2013 CMA Awards Nominees, Picks, & Prognostications
On November 6th, the 2013 Country Music Association Awards will transpire once again on ABC, with the nominees being announced this morning. Most surprising is that Kacey Musgraves, along with Taylor Swift, leads all nominees with six total nods. Though Musgraves is probably not a front runner for many of her awards, this speaks to her rising fame and influence. Miranda Lambert landed 5 nominations from both her solo work and her work with the Pistol Annies. Florida Georgia Line received 4 nominations, and Brad Paisley, who will host the show with Carrie Underwood, didn’t receive any for the first time in many years. Hunter Hayes is another name that curiously received no nominations.
Find a complete list of nominees below, along with thoughts, picks, and prognostications.
Entertainer of the Year
Boy, this is a wide open field. Aside from Jason Aldean, any of these folks could win it. Aldean just hasn’t had the solid sales year to leap frog his competitors. The other person at a disadvantage might be Taylor Swift. Since the major singles off her last album Red could all be considered more pop than country (even more pop than from previous years) she may be at a slight disadvantage, but still must be considered a solid contender. Blake Shelton is the reigning winner from last year, and with the continued success of his music and NBC’s The Voice, has to be considered a front runner. Luke Bryan is the reigning ACM Entertainer, and also has to be considered a strong contender. Voters may consider it “Luke’s year” since he’s had some successful singles and a big, influential impact on country music this year.
It is a surprise to see George Strait make this list, but since this is his last year of touring and the last year he will likely be eligible, he may come through with the sympathy vote. 2013 may be the last year an artist that in any way can be construed as traditional will be nominated, and potentially win what is considered the highest annual distinction in country music.
I’m slightly surprised not to see Florida Georgia Line represented here, but the powers that be may feel they’re still too fresh of an act to be considered this year.
- Blake Shelton
- Jason Aldean – Won’t Win
- Taylor Swift
- George Strait
- Luke Bryan
Male Vocalist of the Year
This is likely a two horse race between Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton. Keith Urban has no chance. Jason Aldean hasn’t seen the strength he saw last year to compete in this field. Eric Church would be the sleeper. It is sort of an off year for him since his last album Chief was released so long ago (July, 2011), and he hasn’t helped himself by flamethrowing so many other artists. But Church can’t be completely ruled out. In the end, Luke Bryan may the the here-and-now winner the CMA is looking for. Brad Paisley gets locked out.
- Jason Aldean
- Luke Bryan – Winner
- Blake Shelton – Other Strong Contender
- Keith Urban
- Eric Church
Female Vocalist of the Year
Once again, just like the ACM’s before them, the CMA’s put Kelly Clarkson in the mix here because of mainstream country’s inability to develop substantive female superstars. Kelly Clarkson has no chance of winning. Neither does Kacey Musgraves, who also got this curious distinction from the ACM’s and is probably not at the same caliber as the other competition. This whittles it down to three. Both Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert had solid years, and of course Taylor Swift outsold everyone. It is probably Swift’s to lose, with Carrie and Miranda offering stiff competition. Why no Ashley Monroe? Was her solo work and her stuff with the Pistol Annies not enough, especially if you’re stretching for names?
- Kelly Clarkson
- Miranda Lambert – Strong contender
- Kacey Musgraves
- Taylor Swift- Winner
- Carrie Underwood – Strong contender
Single of the Year
“Cruise” will win this going away, unless backroom block voting propels “Mama’s Broken Heart” to the front of the pack. Just appreciate “Merry Go ‘Round” wasn’t even a Top 10 single. That’s not to discount it; it’s nomination here, and the fact that Kacey has two songwriter credits in this category (the other for “Mama’s Broken Heart), speaks to her current impact on country. By simply being nominated, “Merry Go ‘Round” has won.
- “Cruise”; Florida Georgia Line; Produced by Joey Moi; Republic Nashville – WINNER
- “Highway Don’t Care”; Tim McGraw with Taylor Swift and Keith Urban; Produced by Byron Gallimore and Tim McGraw; Big Machine Records
- “Mama’s Broken Heart”; Miranda Lambert; Produced by Frank Liddell, Glenn Worf, and Chuck Ainlay; RCA Nashville
- “Merry Go ‘Round”; Kacey Musgraves; Produced by Luke Laird, Shane McAnally, and Kacey Musgraves; Mercury Records
- “Wagon Wheel”; Darius Rucker; Produced by Frank Rogers; Capitol Records Nashville
Album of the Year
Don’t get your hopes up folks, Same Trailer, Different Park has no chance, but it is a distinction for Kacey just to be nominated. Tornado by Little Big Town doesn’t have a chance either. From there it is wide open, though it’s hard to see Blown Away winning it because Carrie Underwood seems to be the perrenial runner up at the CMA Awards. This may be one of those where it just comes down to sales.
- Based on a True Story: Blake Shelton; Produced by Scott Hendricks; Warner Bros. Records – OTHER POTENTIAL WINNER
- Blown Away: Carrie Underwood; Produced by Mark Bright; 19 Recordings/Arista Nashville
- Red: Taylor Swift; Produced by Jeff Bhasker, Scott Borchetta, Nathan Chapman, Dann Huff, Jacknife Lee, Max Martin, Shellback, Taylor Swift, Butch Walker, and Dan Wilson; Big Machine Records – WINNER
- Same Trailer Different Park: Kacey Musgraves; Produced by Luke Laird, Shane McAnally, and Kacey Musgraves; Mercury Records
- Tornado: Little Big Town; Produced by Jay Joyce; Capitol Records Nashville
Song of the Year
“Pontoon”? Please. I have no idea why they are still trying to shove this song down our throats as anything more than a thowaway party song. As it should be, this distinction is usually saved for the deep, sentimental, or inspirational song, and so “I Drive Your Truck” should walk away with it. “Mama’s Broken Heart” is a little too obvious. “Wagon Wheel” is more Single of the Year material, and I’m surprised it is here and not there. “Merry Go ‘Round” would make an interesting pick, but it still feels like an underdog.
- “I Drive Your Truck,” Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, and Jimmy Yeary – WINNER
- “Mama’s Broken Heart,” Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally, and Kacey Musgraves
- “Merry Go ‘Round,” Kacey Musgraves, Josh Osborne, and Shane McAnally
- “Pontoon,” Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird, and Barry Dean
- “Wagon Wheel,” Bob Dylan and Ketch Secor
New Artist of the Year
The only reason Florida Georgia Line doesn’t run away with this is if they are slated to win Single and Duo of the year, so block voting decides to give this distinction to someone else. With so many other nominations for Kacey, and so few of them that she is actually in contention for, she will be the close runner up.
- Lee Brice
- Brett Eldredge
- Florida Georgia Line – Winner
- Kip Moore
- Kacey Musgraves – Other Potential Winner
Vocal Duo of the Year
No question Florida Georgia Line wins.
- Big & Rich
- Florida Georgia Line – Winner
- Love and Theft
- Sugarland
- The Civil Wars
- Thompson Square
Vocal Group of the Year
Yawn. Zac Brown Band should win. Lady Antebellum or The Band Perry will win. Why aren’t the Pistol Annies here?
