Posted in: ABC, Hulu, TV | Tagged: CMA Awards, CMAs

Center Stage: "Countdown" Special Previews CMA Awards' Big Night

Here's a look at our preview for tonight's ABC special, Center Stage: Countdown to the CMA Awards — Special Edition of 20/20.

Before nine-time CMA Award winner Lainey Wilson returns on Wednesday night to host the Country Music Association and ABC's 59th Annual CMA Awards (airing live from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville from 8-11 pm EST), country music star Luke Bryan will be taking ABC's 20/20 viewers on a journey through Nashville's legendary stages — from the neon-lit bars of Broadway to the hallowed circle of the Grand Ole Opry — for Center Stage: Countdown to the CMA Awards — Special Edition of 20/20.

Airing tonight beginning at 10:07 pm EST (and streaming tomorrow on Disney+ and Hulu), the special features Country music star Kenny Chesney, who brings cameras back to Nashville's Lower Broadway to revisit the venues where he first performed as a young man as he worked to make a name for himself in Music City. In addition, Country music stars Lauren Alaina, Gabby Barrett, Dan + Shay, and Russell Dickerson celebrate the 100th anniversary of the most historic stage in Nashville, the Grand Ole Opry, by sharing personal memories and exclusive stories of performing in the iconic circle that launched the careers of country music's greatest legends.

As for this year's CMA Awards, the special does a deep dive into this year's CMA Award-nominated Musical Event of the Year collaborations, featuring pairings that include Blake Shelton with Post Malone, Carrie Underwood with Cody Johnson, and Ella Langley with Riley Green. Jelly Roll, Megan Moroney, Ashley McBryde, and Keith Urban are also expected to appear. The special is produced by 20/20 and ABC News Studios. Janice Johnston is the senior executive producer, with Emily Whipp as the executive producer, and Monica Escobedo as the senior entertainment producer.

CMA Awards 2025 Nominees, Performers & More: Update

Who Are the Presenters/Special Guests During the 59th Annual CMA Awards? Lady A, Alison Brown, Jessica Capshaw, Billy Ray Cyrus, Lauren Daigle, Jordan Davis, Elizabeth Hurley, Cody Johnson, Bert Kreischer, Brandon Lake, Ella Langley, Steve Martin, Leanne Morgan, NE-YO, Chris O'Donnell, Kimberly Perry, LeAnn Rimes, Alan Ritchson, Lara Spencer, Billy Bob Thornton, Grace Van Patten, Gretchen Wilson, and Bailey Zimmerman.

Who's Set to Perform During the 59th Annual CMA Awards? As of this writing, Kelsea Ballerini, Brandi Carlile, Kenny Chesney, Riley Green, Miranda Lambert, Patty Loveless, Old Dominion, The Red Clay Strays, Chris Stapleton, BigXThaPlug, Luke Combs, Ella Langley, Megan Moroney, Shaboozey, Zach Top, Tucker Wetmore, Lainey Wilson, Stephen Wilson Jr, Keith Urban, and Little Big Town.

What's the Deal with "CMA Awards Backstage Live"?  CMA Awards Backstage Live is a second-screen experience hosted by Country artist Lauren Alaina (@laurenalaina) and HaleyyBaylee (@haleyybaylee) live on CMA's TikTok channel (@countrymusicassociation). It will take viewers behind the scenes at Bridgestone Arena during the CMA Awards broadcast. CMA will go live multiple times on TikTok, starting at the red carpet and wrapping up after the last trophy is handed out, featuring interviews with artists and celebrities, real-time reactions from winners, and all the action that happens throughout the night.

How Do I Follow the 59th Annual CMA Awards on Social Media? To keep up on what's going down, head on over to CMAawards.com, subscribe to emails, and follow CMA on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Threads, and X (using #CMAawards).

The 59th Annual CMA Awards: Final Nominees

Ella Langley, Megan Moroney, and Lainey Wilson top the list with six nominations each, while other top nominees include Zach Top with five nominations, and Riley Green and Cody Johnson with four nominations each. Kristian Bush, Carson Chamberlain, Luke Combs, Charlie Handsome, Chris Stapleton, and Morgan Wallen each secure three nominations. Vying for the night's highest honor, CMA Entertainer of the Year, are Luke Combs, Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton, Morgan Wallen, and Lainey Wilson. First-time CMA Awards nominees include Johnny Clawson, Jon Decious, Jessie Jo Dillon, Josh Dorr, Alexandra Gavillet, Lalo Guzman, Jimmy Harnen, Brandon Lake, Micah Nichols, John Park, Aaron Raitiere, Matt Rovey, Kyle Sturrock, Wales Toney, Tucker Wetmore, and Stephen Wilson Jr.

