Lainey Wilson kicked off the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards Sunday night with her newest solo effort, “Can’t Sit Still,” a title that turned out to be a bit ironic, as the awards show darling did indeed spend the rest of the night in her seat. She was uncharacteristically shut out of the winners circle for perhaps the first time in her career.
The newlywed abdicated her entertainer title to first-time winner Cody Johnson, who also grabbed the male artist trophy, after clinching the CMA equivalent in November. Cody dedicated his entertainer win to fellow nominee Luke Combs, recalling how Combs has missed the birth of his youngest son, Chet Wiley Combs, while the two were on tour together in Australia.
The staying power of Ella Langley’s “Choosin’ Texas” proved undeniable once again, with the smash winning both song and single of the year and propelling Ella to succeed Lainey as female artist. She was also named artist-songwriter and picked up another trophy with Riley Green for music event of the year for “Don’t Mind If I Do.”
In fact, Ella won every category in which she was nominated.
Shania Twain led ACM’s big show for the first time, keeping her fashion cred in check with four changes, ranging from an elegant gold gown at the start to a tuxedo-esque black and white number at the end.
As usual, the show delivered plenty of music, approaching 20 performances in the two-and-a-half-hour show.
Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town debuted their newest tracks, while Riley Green, Tucker Wetmore, Ella Langley, Kane Brown, Dan + Shay and Parker McCollum all sang their current hits, with Parker reframing “Killin’ Me” as a duet with Lee Ann Womack.
Group winners The Red Clay Strays did the title track of their new album, Demons in Your Choir. Thomas Rhett and Jordan Davis teamed up for their #1, “Ain’t a Bad Life,” while Cody Johnson revived his cover of “Travelin’ Soldier,” which he released in November.
Kacey Musgraves delivered “Dry Spell” from her new album, while Blake Shelton played “The Gambler” to close the show as a tribute to its composer, Don Schlitz, who died in April.
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