- Eli Young Band
- Lady Antebellum – Other Potential Winner
- Little Big Town
- The Band Perry – Winner
- Zac Brown Band
Musical Event of the Year
Wide open field here. “Cruise” would be the big commercial winner. “Highway Don’t Care” has a lot of star power. So does “The Only Way I Know.”
- “Boys ‘Round Here”: Blake Shelton (featuring Pistol Annies); Warner Bros. Records
- “Cruise”: Florida Georgia Line (with Nelly); Republic Nashville – Contender
- “Highway Don’t Care”; Tim McGraw (with Taylor Swift and Keith Urban); Big Machine Records – Contender
- “The Only Way I Know”; Jason Aldean with Luke Bryan and Eric Church; Broken Bow Records – Contender
- “Don’t Rush”: Kelly Clarkson (featuring Vince Gill) 19 Recordings/RCA Nashville
Music Video of the Year
Meh.
- “Blown Away,” Carrie Underwood; Directed by Randee St. Nicholas
- “Boys ‘Round Here,” Blake Shelton featuring Pistol Annies; Directed by Trey Fanjoy
- “Downtown,” Lady Antebellum; Directed by Peter Zavadil
- “Highway Don’t Care,” Tim McGraw with Taylor Swift and Keith Urban; Directed by Shane Drake
- “Mama’s Broken Heart,” Miranda Lambert; Directed by Trey Fanjoy
- “Tornado,” Little Big Town; Directed by Shane Drake
Musician of the Year
This is always the hardest award to prognosticate. Since Paul Franklin had his name prominently displayed beside Vince Gill’s on their new Bakersfield album, he should probably be considered a front runner.
- Sam Bush (Mandolin)
- Paul Franklin (Steel Guitar)
- Dann Huff (Guitar)
- Brent Mason (Guitar)
- Mac McAnally (Guitar)
September 10, 2013 @ 11:44 am
Nice to see George on this list. I wish “Give it all we got Tonight” was on there somewhere.
The musical event of the year is an absolute joke. An including boys round here in the video of the year has to be someone trolling.
September 10, 2013 @ 12:13 pm
Lol, every category has the same shit. What a joke.
September 10, 2013 @ 12:19 pm
I don’t have the time to comment on each one, but I will ask, Big and Rich? Are they still a fucking duo? Didn’t Big Kenny head over to the green pastures of “Electro Country Shine”? And why don’t we see a nomination for that dog turd? I bet they’re holding off until next year, when nobody remembers what the fuck it was about!
Go Kacey!!!!!
September 10, 2013 @ 12:40 pm
The Vocal Duo category is virtually a joke. Civil Wars? Split up. Sugarland? Might as well be split up. Big & Rich? More focused on their solo stuff. At least find some bands that are active.
The Kacey Musgraves nominations are nick, but I think there is a good chance Kacey walks away with 0 or 1 wins.
September 10, 2013 @ 1:03 pm
Here’s how I see it all playing out….Florida Georgia Line comes crashing through the ceiling (most likely via Helicopter / Osprey) and they start a video / sound montage of all their awesome songs.
Everyone else in the place will bow down to the new leaders of country music.
All possible performers / candidates will “resign” from the competition, knowing that FGL is clearly the superior group (they are much, much, more than a “super group”) in regards to talent / skill / choreography / LIFE.
They are then announced to be A) The winners of every award the CMA has!!! &
B) the FUTURE OF COUNTRY MUSIC!!!!!
I think they’ve already saved it!!! You can shut down this website now!!!! Thanks for doing your part!!!
September 10, 2013 @ 1:10 pm
****I almost forgot the most important part! During the “after-show” where FGL is thanking everyone and what not, the host asks them:
“So how were you all able to become the winners of everything CMA? This is an unprecedented WIN!!” to which they reply:
“ITZ JUS WUT WE DO & WE DOOZ IT RILLY GOOD!!!!! FO RIL!!! FGL4LYFE”
Then the Syrian missile strikes shall commence
September 10, 2013 @ 2:07 pm
We should send Florida Georgia Line to Syria as punishment for their use of chemical weapons.
September 13, 2013 @ 6:45 pm
The Vocal Duo category is virtually a joke. Civil Wars? Split up. Sugarland? Might as well be split up. Big & Rich? More focused on their solo stuff. At least find some bands that are active.
The Kacey Musgraves nominations are nick, but I think there is a good chance Kacey walks away with 0 or 1 wins.
Actually, Big & Rich have been active together since summer 2011 with an essentially nonstop tour. In fact, the tour seems to be just coming to an end in December http://www.bigandrich.com/shows. I’m sure they’ll fire it back up when they release their new album, though. That said, even as a huge fan of Big & Rich I wholeheartedly agree that they shouldn’t have been nominated this year. They haven’t had a single on radio since summer 2012 and their new album hasn’t even had a release date announced yet. Yes they’ve toured but their presence as of late has been so low key that I doubt that Keith L. is the only one that is unaware that they’ve reunited. Essentially, they’re just a placeholder which is a tad insulting as a fan since Florida Georgia Line is a shoe-in for the win. As far as Kenny’s Electro Shine project, it’s just that: a project. He’s gone on record many times as stating that it’s just a hobby, not a career focus. John Rich hasn’t recorded anything solo since he released two EPs in 2011.
However, Trigger, if you’re looking for a GOOD modern country song you should DEFINITELY check out “Dreams in the Dust” by JR. It’s a free download on his site and is about living in the dust bowl and is quite well-written, especially for a modern country tune. I’m not sure when it was recorded, but it isn’t about trucks, beer or girls (and doesn’t even make mention of them). Plus, for every free download John said he would donate one dollar to the Red Cross, so it won’t hurt anything if you give it a listen. The link is on the main page: http://www.johnrich.com
September 10, 2013 @ 1:51 pm
Big & Rich has been back together for a little over a year now. They released that awful Hillbilly Jedi album last year and have another in the works. They have been out on tour also.
September 10, 2013 @ 2:09 pm
Yeah, but they’re a part time band at best. Big Kenny just announced some electro solo project. Why don’t we go ahead and nominate Brooks & Dunn again?
September 11, 2013 @ 7:21 am
As far as that goes, why not the Bellamy Brothers? They’re still touring.
September 16, 2013 @ 5:11 am
I hear there’s a mother/daughter duo coming out of East Kentucky, “The Judds”. People say they’re pretty good. Maybe we’ll hear something from them pretty soon?
September 16, 2013 @ 6:56 am
Jeannie Kendall is still touring. If she keeps a cardboard cutout of her dad on stage while she performs could the Kendalls still qualify as a duo? It would add as much to the show as Brian Kelley does to FGL.
September 11, 2013 @ 8:04 am
Thank God I didn’t know that
September 13, 2013 @ 6:53 pm
Even as a fan I have to admit that “Hillbilly Jedi” wasn’t up to par, though I’m sure that you look at Big & Rich in a much harsher light than I. One assumes that the reason they’re already working on a followup already is because of the lackluster impact of “Hillbilly Jedi.” Hopefully it will be better and actually give cause for them to be nominated next year as opposed to being a placeholder.
