting, and this community is so special. Being named ACM songwriter of the year [in 2014 and 2019] will always be a highlight of my career.”

Jo Dee Messina, ACM Award winner: “I cherish my win of the [top new female vocalist] of the year award [in 1999]. It was a moment I got to share with my mother, who was present to witness the payoff of a lifetime of support and dedication to my dreams. The ACMs’ production crew is one of a kind. They are a family that has always gone above and beyond to be sure I was taken care of with performances, presentations, nominations and anything I needed to be a part of the televised programs.”

Tigirlily Gold, ACM Award winner: “Our favorite memory is when we got to perform our song ‘I Tried a Ring On’ after winning our very first ACM Award, for new duo/group of the year, in 2024. Jelly Roll gave us a pep talk right before we went out to play, and our musical heroes Little Big Town introduced us. We will never forget that truly surreal moment! The ACMs have a magical way of making dreams come true for artists like us.”

Shania Twain, four-time ACM Award winner: “My favorite moments are always meeting people backstage, other artists that I don’t get to meet. At the beginning of my career, I lived in Nashville and I was seeing more of the country music industry around just in general. But my career has taken me so internationally that I rarely run into country artists. The ACMs are one of the only places that happens.”

Carrie Underwood, 16-time ACM Award winner: “I’m extremely honored to be the first woman to have won ACM entertainer of the year twice and the only female ever to win that award three times [in 2009, 2010 and 2020]. We had some fun celebrating those! We don’t do what we do for praise or trophies, but it means a lot to be recognized for your hard work, and none of it would be possible without all the loyal fans.”

Additional reporting by Jessica Nicholson.

This story appears in the March 8, 2025, issue of Billboard.