CMA announces the list of 30 CMA award-winning acts in Forever Country, leading up to the 50th annual CMA awards
Forever Country single premieres on radio and digital partners worldwide; video to premiere Tuesday, 20 September with sneak peek on ABC’s ‘Dancing With The Stars’.
After 10 days of speculation, the star-studded list of 30 former CMA Award winners in the ‘Forever Country’ music video have been announced.
“The artists who stepped up to participate in this one-of-a-kind project span all five decades of the CMA Awards,” said Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer. “They represent the heart of this song, the strength of our relationship with the fans, and the future of Country Music.”
‘Forever Country’ is a fresh take on three Country classics including John Denver’s ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads,’ Willie Nelson’s ‘On the Road Again,’ and Dolly Parton’s ‘I Will Always Love You.’ Denver, Nelson, and Parton are all former CMA Entertainers of the Year.
The recording was inspired by the 2014 star-studded version of ‘God Only Knows’, created to commemorate the launch of BBC Music, the BBC’s biggest commitment to music in decades.
Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the CMA Awards, the biggest music video and single in Country Music history includes the following CMA Award winners:
Alabama
Jason Aldean
Lady Antebellum
Dierks Bentley
Luke Bryan
Eric Church
Brooks & Dunn
Brett Eldredge
Rascal Flatts
Vince Gill
Faith Hill
Alan Jackson
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Tim McGraw
Ronnie Milsap
Kacey Musgraves
Willie Nelson
Brad Paisley
Dolly Parton
Charley Pride
Reba
Darius Rucker
Blake Shelton
George Strait
Little Big Town
Randy Travis
Carrie Underwood
Keith Urban
Trisha Yearwood
Today, Country radio participated in a global roadblock of the ‘Forever Country’ single, which premiered on hundreds of radio stations simultaneously at 8:30 AM/ET across the United States and in several key international markets, including BBC Radio 2 in the UK. The audio single is now available for digital download and streaming.
While listeners were getting their first listen across the Country radio universe, ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’ announced both the full list of talent for the music video and that a portion of the video will premiere in an exclusive sneak peek during ABC’s popular, live, primetime program ‘Dancing with the Stars’ on Tuesday, Sept. 20. ‘Good Morning America’ debuted a 90 second behind-the scenes video teaser.
Immediately following the sneak peek on ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ fans will be directed to Forevercountry50.com to see the full-length YouTube version of the music video. ‘Forever Country,’ the single was produced by CMA Award-winner and CMA Board member Shane McAnally and the video was directed by Grammy Award-winning director Joseph Kahn.
Universal Music Group Nashville is exclusively partnering with CMA to market and distribute ‘Forever Country’ worldwide. The song will be available at all digital retail and streaming outlet partners. CMA profits from the sales and streaming of Forever Country will benefit music education causes through the CMA Foundation.
‘The 50th Annual CMA Awards’ will be hosted by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood and broadcast live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Wednesday, Nov. 2 (8:00-11:00 PM/ET) on the ABC Television Network.