September 13, 2013 @ 6:33 pm
Actually, Big & Rich regrouped to release a new album last year and are currently working on a followup. Electro Shine is just a side project for Big Kenny and isn’t really country at all and it isn’t trying to be. The whole idea, from what I can tell, is that Kenny takes elements from various genres of music that he likes and combines them into one product in an effort to reach across musical boundaries and prejudices. A cynic might call this a perfect example of the mono genre that Trigger postulates, but I disagree. Big Kenny and also John Rich have always been about mixing genres and creating their own type of music. Electro Shine seems to be Kenny’s attempt at dance music or indie pop; just something for people to have a good time listening to, not “art.” Obviously these reasons are why you don’t see a nomination. More to the point is the fact that they haven’t exactly been printing gold or platinum certifications for Electro Shine over at the RIAA.
September 16, 2013 @ 5:08 am
Hmmm, how can I say this nicely? Who really gives a fuck what those two are doing?
September 16, 2013 @ 2:17 pm
Well, aren’t you just pleasant? In answer to your question, I care because I love their music. Obviously YOU care too or you wouldn’t have even mentioned them in your comment. Regardless, thanks for being “nice.” I’d hate to see what type of asshole behavior you’d perpetrate if you were trying to be “mean.”
Ah, the internet. The only place on planet earth where 95% of the population treats people like shit for no reason.
September 10, 2013 @ 1:01 pm
I am very shocked you did not mention biggest and most offensive snub of the year- carrie underwood deserved an Entertainer nomination and it is a disgrace b
How the CMA voters keep snubbing her. Her tour was massive- over 120 cities in 6 countries 3 continents- and it sold out 98% of its dates plus got great reviews she has paid her dues and grown into a great live performer. I am tired of Pop tart Taylor getting country nominations for her Pop album with dubstep on it. Do people not even care that she cannot sing live and she is not even remotely country? Yet they keep on nominating her- like the big fat elephant in the room that no one has the guts to stop.
I am shocked that you want Taylor to win both Female Vocalist and Album when 1. She cannot sing and 2. Her album is about as country as Snoop Dog. I give up. I guess country music really is dead.
September 10, 2013 @ 2:14 pm
I actually did mention that under the Album of the Year header. I’m not willing to go as far as conspiracy theories, but I agree it is curious why Carrie never seems to get top accolades from the CMA Awards. But if they secretly hated her, why have her host?
“I am shocked that you want Taylor to win both Female Vocalist and Album when 1. She cannot sing and 2.”
I can’t state this more emphatically: Everyone I picked about is who I think will win, not who I want to win. If I had a vote, it would would mostly be “none of the above,” though there may be artists I would rather see win over others, including Carrie Underwood over Taylor Swift.
And trust me, I’ve done my fair share to “stop” Taylor Swift.
September 11, 2013 @ 3:24 pm
Trigger man- it is ABC and the CMA committee that asks Carrie to host. It is not the CMA voters that invite Carrie/Brad. They way the voters snubbed Brad and Carrie this year- i bet if they had their way- poor Carrie would never be asked to host. So yes- i do think they either dislike her- or the voting is all out of skew due to massive politics, label block voting, and vote trading behind closed doors. Zac Brown said this publicly recently- and notice they were snubbed too? They said they won’t play the game. I believe them.
September 11, 2013 @ 5:19 pm
Hey, I’m a believer in the Carrie Underwood snub, but I think it’s more just a case of bigger stars (from a commercial perspective) pushing her down a notch. She did win Female Vocalist of the Year 3 straight years between 2006-2008.
September 11, 2013 @ 5:50 pm
Carrie was the pretty blonde all American sweetheart with the big voice, that Nashville had been looking for, to fill the shoes of an aging Faith Hill. The industry was ready to roll out the red carpet for her. The CMA awards she won showed that people saw her vocal ability, but were not convinced she had the force of personality to be a top entertainer.
September 11, 2013 @ 7:27 am
I actually think Carrie Underwood is just as pop as Taylor Swift. Maybe moreso. I can’t find anything particularly “country” about Good Girl, Blown Away, or Two Black Cadillacs. Any of the three could have been recorded by Debbie Gibson or Tiffany in the 1980s.
Don’t get me wrong, I respect and admire any artist that goes out on the road 200+ days a year to put on a great show for his or her fans. But I’m just not feeling the love for her as a country artist these days.
September 11, 2013 @ 11:21 am
There is a difference between the two. Carrie is a country singer who records pop music. Taylor is a pop singer who used country music fans to get into the pop music scene.
I think Carrie supports country music deep down in her heart, but she wants to please other people and has become a pop music follower as a result. I never got the impression that she was trying to stick a finger in the eyes of country music fans, unlike Shania Twain and Taylor Swift. Carrie has lived the country life and she puts in her time at the Opry. I thought the lyrics of “Blown Away” and “Two Black Cadillacs” were country, but the music and instrumentation were pop. When I heard those songs it sounded to me like she was getting pulled in two different directions.
September 11, 2013 @ 11:47 am
I’m curious, how exactly has Taylor Swift “stuck a finger in the eyes” of country music fans? She went on record earlier this summer thanking country fans for supporting her desire to evolve and experiment, which was a pretty classy and gracious move for someone who is supposedly thumbing her nose at her supporters. Much better than Shania Twain or Olivia Newton-John making disparaging remarks about country music and it’s fans, or mono-genre poster boy Garth Brooks saying that it just shouldn’t matter what kind of music he releases as long as it’s good. Or other artists simply switching from country to pop midstream and expecting the fans to just be okay with it.
I’m really not a fan of either artist at all. Both come across to me as singers who started out on the country side but moved to pop. The only difference is that only one of them acknowledges it.
September 11, 2013 @ 12:17 pm
I’d say that kicking off her album by releasing those Max Martin pop songs was a slap in the face of country music fans. A number of things she has done in the past two years – the Max Martin songs, changing her look, dating the Kennedy boy, etc – suggest that she doesn’t want to be thought of as “country”, maybe she’s too “cool” for us country folks. She’s following the Shania playbook, even if she has been a little more diplomatic about saying goodbye to country music than Shania was. Taylor Swift’s “Red” does remind me of Shania’s “Up!”. I think Taylor’s relationship with country music is similar to John McCain’s relationship to the Republican Party.
I think Carrie is recording pop music because the industry wants to go in that direction, while Taylor is recording pop music because SHE wants to go in that direction.
September 11, 2013 @ 12:24 pm
In other words, Carrie Underwood is only recording pop music because she has sold out for the sake of remaining relevant. Very commendable.
September 16, 2013 @ 2:58 pm
I really don’t care to pursue this discussion any more, but I would like to know why Taylor Swift collaborating with Max Martin is evidence that she isn’t country, but Carrie Underwood working with Mike Elizondo.(Dr. Dre, Eminem) isn’t.
September 11, 2013 @ 2:07 pm
Big difference between Carrie and Taylor- and that is aside from the obvious vocal differences where one struggles to stay on key and the other is as powerful as Martina.
Carrie is proud to be a country artist. She refuses to remix her songs to pop and alwYs identifies herself proudly as a country artist when touring overseas- unlike Taylor who markets herself as pop overseas and “country” in the USA when convenient for award shows.
