Keith Urban Surprises ACM Awards New Male & Female Artist of the Year!

56th ACM Awards: The Academy of Country Music® revealed Jimmie Allen as the New Male Artist of the Year and Gabby Barrett as the New Female Artist of the Year for the 56TH ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS™ to broadcast live on Sunday, April 18 (8:00-11:00 PM, live ET/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network and will also be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+.

ACM Awards Host Keith Urban recorded a personalized video card to surprise both Allen and Barrett with the news. Watch the special moments HERE and HERE.

“We are thrilled to present Jimmie Allen and Gabby Barrett with their first ACM Award wins. Jimmie and Gabby have experienced tremendous success at both Country Radio and streaming already, and we are proud to recognize them for such an extraordinary start to their careers,” said Damon Whiteside, CEO of the Academy of Country Music. “A huge congratulations to each of them for this well-deserved win, and to all of our nominees for being recognized for their incredible contributions to Country Music. We look forward to welcoming Jimmie and Gabby to the ACM Awards stage on April 18.”

Allen and Barrett will join more than 25 artists who will perform 30+ songs from three iconic Country Music venues: the Grand Ole Opry House, Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and The Bluebird Cafe. Previously announced performers include Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, Lee Brice, Brothers Osborne, Kane Brown, Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Luke Combs, Dan + Shay, Mickey Guyton, Ryan Hurd, Jack Ingram, Alan Jackson, Elle King, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Ashley McBryde, Maren Morris, Carly Pearce, Jon Randall, Thomas Rhett, Blake Shelton, Chris Stapleton, The War and Treaty, Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, CeCe Winans, and Chris Young. Additional details on the exciting performances including unprecedented collaborations and surprising moments will be announced in the coming days. First-time ACM Awards performances from many of the legendary artists in the lineup can be found HERE.

Hosted by 15-time ACM Award winner Keith Urban and New Female Artist of the Year nominee Mickey Guyton, the 56th ACM Awards® honor and showcase the biggest names and emerging talent in Country Music. Official 56th ACM Awards sponsors include 1000 Stories® Bourbon Barrel-Aged Wine, Ford, Security Benefit and T-Mobile.

The health and safety of the artists, fans, industry, staff and partners involved in the ACM Awards is the number one priority. All guidelines set forth by national, state and local health officials will be closely followed and implemented during the production along with additional safety measures to be instated by dick clark productions and the Academy of Country Music.

For more information, visit ACMcountry.com.

To stay up to date on the latest country music news, please register to receive our newsletter here.

Media contact

Zoe Hodges,
Editor, Maverick Magazine

Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823920
Email: editor@maverick-country.com

Subscribe to our newsletter

Don't miss new updates on your email
Scroll to Top

We’re thrilled to announce that Maverick Magazine is now available to you through 
our exclusive FREE digital subscription! Click below to subscribe now