Lainey Wilson, Jelly Roll and Jason Aldean proved the stars were shining bright at the 2024 Academy of Country Music (ACM) Awards airing live on Amazon from The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, TX, world headquarters of the Dallas Cowboys. The aforementioned BBR Music Group/BMG Nashville artists would end the night capturing four awards and delivering three of the most memorable and breakout moments on the show.
Lainey Wilson kicked off the ACMs with her rendition of "God Blessed Texas" transitioning it into the broadcast debut performance of her latest single "Hang Tight Honey", delivering an electrifying performance that set the tone for "Country Music's Party of the Year." By the close of the broadcast, Lainey would earn the distinction of becoming the most awarded female artist of the night, securing the top honor as Entertainer of the Year. She also captured awards for Female Artist of the Year and Music Event of the Year for "Save Me" Jelly Roll with Lainey Wilson.
In her Entertainer of the Year Acceptance speech Lainey shared, "These past few years for us has been a complete whirlwind. I have been in Nashville for 13 years doing this. First of all, I want to say thank you so much, Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you to my team who fights for me every single day, who works so hard. My band - they show up. WME for booking me, all the time, everywhere. Y'all I remember being a little girl and I would climb out on the top of our roof. I'd open my window and climb out. I'd count all the stars and I'd look up and see the planes flying over my little town of 200 people. I'd dream about being up there in one of those planes and this year it is so crazy. We have already toured the UK, Europe & Australia and we're about to start our American leg. The funny thing is that I still feel like that little girl.I really do. I feel like I still climb out on the roof and I look at the stars, except I feel like I'm a little more eye level with them now. Everybody in this category has loved on me and believed in me, took me out on the road, sang songs with me, wrote with me, encouraged me every step of the way and I love y'all for that. I have the best fans in the world. Thank you so much. God bless y'all."
Jelly Roll, a first time nominee, would capture his first ACM Award for Music Event of the Year for "Save Me" with Lainey Wilson. Giving the audience a first look at the his new music, Jelly Roll premiered an unreleased, fiery song, "Liar" on the broadcast.
In his acceptance speech, Jelly Roll stated, "I'm gonna try not to get emotional, but no pun intended, seriously, this song saved me. I was in a dark place. I wrote it from my soul. I knew people would connect with it. One year ago today, Lainey Wilson and I stood on this stage and debuted it. This song is a triple-platinum record. I wrote it with a high school friend. We never thought we'd be songwriters. I never thought I'd be standing here. I thought I would die or go to jail and I'm standing here as an ACM Award winner. You hear what I am talking about Texas! Let's go baby!"
ason Aldean, the ACM Artist of the Decade, took to the stage at The Star to honor the trailblazing and legendary Toby Keith who passed in February 2024. The "wonderfully touching" (Daily Wire) tribute "stole the show Thursday...with a moving rendition of Keith's hit 'Should've Been a Cowboy'" (Tennessean). Fans can view the performance below or stream it HERE.
Photo Credit: Art Streiber
ABOUT LAINEY WILSON:
GRAMMY®-award winning, prolific singer-songwriter, Lainey Wilson has earned the enthusiasm and praise of the industry. Critically acclaimed and touted as ‘Entertainer of the Year,’ the Louisiana native who has often been described as a “bona fide storyteller at work,” has made a name for herself as a next generation icon. Constantly defying the traditional norms and conventions of the Country music genre, Wilson’s “rulebreaking” achievements have led her to numerous accolades and a diehard fanbase.
Nearly 10 years to the day after leaving her small farming community in a camper trailer to chase her dreams in Nashville, she earned her first PLATINUM certified song, with “Things A Man Oughta Know,” and won over legions of fans across the globe with her signature sound and aesthetic, blending traditional Country with a modern yet retro flare.
Thus far, her music has taken her worldwide with headlining shows in Europe, the UK, Australia, and more. With seven No.1 songs to date, Wilson has become the lead female artist with the most No.1’s this decade along with two GRAMMY® nominations, nine ACM, and seven CMA awards.
Making her acting debut in Season 5 of Paramount’s smash hit series Yellowstone, Wilson has become a triple-threat in the industry, claiming the roles of singer, songwriter, and actress. Fans can also catch Wilson on her upcoming “Country’s Cool Again” headlining North American tour later this summer and pre-order/pre-save/pre-add her forthcoming studio album, Whirlwind now.