Carrie is a Grand Ole Opry member and she performed 9 shows there this year alone- unlike Blake who may not have performed there yet in 2013. Taylor has only performed at the Opry twice in her entire career. Shows where her priorities and heart is.
Carrie’s music has pop and rock influence like Shania’s did- but she is country to her core and uses story telling in her writing. Carrie grew up on a Farm in the South. how much more country background do you need?? T
Taylor writes every song about tween boy drama- and uses pop Dubstep with Max Martin. She has never been remotely country- growing up in a very wealthy family in PA and going to Britney Spears Camp.
Taylor remixes a her so-called country songs to pop and promotes herself as a Pop artist overseas where country is not popular. She hangs out at the VMA MTV awards and duets with Jlo and rappers on all her dates but Nashville. Awfully convenient that her only country duets the entire tour are in Nashville. Hmmmm.
September 11, 2013 @ 3:19 pm
Oops- Adrian- i mixed up your post with someone else. Sorry. I would edit it but there is no edit button.
September 12, 2013 @ 7:30 am
I guess I’ll just address this paragraph by paragraph. Not going to “quote” everything so please refer to the above post to see what I’m talking about.
Paragraph 1 – I’ve never heard Taylor Swift struggle to stay on key. Not saying she hasn’t because I don’t listen to her any more than I have to; but for the record, I have heard George Jones sing off key. Usually when it happens with an established artist it’s usually due to a monitor malfunction rather than the artist’s musical ability. Carrie Underwood does have a fine, powerful voice that I like. However, I think she makes some poor choices regarding song selection as she struggles to keep up with up-tempo songs. “Good Girl” is a prime example.
Paragraph 2 – “Pride” really has nothing to do with it. I’m sure that Jason Luke, Bryan Aldean, and FGL are all proud to be country artists.
Paragraph 3 – Opry membership really has nothing to do with it, either. Merle Haggard isn’t a member. Neither are Willie Nelson or Ray Price. Conway Twitty was never even invited to join. But Rascal Flatts are members. So using Opry membership as a guideline, Rascal Flatts is more country than Merle, Willie, Ray, and Conway. And what exactly does Blake Shelton have to do with the discussion?
Paragraph 4 – Carrie has only written a handful of songs, and the two most recent singles that she wrote – “Good Girl” and “Two black Cadillacs” – really display no country influence whatsoever. And where an artist is from really is not part of the equation. Is Buck Owens somehow less country because he grew up in a suburb of Phoenix? I think not.
Paragraph 5 – Is Ronan about a tween breakup? Our Song? The Best Day? Love Story? You said EVERY song Taylor Swift writes is about a tween breakup. Please think before casting broad loops.
Paragraph 6 – Nothing new here. The fact that Taylor Swift is pretty much a pop artist these days has been established, and she has openly stated this. I agree that she shouldn’t be nominated for these awards because during the award period – 2012/2013 – she hasn’t been primarily a country artist. My argument is that Ms. Underwood also has not really been a county artist in that time period and therefore also shouldn’t be nominated. The fact that she is a little more country than Taylor Swift is irrelevant.
Hell, Bachmann-Turner Overdrive is a little more country than Van Halen, does that mean they should be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame?
September 12, 2013 @ 11:06 am
Tom- i will reply to your post more fully lately as I am at work. But I had to reply to two things that are completely inaccurate in your post. I realize you don’t like Carrie and that is fine– but you should get the facts straight before you bash her on her songwriting. She is a very talented songwriter- underrated- and has a few hundred songs she wrote out there on BMI and ASCAP. 1. CArrie has 10 number 1 hits for songs she herself wrote – and that does not count the hundreds of other so gs she has written. Carrie has won numerous BMI awards for songwriting and also A CMA award for number ones she wrote. She also earned a Golden Globe nomination for songwriting for Chronicles of Narnia movie. She wrote 8 songs out of 12 on her current album alone and 7 out of 12 for Play On album. So for you to say she has written ” a handful of songs” is completely false. Also- several of Carrie’s cowrites have been recorded by other artists. Just check her listings at BMI if you don’t believe me. Carrie has written Afew hundred songs easily. 2. I don’t blame you for trying to avoid hearing Taylor sing- most of us do- lol. But ask anyone and they will tell you the truth about her live singing. It is terrible. Go watch her dreadful duet with Stevie Nocks at the Grammys on youtube. It was universally panned around the globe. I get you don’t like Carrie- but I speak the truth.
September 12, 2013 @ 11:48 am
To clarify, when I said she has written a handful of songs, I was referring to the number of hit singles she has written and recorded herself. I realize that I didn’t make this clear at all; I didn’t stop to consider the fact that she has written songs that weren’t released or that were recorded by other artists. But since we’re talking about her in the context of a commercial recording artist vying for awards for singing and entertaining these are really all that matter in the scope of the discussion. I count 9, half of her chart hits. I’ll stand by my assertion that “a handful” is a valid description in this context.
And to be clear, I don’t really “dislike” Carrie Underwood; she’s just not my cup of tea. The point I’m making is that in terms of transition from pop/country artist to purely pop artist she’s pretty much neck-and-neck with Taylor Swift. Saying that there’s a significant difference between the current material of these two artists is like saying there’s a significant difference between Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean.
And I frankly don’t have any problem with Ms. Swift or Ms. Underwood recording whatever the heck kind of music they want to. I don’t find any real fault with either one of these ladies and I wish them the best. I’m not slamming Carrie Underwood when I say her last few singles haven’t been country, I’m just saying that they haven’t been country. What is so offensive about that?
September 11, 2013 @ 11:11 am
I don’t think Taylor deserves to win any more country music awards in any category.
I have a different view of why Carrie has not won a CMA Entertainer of the Year Award. It is not because the industry is snubbing her. To the contrary, she has had the full support of Nashville since she won American Idol in 2005. She had four years starting in 2005 before Taylor won her first Entertainer award in 2009. Carrie’s problem is that her personality makes her a natural number two. She is eager to please other people, so she became a follower. She allowed herself to be pulled in many different directions, and thus never established a strong identity. That made it difficult for her to win the Entertainer award.
I think the real Carrie Underwood is probably like the girl in “Jesus Take The Wheel” and “Don’t Forget To Remember Me”. She was daddy’s little girl and she needs someone else to lead the way.
September 11, 2013 @ 3:16 pm
Adrian – that is completely false about Carrie Underwood! She is proud to be a country artist and keeps all her commitments at the Grand Ole Opry. She writes her own songs and has won several so getting awards. As a Taylor fan- i find your remark quite comical that you would call out Carrie for not deserving country awards?! Lol that is hilarious. Carrie follows no one! She runs her own rave and is proud to be a country artist unlike Taylor who changes her colors depending on Who is in the room at the time.
Taylor is a chameleon who pretends to be country only when convenient for her for more awards. She calls herself pop overseas and remixes all her songs to pop- playing both sides of the fence and fooling enough gullible voters into buying it sadly.
September 11, 2013 @ 3:29 pm
Adrian- I wish I could edit or delete my post to you as I messed up and got confused – long day- need coffee. I misunderstood your post. Sorry!