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

• Luke Combs
• Cody Johnson
• Chris Stapleton
• Morgan Wallen
• Lainey Wilson

SINGLE OF THE YEAR – Award goes to Artist(s), Producer(s) and Mix Engineer(s)

• "4x4xU" – Lainey Wilson
  • Producer: Jay Joyce
  • Mix Engineers: Jason Hall, Jay Joyce
• "Ain't No Love In Oklahoma" – Luke Combs
  • Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton
  • Mix Engineer: Chip Matthews
• "Am I Okay?" – Megan Moroney
  • Producer: Kristian Bush
  • Mix Engineer: Justin Niebank
• "I Never Lie" – Zach Top
  • Producer: Carson Chamberlain
  • Mix Engineer: Matt Rovey
• "you look like you love me" – Ella Langley & Riley Green
  • Producer: Will Bundy
  • Mix Engineer: Jim Cooley

ALBUM OF THE YEAR – Award goes to Artist, Producer(s) and Mix Engineer(s)

• Am I Okay? – Megan Moroney
  • Producer: Kristian Bush
  • Mix Engineer: Justin Niebank
• Cold Beer & Country Music – Zach Top
  • Producer: Carson Chamberlain
  • Mix Engineer: Matt Rovey
• F-1 Trillion – Post Malone
  • Producers: Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome, Hoskins
  • Mix Engineer: Ryan Gore
• I'm The Problem – Morgan Wallen
  • Producers: Jacob Durrett, Charlie Handsome, Joey Moi
  • Mix Engineers: Charlie Handsome, Joey Moi
• Whirlwind – Lainey Wilson
  • Producer: Jay Joyce
  • Mix Engineers: Jason Hall, Jay Joyce

SONG OF THE YEAR – Award goes to Songwriter(s)

• "4x4xU"
  • Songwriters: Jon Decious, Aaron Raitiere, Lainey Wilson
• "Am I Okay?"
  • Songwriters: Jessie Jo Dillon, Luke Laird, Megan Moroney
• "I Never Lie"
  • Songwriters: Carson Chamberlain, Tim Nichols, Zach Top
• "Texas"
  • Songwriters: Johnny Clawson, Josh Dorr, Lalo Guzman, Kyle Sturrock
• "you look like you love me"
  • Songwriters: Riley Green, Ella Langley, Aaron Raitiere

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

• Kelsea Ballerini
• Miranda Lambert
• Ella Langley
• Megan Moroney
• Lainey Wilson

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

• Luke Combs
• Cody Johnson
• Chris Stapleton
• Zach Top
• Morgan Wallen

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR

• Lady A
• Little Big Town
• Old Dominion
• Rascal Flatts
• The Red Clay Strays

VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR

• Brooks & Dunn
• Brothers Osborne
• Dan + Shay
• Maddie & Tae
• The War And Treaty

MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR – Award goes to Artists and Producer(s)

• "Don't Mind If I Do" – Riley Green (featuring Ella Langley)
  • Producers: Scott Borchetta, Jimmy Harnen, Dann Huff
• "Hard Fought Hallelujah" – Brandon Lake with Jelly Roll
  • Producer: Micah Nichols
• "I'm Gonna Love You" – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
  • Producer: Trent Willmon
• "Pour Me A Drink" – Post Malone (feat. Blake Shelton)
  • Producers: Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome
• "You Had To Be There" – Megan Moroney (feat. Kenny Chesney)
  • Producer: Kristian Bush

MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR

• Jenee Fleenor – Fiddle
• Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
• Brent Mason – Guitar
• Rob McNelley – Guitar
• Derek Wells – Guitar

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR – Award goes to Artist(s) and Director(s)

• "Am I Okay?" – Megan Moroney
  • Directors: Alexandra Gavillet, Megan Moroney
• "I'm Gonna Love You" – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
  • Director: Dustin Haney
• "Somewhere Over Laredo" – Lainey Wilson
  • Director: TK McKamy
• "Think I'm In Love With You" – Chris Stapleton
  • Director: Running Bear
• "you look like you love me" – Ella Langley & Riley Green
  • Directors: Ella Langley, John Park, Wales Toney

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR

• Ella Langley
• Shaboozey
• Zach Top
• Tucker Wetmore
• Stephen Wilson Jr.