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ABOUT JELLY ROLL:
Award-winning, GRAMMY® nominated Nashville native singer/songwriter Jelly Roll (Jason DeFord) debuted Top 3 on the Billboard 200 All Genre Chart and #2 on the Top Country Album charts with his debut Country Album, Whitsitt Chapel(released June 2nd, 2023) - earning the biggest Country debut album in Billboard Consumption Chart history. For the second consecutive year, he swept at the CMT Music Awards (2023 & 2024) where he earned three awards to become the most awarded artist of the night. The Billboard Country Power List Cover star and “country’s ‘most authentic’ new artist” (The New Yorker) received Billboard’s 2023 Breakthrough Award and the People’s Choice Award for Male Country Artist of the Year. Nominated for Best New Artist and Best Duo/Group Performance for “Save Me (with Lainey Wilson)” at the 2024 GRAMMY® Awards, along with eight genre-spanning nominations at the 2024 iHeartRadio Radios, Jelly Roll is also one of three artists, which include Morgan Wallen and Luke Combs, who scored three Country Airplay #1s in 2023. “One of Nashville’s fastest rising stars” (The New York Times), Jelly was a 4X winner at the 2023 People’s Choice Country Awards and was the most nominated male at the 2023 CMA Awards, with five total nominations, capturing his first CMA Award for New Artist of the Year. His #1 hit single “Save Me” — a confessional, vulnerable expression of self-doubt— set the stage for his new season of life and took him to new heights and Platinum certification from the RIAA. Jelly debuted the song along with Lainey Wilson at the 2023 ACM Awards on the heels of his 28-week reign at No. 1 on Billboard’s Emerging Artists chart. “Save Me” became his third consecutive #1 single in 2023 following his multi-week #1 hits on Country and Rock radio, “Need A Favor” and “Son of A Sinner.”
His current single “Halfway To Hell” is on radio now and climbing quickly towards #1, and he recently announced his upcoming Beautifully Broken Tour.
As an artist and humanitarian - he continues to resonate with fans on a global scale and earn numerous industry milestones - from playing his sold-out hometown show for 18,000 fans at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena to sold-out dates at the Ryman Auditorium and the release of his critically acclaimed Hulu documentary produced by ABC News, “Save Me.” Featured by Nightline, GMA, GMA3, The New York Times, The Tennessean, Billboard, Variety, American Songwriter, CMT, GQ and more, his self-built, unconventional industry rise and unique fan connection has garnered praise from numerous outlets, with Variety noting, “for everyone who’s facing the same struggles, Jelly Roll is their Springsteen,” and American Songwriter echoing, “with a string of accolades and an extremely dedicated following, Jelly Roll has emerged as a force to be reckoned with in the music industry.”
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ABOUT JASON ALDEAN:
3X ACM Entertainer of the Year and ACM Artist of the Decade Jason Aldean has bolstered 28 No. 1 hits, over 18 billion streams, and more than 20 million albums sold with “his own recipe…one that has vaulted him to the pinnacle of Country music success” (Atlanta Journal Constitution). He has earned the most Top 10 songs on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart-more than any other artist - since his debut in 2005, with “songs of small-town living, love and loss that have resonated with a loyal fanbase” (Billboard). Having just wrapped his sold-out Highway Desperado tour across the US, the Georgia native continues his “country superstar status" (Variety) with his 11th studio album, Highway Desperado, which was released November 3rd. In addition to three tracks co-written by Aldean, the album features “Tough Crowd” - which he debuted at the 2023 ACM Awards as an Entertainer of the Year nominee - as well as his career first Hot 100 chart-topping hit, “Try That In A Small Town,” and fan-favorite tracks “Let Your Boys Be Country” and “Whiskey Drink.” Produced by longtime producer Michael Knox, Highway Desperado is the follow up to Aldean’s tenth studio album, MACON, GEORGIA, which debuted to critical acclaim, with Stereogum naming it an "Album of the Week” and the Tennessean praising that “MACON, GEORGIA finds Aldean honed in on his vision for this era of his career” and “kicks off his career's next era.” The project featured the history-making, multi-week No. 1 "powerful duet" (Rolling Stone) ”If I Didn’t Love You” with Carrie Underwood, which earned Aldean his 26th career #1 at Country radio and won ACM Single of the Year, iHeartRadio Country Song of the Year, and CMT Collaborative Video of the Year as well as Billboard and GRAMMY nominations.
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