September 10, 2013 @ 1:02 pm
”2013 may be the last year an artist that in any way can be construed as traditional will be nominated”
It’s still to early to know what might happen in the coming years in country music.It might go down the drain and give in into the ”mono-genre” but I think that their is still a possibility, however unlikely, that a more traditional country singer could rise to prominence, similar to what Strait did in the 80’s. So, who knows?
September 10, 2013 @ 2:17 pm
But who? Who is the big traditionalist making waves and coming up through the ranks? The industry would probably tell you Justin Moore. Once again Jamey Johnson, who for a few years was the one bright spot in the CMA noms, is not here. Kacey could be seen as a bright spot, but she’s more progressive than traditional. I hope I’m wrong, trust me. But we need a name.
September 10, 2013 @ 11:18 pm
Easton Corbin?
Do you think there will actually be a fitting tribute to jones?
September 11, 2013 @ 7:32 am
Wow, great question. I remember when Conway Twitty died, George Jones sang “Hello Darlin'” on one of the awards shows as a tribute.
I’d love to see them have a couple of tenured artists, maybe Randy Travis and Alan Jackson, team up for a duet on “He Stopped Loving Her Today,” and/or have a few more artists take part in a medly of Jones classics.
But they will probably have FGL sing “The Corvette Song” and call it good.
September 11, 2013 @ 1:38 pm
I think Easton Corbin is one of the few who might pull it off.
September 12, 2013 @ 12:34 pm
Not with the lowly sales he has produced thus far.
George Strait’s Platinum-selling days may be over, but he still has a fiercely loyal fanbase that consists of many who will continue to purchase his next five albums for MCA in spite of his diminishing airplay presence (“I Believe” may not even make Top Forty by the looks of it).
Easton Corbin’s sales trajectory just don’t add up to a long-term presence of any sort. His current album hasn’t even cracked 200,000 units sold yet and the title track, despite peaking at #3 on the Country Airplay chart, has peaked at a measly #51 on the Billboard Hot 100 primarily due to weak sales.
I personally think we have yet to be acquainted with the next “traditionalist” who may have the clout to seek Entertainer of the Year.
September 12, 2013 @ 2:31 pm
Dude, the Billboard Hot 100 is barely even relevant when it comes to country music.
September 10, 2013 @ 1:22 pm
That Taylor Swift is even nominated in the Female VOCALIST category is precisely why the CMAs are a complete joke…
September 11, 2013 @ 3:33 pm
Agree! It amazes me how she continues to get so many nominations at country award shows in general when she is pop, can’t sing, and appeals to tween Disney fans. I just don’t get it. I guess Scott Bullshi***a has more power than anyone but Narvel Blackstone and his new Music Mafia of Blake/Miranda/Reba/Kelly.
September 11, 2013 @ 5:53 pm
Theresa, your posts drip with hate and venom for Taylor. Preaching about how Carrie is true country. I’m sure you’ve heard “Good Girl” or “Undo It” and loads more that are not country, actually pure dreck. You say you love Aldean but he is NOT country either. You can’t have it both ways.
Carrie has nominations, but not ETOY. Watching her perform is painful. She is so ill at ease and has no presence or charisma, it’s like watching grass grow. Her singing is mechanical and lacks any feeling. She is not Martina, Reba or Trisha.
And all those #1’s on MediaBase are fraudulent the story is right here. A core group of her fans vote repeatedly, all day, every day. http://boards.gactv.com/eve/forums/a/frm/f/7771090334
September 12, 2013 @ 11:13 am
BAinstrati– you are completely wrong in your hate of Carrie’s live performance skills. I would bet you haven’t seen her recent tours and are just judging her based on her shy stuff stage presence when she first started after American Idol. Her stage presence has improved 10000x since then and her tour reviews reflect that. All her reviews for this tour and her last have shown she is is great live performer with confidence on stage. She plays guitar and piano and flies above the crowd. Over 1 million fans saw her tour this year with 98% of 120 cities sold out. So despite your hate- carrie is clearly doing something right on stage. If anyone is painful to watch or listen to on stage it is Tonedeaf Taylor. But that is another story. Either way- you are wrong about Carries live performance skills and clearly her legions of fans around the world agree. She sold out Australia UK Ireland and even played Singapore a few years ago. Clearly she is doing something right- despite your hate.
September 12, 2013 @ 11:20 am
First- carrie os a great singer who shows tremendous emotion. She used to be shy and stiff on Idol- agree- but she has improved tremendously as is reflected by the 100 plus cities that reviewed her tour. She now shows emotion and great stage presence and confidence.
Did you see the standing ovation she got for her duet with Vince Gill for How Great Thou Art?? Everyone gave her a standing o – even Martina. She is on par with Martina- who I love. So bash her all you want- even Miranda/Blake call her one of the best singers of our time. The youtube video of HGTA has 20 million views for a gospel song. She showed raw emotion and moved many to tears. So you clearly just don’t like her or haven’t seem her recently.
She plays guitar and piano and does engage the crowd. Her tour sold out almost every night- including the Staples Center LA. I guess everyone is wrong but you.
did you see her guns n roses performance at the CMAfest!?? it was the highlight of the night per several papers. she slayed it and even Guns n Roses tweeted her. Jason is country in my opinion. You can disagree but that is fine.
September 12, 2013 @ 11:46 am
So let me get this straight, if charasmatic Taylor flies over the audience and plays 4-5 different instruments it’s all bells and whistles.
But when Carrie does it and plays a few instruments it’s magical. Sorry I saw her first tour and all I remember is how great Josh Turner was.
I liked her long ago I can’t stand caterwauling Carrie.
September 12, 2013 @ 11:24 am
A core group if every artists’ fans vote every day for their artists to get number 1s. So I guess your favorites are fraudulent too! Lmao every fanbase votes and requests: that is their job!!! Every artist does that – so to lash out at Carries fans for voting for her is hypocritical and unfair. All fans do that for every artist!!! Unbelievable hatred – wow.
September 12, 2013 @ 11:53 am
So the fact that Carrie Underwood did a great job on a Guns-N-Roses song is somehow proof that she’s still a country singer? Interesting logic.
September 10, 2013 @ 1:29 pm
Why is the CMA using the Starfleet Insignia from Star Trek?
September 10, 2013 @ 2:24 pm
Because if these nominations are any indication, the CMA is run by space cadets.
September 11, 2013 @ 5:10 am
This isn’t the first time Star Trek & Country have appeared together …
http://www.trekmovie.com/2009/06/17/star-trek-shows-up-at-country-music-awards/
September 11, 2013 @ 3:26 pm
Lol good one Triggerman. But Space Cadets have intelligence. More like morons.
September 10, 2013 @ 1:30 pm
Good for Kacey if she wins something ! It would be cool if king George won but other than that I could care less. Trig, you are going to watch and do the dirty work for us. We appreciate the sacrifice.
i would rather watch paint dry. May the force be with you as you suffer through another CMA fiasco.
September 10, 2013 @ 1:35 pm
I’d be pretty shocked if Taylor Swift won FVotY. It’s between Miranda and Carrie. The industry hates Taylor. Rooting for Kacey of course. And George.