2025 CMA BROADCAST AWARDS – FINALISTS FOR BROADCAST PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR:

Weekly National

• "Country Countdown USA with Lon Helton" (Lon Helton) – LH Productions
• "The Country Top 40 with Fitz" (Cory "Fitz" Fitzner) – Hubbard Broadcasting
• "The Original Country Gold" (Rowdy Yates) – Syndicated Media
• "Today's Country Radio" (Kelleigh Bannen) – Apple Music Radio
• "Y'all Access with Kelly Sutton" (Kelly Sutton) – Compass Media Group

Daily National

• "Big D & Bubba" ("Big D" Derek Haskins, "Bubba" Sean Powell, Carsen Humphreville, Jonathan Shaffer, and Garrett Freche) – Silverfish Media
• "Highway Mornings with Cody Alan" (Cody Alan and Lauryn Snapp) – SiriusXM
• "Ridin' With Rowdy" (Rowdy Yates) – SuiteRadio / RFC Media
• "The Rob and Holly Show" (Rob Stone and Holly Hutton) – Audacy
• "Wilhite and Wall Show" (Darren Wilhite and Tim Wall) – Ebert Productions

Major Market

• "Chris Carr & Company" (Chris Carr, Sam Sansevere, and "Dubs" Michael Wilczynski) – KEEY, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
• "Hawkeye and Michelle" ("Hawkeye" Mark Louis Rybczyk and Michelle Rodriguez) – KSCS, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
• "The Lo Show" (Lauren "Lo" Barker) – KKBQ, Houston, Texas
• "Rachel Ryan" (Rachel Ryan) – KSCS, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
• "The Scotty Kay Show" (Scotty Kay) – WUSN, Chicago, Ill.

Large Market

• "Deb & Matt in the Morning" (Deborah Honeycutt and Matt Malone) – WFMS, Indianapolis, Ind.
• "The Q Morning Crew w/ Mike & Amanda" (Mike Wheless and Amanda Daughtry) – WQDR, Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
• "Scott and Shannen" (Scott Dolphin and "Shannen O" Oesterreich) – WMIL, Milwaukee, Wis.
• "Tim & Chelsea" (Tim Leary and Chelsea Taylor) – WIRK, West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, Fla.
• "Wayne D and Tay" ("Wayne D" Danielson and Tay Hamilton) – WSIX, Nashville, Tenn.

Medium Market

• "The Doc Show with Chewy" (Ken "Doc" Medek and Sean "Chewy" Medek) – WGGY, Wilkes Barre-Scranton, Pa.
• "Ellis and Bradley Show" (Bill Ellis and Beth Bradley) – WSSL, Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.
• "Joey & Nancy" (Joey Tack, Nancy Barger, and Karly Duggan) – WIVK, Knoxville, Tenn.
• "Mo & StyckMan" (Melissa "Mo" Wagner and Greg "StyckMan" Owens) – WUSY, Chattanooga, Tenn.
• "Spencer Graves Show" (Spencer Graves, Megan Terry, and Blair Davis) – WDXB, Birmingham, Ala.

Small Market

• "Ben & Arnie" (Ben Butler and Arnie Andrews) – WCOW, La Crosse, Wis.
• "Brent Lane and The Cat Pak Morning Show" (Brent Lane and Jordan Glass) – WYCT, Pensacola, Fla.
• "Dan Austin Show" (Dan Austin) – WQHK, Fort Wayne, Ind.
• "Hilley & Hart" (Kevin Hilley and Erin Hart) – KATI, Columbia, Mo.
• "Liz & Scotty in the Morning" (Liz Del Grosso and Scotty Cox) – KCLR, Columbia, Mo.

2025 CMA BROADCAST AWARDS – FINALISTS FOR RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR:

Major Market

• KKBQ – Houston, Texas
• KSCS – Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
• KYGO – Denver-Boulder, Colo.
• WUSN – Chicago, Ill.
• WXTU – Philadelphia, Pa.

Large Market

• WCTK – Providence-Warwick-Pawtucket, R.I.
• WMIL – Milwaukee-Racine, Wis.
• WSIX – Nashville, Tenn.
• WUBE – Cincinnati, Ohio
• WWKA – Orlando, Fla.

Medium Market

• KUZZ – Bakersfield, Calif.
• WHKO – Dayton, Ohio
• WIVK – Knoxville, Tenn.
• WLFP – Memphis, Tenn.
• WQMX – Akron, Ohio

Small Market

• KATI – Columbia, Mo.
• KCLR – Columbia, Mo.
• WCOW – La Crosse, Wis.
• WKML – Fayetteville, N.C.
• WXBQ – Johnson City-Kingsport-Bristol, Tenn.-Va.

What Can You Tell Me About the CMA Awards? First held in 1967, the CMA Awards is the longest-running, annual music awards program on network television. Each year, the show honors outstanding achievement in Country Music—celebrating the artists, songwriters, musicians, and industry professionals whose work has shaped the genre. Winners and nominees are determined by CMA's Professional voting membership, reflecting the voices of their peers across the industry. The professional services organization, Deloitte, tabulates all balloting.

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