September 10, 2013 @ 9:16 pm
Industry hates Taylor? Looool. She has more industry awards than any other relevant new country artist. New meaning made breakthrough in past 10 years.
September 10, 2013 @ 3:42 pm
Trigger,
You are correct you have tried to stop her. But Im not convinced your criticism is done with the correct intentions. Why does everybody have to try compare thte artist you like by demeaning the other artist. Everybody can sing since they are in the music industry. Some artists have better voices than others but you constantly tear into the other artist.
She is scrutinized like no other artist out there today. Especially by trigger one he says she isn”™t a role because she doesn”™t make her own decisions which isn”™t true. Any research at all would show she dictates that she runs every detail of her music and tour. She just wrote a song for a movie that wasn”™t pushed by her label. The new co writters were brought because they were idols not because what her label was wanting. She can sing live she has improved in this respect the last few years. She has worked hard and getting better singing live. Her popularity isn”™t just her music. Her humantiarism is quite evident of what she is about.
September 16, 2013 @ 11:58 am
Trust me, she does NOT run every detail of her business. That would be her Father. Unless he works for her and she makes him act like a demonic possessed minion. I saw this live and in person while working for Walmart in the Nashville market. He would come in and tell the store manager where the displays of her work were supposed to be located, how many pieces of merch they were supposed to have on hand, etc….
September 10, 2013 @ 3:51 pm
Fingers crossed for Kacey. 😀 Great to see her be nominated though. Out of all the women that are in the mainstream right now, she is by far my favorite and the only one that I’m not completely annoyed with. Plus she’s a song-writer, so she has my respect there and I love how most of her songs tell a story.
September 10, 2013 @ 4:19 pm
Yawn, I haven’t cared or watch the Country My Ass awards in over a decade. I really haven’t kept up with “country music” for nearly 15 years.. With artists like Dale Watson, Wayne Hancock, Strugill Simpson, Miss Leslie, Hank 3’s country stuff and others why would I go back..
September 10, 2013 @ 4:36 pm
This anemic shit being layed down by most current CMA artist nominees is enough to make Waylon and Hank turn over and over in their graves.Taylor and Carrie Fn who ? Turn the CMA over to the little girls and the trouts that run it and move on.Thank God for the Outlaw Country movement.When commercial radio and TV finally die we can stop brainwashing zombie listeners with semi pop singers who couldn’t make it in pop so took on a quasi country identity !
September 10, 2013 @ 6:32 pm
Go George! He did 30 songs at his tour stops this year. That’s a pretty high number for a show like that.
September 10, 2013 @ 6:36 pm
The male vocalist and song of the year nominees just are pitiful.
Are these really the best written songs this year? I know thing are bad in Nashville but are they this bad? Hopeless.
September 10, 2013 @ 7:57 pm
Kellie Pickler should be in Clarkson’s slot, same as last year. Clarkson got it because she’s on a big label block voting and radio played her pop song listeners hate and mediocre duet with Vince Gill more than Pickler and Monroe. Maybe radio thinks they should play big pop stars for ratings rather than build up more country females so they can continue not playing them. I don’t see Clarkson increasing ratings. Most of her fans hate country and aren’t just going to start listening to country radio if they play her, and her songs are a turn off to country fans.
I don’t know if Swift can win album because it’s way too pop to win country awards. When was the last time she won any?
September 11, 2013 @ 11:34 am
I get the feeling that the industry might be trying to recruit Kelly Clarkson to cross over to country when her pop music career slows down. She has a young female fan base that Nashville covets. Of all the current pop singers, she is more likely than most to eventually cross over, due to her small town Texas upbringing and the Reba connection. I don’t think she should be nominated for an award at this year’s CMAs, but if she wanted to be a country singer in the future I think she could be much better than Taylor Swift.
September 11, 2013 @ 3:05 pm
I like Kelly Clarkson as a pop artist- own her cds even. But she does not deserve a Female vocalist nom when she doesn’t even have a country album out yet and her songs are struggling on the country charts.
That 5th slot belonged to either Kellie Pickler or Leann Rimes- both of whom put out real strong albums. They got robbed. It is a double standard to snub Leann for being a Homewrecker but give Jason Aldean EOTY despite his affair? Guess only men are allowed to cheat in country music and come off unscathed. I love Jason and don’t care about his affair- not my business. But it is not right that Leann is blacklisted forever for her affair- when the men can do whatever they want.
October 27, 2013 @ 5:29 pm
People don’t snub LeAnn for her affair, it is b/c she is a bitch and now more known for her tabloid antics & jealousy of an ex-wife reality star than her music.
September 11, 2013 @ 12:45 am
Is there a reason why the Star Trek logo ia up there? Is this because space the final frontier was where they had to go to get these “country acts”. I am surprised the CMAs didn’t thrown in some token real act like Shovel and Rope or The Trisha just to snub them and show how horrid they are.
September 11, 2013 @ 3:25 am
Blimey, same old same old, eh? The only catagory that interests me is Musician of the Year, the rest is just so much corporate BS!
September 11, 2013 @ 4:56 am
I’ll put my ¢¢ on “Same Trailer Different Park” for album of the year. Just because it is the only one on the list that gets better the more you listen to it. The others get worse.
September 11, 2013 @ 7:40 am
I can’t wait to login to Facebook on November 7th to read the posts from the people saying “Why is ________ playing on the CMA awards? The/She isn’t country!” It will be the same posts from the same people as last year. And the year before.
And as usual I’ll reply that “______ is as country than most of the nominees, so what’s your point?” And mention that I haven’t watched that Babylonian-produced tripe for years.
I do look forward to the annual post from my friend Steve referring to Taylor Swift as “Taylor Fartsmeller” because her expression always makes it looks like she smells something unpleasant.
September 11, 2013 @ 11:17 am
1983 cma awards, todays Mainstream county is a far cry from 30 years ago……
Instrumental Group of the Year
Winner: Ricky Skaggs Band
Nominees: Alabama
Charlie Daniels Band
The Whites
Instrumentalist of the Year
Winner: Chet Atkins
Nominees: Johnny Gimble
Charlie McCoy
Hargus “Pig” Robbins
Buddy Spicher
Entertainer of the Year
Winner: Alabama
Nominees: Merle Haggard
Barbara Mandrell
Willie Nelson
Ricky Skaggs
Male Vocalist of the Year
Winner: Lee Greenwood
Nominees: John Anderson
Merle Haggard
Willie Nelson
Ricky Skaggs
Female Vocalist of the Year
Winner: Janie Fricke
Nominees: Lacy J. Dalton
Emmylou Harris
Barbara Mandrell
Reba McEntire
Horizon Award
Winner: John Anderson
Nominees: Vern Gosdin
Reba McEntire
George Strait
The Whites
Vocal Group of the Year
Winner: Alabama
Nominees: Bellamy Brothers
Oak Ridge Boys
Statler Brothers
The Whites
Vocal Duo of the Year
Winners: Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson
Nominees: Bellamy Brothers
Crystal Gayle and Eddie Rabbitt
Merle Haggard and George Jones
Emmylou Harris and Don Williams
Album of the Year
Winner: Alabama
Album Title: The Closer You Get
Nominees: Wild and Blue – John Anderson
It Ain’t Easy – Janie Fricke
Pancho and Lefty – Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson
Highways and Heartbreaks – Ricky Skaggs
Song of the Year
Winners: Wayne Carson, Johnny Christopher and Mark James
Song Title: “Always on My Mind”
Nominees: “Swingin'” – John Anderson and Lionel Delmore
“I. O. U.” – Kerry Chater and Austin Roberts
“If You’re Gonna Do Me Wrong (Do It Right)” – Max D. Barnes and Vern Gosdin
“16th Avenue” – Thom Schuyler
Single of the Year
Winner: John Anderson
Song Title: “Swingin'”
Nominees: “I.O.U.” – Lee Greenwood
“Pancho and Lefty” – Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson
“I Always Get Lucky With You” – George Jones
“Heartbroke” – Ricky Skaggs
September 11, 2013 @ 8:37 pm
not sure that Alabama is all that far a cry from Florida Georgia Line …
September 12, 2013 @ 6:57 am
Well Alabama wrote almost all their songs and I think have a lot of very country songs. Some songs like “Dixieland Delight” could very well be viewed as almost a blugrass song. I think one big differnce is I can’t ever picture a group of extremely respected/talented Americana artists doing a tribute album to FGL.
September 12, 2013 @ 9:19 am
Lets see Alabama vs FGL yes Alabama did there share of pop country songs BUT A big bunch of first rate country songs that a majority of they wrote. FGL should be up for a trop rock award in key west this year not a CMA ! FGL is the worst ACT to be sucessful in many a moon. Trig you are a gluten for punishment but the blog is always entertaining !
September 11, 2013 @ 3:23 pm
OK, ETOY-Sentimental vote should go to George Strait. I think that’s why his name is even on the list. As for the rest of the garbage, the only nominee worth her weight is Kacey and her album is great! Kellie Pickler gets shunned again. Granted Carrie is pop like Taylor, but she can sing circles around Taylor and should be in the ETOY mix. I look forward to the live blog during the show for entertainment because it will be the only way I will be able to tolerate it.
September 11, 2013 @ 9:29 pm
I think that is a big exaggeration. Yes, Alabama was stylistically flexible at times, and some of their songs had pop and rock elements. But can you even imagine Florida-Georgia Line ever recording a song like “Mountain Music”? That’s a classic country song, I’d say.
September 11, 2013 @ 9:45 pm
Tom, I am as frustrated by the pop country trend as you are, but “mono genre poster boy Garth Brooks” is a bit of an exaggeration. Sure, Garth was not pure country by any means, and his song about the rodeo wasn’t nearly as convincing as “Amarillo By Morning”. But he was far more country than Taylor Swift ever was or ever will be. Garth’s music was country with pop and rock influences. Taylor is pop with some country window dressing in the earlier songs. Don’t get me wrong, I would prefer if mainstream country artists would stick to traditional sounds, but Garth gave country fans 60-70% of what they wanted and he does not deserve to be crucified for that.
September 12, 2013 @ 9:02 am
My statement was in reference to a quote Garth himself made years ago, something along the lines of “It shouldn’t matter if the music is country or not as long as it’s good.” So if you think it’s harsh, talk to Garth about it, not me.
I agree that a lot of his music, at least over the course of his first few albums, is solidly country. But the quote makes it seem pretty clear that he was in favor of blended genres. And while I myself like most types of music to some degree, I do like to be able to expect to hear a certain type of song when I turn on a specific station.
September 12, 2013 @ 12:06 am
1) While I agree Aldean is at a strategic disadvantage for “Entertainer of the Year” (I wonder what Aldean REALLY thinks about Bryan leapfrogging him as he did at the ACM’s despite perceptions of their Georgia-born friendship! 😉 )……….I can’t help but think you’re exaggerating just how precipitously his sales have declined.
“Night Train” was released last autumn, and has since sold about 1.3 million units. Yes, that is a notable decline from “My Kinda Party” and its 2.9 million units sold. But when you consider the lack of crossover appeal that buoyed “My Kinda Party”, as well as the crashing and burning of “1994”…………that is STILL superior to both Blake Shelton’s figures, as well as George Strait’s.
Anyway, I don’t think sales matter as much in this category. My money is on “The Decider” for Entertainer of the Year.
*
2) The CMA’s tend to split the Entertainer of the Year and Vocalist of the Year honors, especially when the recipients are the same gender. Luke Bryan will therefore win Male Vocalist of the Year.
*
3) Since Nashville remains indulged in a lovefest with Shelton/Lambert (i.e. “Over You” winning in pretty much every award show imaginable over the past year) Miranda Lambert will handily win Female Vocalist of the Year. It’s not even close.
*
4) “Cruise” easily wins Single of the Year.
*
5) “Based on a True Story” will win Album of the Year.
In my opinion, the nominations in this category are probably the biggest joke of all this year aside from Kacey Musgraves’s release. “Night Train” had outperformed “Based on a True Story” commercially at the time the nominating process was underway. So did the Zac Brown Band’s “Uncaged”. Critically, Ashley Monroe’s “Like A Rose” deserved a bid, especially with the boost she has received from her feature on Train’s current single “Bruises”.
*
6) “Wagon Wheel” will easily win Song of the Year.
Why? Because “Cruise” has a death grip on the Single of the Year Category, and Rucker’s record is the second best selling “country” single of 2013 to date. Billboard Hot 100 chart peaks also generally prove a surefire indication of a release’s overall appeal, and a #15 peak is outstanding for a “country” release.
*
7) Kacey Musgraves pulls somewhat of an upset and wins New Artist of the Year over Florida-Georgia Line for the reason you already stated.
This isn’t the ACM’s we’re talking about here. This is the CMA’s, so Florida-Georgia Line lack the field advantage.
*
8) The Civil Wars pull an upset in the Vocal Duo of the Year category in light of their dissolution and………………JUST KIDDING! Florida-Georgia Line reign supreme! 😉
*
9) The Band Perry win Vocal Group of the Year (why in the hell indeed aren’t the Pistol Annies listed? >=( )
Lady Antebellum aren’t even a close contender in my view anymore. This group has resided largely in the off-period over this past year, since “Wanted You More”, the fourth single from “Own The Night”, barely dented the Top Twenty. Granted “Downtown” became a convincing hit in the spring, but “Goodbye Town” has just officially stalled outside the Top Ten on country radio and their current album “Golden” has sold abysmally.
The Band Perry have this clinched.
*
10) “Highway Don’t Care” will defeat “Cruise” in the Vocal Event of the Year category due to divisions in the blocs over Nelly’s appearance on “Cruise” and the fact most stations have eschewed the remix entirely.
*
11) “Mama’s Broken Heart” takes Video of the Year.
*
12) It’s between Paul Franklin and Sam Bush for Musician of the Year.
*
*
Oh, and…
*
13) Florida-Georgia Line and Lockheed Martin team up in a new exclusive corporate partnership to sell President Obama’s Syria agenda.
Their intensive campaign will launch with a television advertisement blitz during the live telecast of the 2013 CMA Awards: featuring a newly-released remix of their previous #1 hit “Get Your Shine On”…………..featuring revised lyrics that would make Obama, McCain and Graham proud:
“Get your shine on, cuz you and me be bombin’ all night long…” (shudders) -__-
*
September 12, 2013 @ 12:24 am
My comment on Jason Aldean’s sales has to do more with him having to make up for his complete lack of substance with some overwhelming sales numbers to justify Entertainer of the Year honors. And though his numbers are still strong, they won’t be strong enough.
September 12, 2013 @ 12:55 am
Can’t the exact same thing be said for Blake Shelton too, however? (at least post “Pure BS” Blake?)
Shelton, too, has been releasing nothing but shallow material since “Who Are You When I’m Not Looking” reached #1. And unlike Aldean, who has went five-for-five on Platinum certifications despite producing mostly shallow, disposable output………Shelton is a pitiful two-for-seven (I say two because his current album is trending all but likely to be his best selling record to date).
Anyway, sales are being overstated here as is. Shelton is going to win this because of his enviable name recognition beyond the “country” format itself and this rabid Shelton-Lambert lovefest in Nashville.
September 12, 2013 @ 8:21 am
The reason Blake Shelton won Entertainer of the Year last year, and the reason will be if he wins again this year, will be because he is the most popular judge on the most popular show on television right now.
September 12, 2013 @ 12:36 pm
Precisely what I meant by “enviable name recognition”. That and being Mr. Lambert! 😉
September 12, 2013 @ 1:03 am
Trigger,
I don’t know what will happen in the awards show. They are always a crapshoot but I do think Taylor Swift will win entertainer of the year. Her tour has been very successful and it is about ready to finish her 6 month sold out tour. Also, she isn’t leaving country any time soon. She is testing out new genres with a different sound. Actors are allowed to take different roles to test their acting ability and that’s what she is doing. You keep trying to pigeon hole country music into one sound. Country Music at its heart is about the lyrics and that hasn’t changed. Every single song on this album had a purpose and a reason why it was written. WANEGBT was written a very poppy way for a reason and it is very easily to find that out. She has never proffesed to be the best singer but thats not the reason she is popular its due to the fact where she connect with her fans (not just teens and tweens).
September 12, 2013 @ 8:22 am
You’re persistent if nothing else Rachel. I’ll give you that.
September 17, 2013 @ 2:22 am
Trigger,
You are right I am persistent. You like to criticize but you don’t like when you are called out. You don’t like a real discussion
September 12, 2013 @ 8:41 am
I’m not a Taylor Swift fan (although I do tolerate her for my 8-year-old daughter’s sake – better her than Miley Cyrus) but I don’t think she’s really representative of what’s “wrong” with country music today.
“Cross-genre” artists have been a part of country music since the beginning; heck, R&B bandleader Louis Jordan had 3 top 10 country hits (2 reached #1) in 1943-1944.
September 12, 2013 @ 9:43 am
Tom, I agree that there is nothing inherently wrong with cross-genre artists. But there is an important distinction between 1) a pop/rock artist recording a great song that fits the country genre, and 2) a pop singer using country music as a stepping stone to get into the pop scene, and pushing purely pop songs to country radio. For example, John Denver was mainly a pop and folk singer, yet “Country Roads” was a better song for the country genre than 90% of the new songs released to country radio today. On the other hand there is no redeeming value in playing “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” on country stations.
Also I’m not sure why you think Taylor is good for your daughter. Some people seem to think of Taylor and Miley in terms of light and darkness, but from my perspective they are two shameless self promoters and one happens to be more cunning and manipulative than the other. Miley is actually less insidious because everyone knows she is being ridiculous to get attention and she isn’t trying to be a “role model”. I think Taylor sets a poor example that many girls mistake for a good one. If I had a daughter I would not want her to grow up learning to play the victim. I would not want her to date lots of people, break up with them, and then record lyrics bad mouthing them either. Proponents praise Taylor for being nice to her fans. Duh. It’s easy to be nice to fans. It’s harder to be nice to your ex, when you stand to make millions by writing not so nice lyrics about him. But I suppose you might have been among the stressed out parents who saw Taylor’s speech about being a “role model” on 60 Minutes and drank the Kool-Aid. Sorry, but in the real world being a role model is not just about the clothes you wear.
September 12, 2013 @ 10:09 am
“2) a pop singer using country music as a stepping stone to get into the pop scene, and pushing purely pop songs to country radio.”
Why are you unable to comprehend that this is exactly what Carrie Underwood has done with her last four single releases?
And for the record – not that you care – “We Are Never Getting Back Together” was originally only released to AC and CHR stations. It wasn’t released to country radio until programmers started asking for it. She’s not pushing her pop singles to country radio so much as country radio is pulling her pop singles in.
And regarding letting my daughter listen to Taylor Swift vs. Miley Cyrus, you’re reading way too much into this. I prefer Taylor Swift simply because I don’t have to worry about my daughter seeing her flash her bare, chicken-skin ass on an awards show or sing songs promoting the use of recreational drugs. If you don’t understand why this is a big deal than I can only assume (and hope) that you aren’t a parent.
September 13, 2013 @ 1:49 pm
I don’t really care about the conversation at hand because it doesn’t matter whose “More Pop”, but to say Taylor didn’t plan on releasing WANGBT to country radio is false. Scott Borchetta cut a deal for it to be played on country radio every hour which explains the #13 debut. If country radio was begging for the song I think it would have passed it’s debut which it did not.
September 12, 2013 @ 12:39 pm
Rachael, by that logic, wouldn’t Jason Aldean at the very least have a viable shot at winning too?
His “Night Train” tour has resulted in the selling out of stadium venues. He has broken numerous attendance records this year. Does that not count for something?
I think both are at a great disadvantage in winning, frankly, but if you’re going to point to tours as a metric for why she is a frontrunner, then you must accept Jason Aldean’s case is emboldened by his strong tour too! 😉
September 12, 2013 @ 3:53 pm
Rachel, Noah, Tom you guys are missing the point, Aldean, Swift and that whole genre of people are not country artists, they fall into a category of music that is neither rock or country, it’s shallow non-meaningful garbage.and unfortunatley in the end up with the tag of country. This music is catered to an audience that cannot decide for themself what music they like and let everybody around them decide or chance being “un-cool”. Long story short, take this mis-branded trash and go else where, real honest to god country music fans know country music and are true to what they like, even if it is not “cool”! Its simple this music is manufactured for teenagers, like everything else teenagers do in a few years the fad will be over. Its kinda the flavour of the week shit. Terrible fucking shit!!
September 12, 2013 @ 4:31 pm
With all due respect, I believe you’re missing the point.
We’re not discussing the issue of authenticity here in the scope of country music. We’re discussing the 2013 Country Music Awards. If you’ve glanced back at many of my archived contributions, I’m generally quick at putting “country” in quotation marks when discussing what I agree with you is largely shallow, disposable eardrum landfill that nonetheless dominates the “country” radio format.
You insult my intelligence when you make the sweeping claim that I’m among a demographic that “cannot decide for themself what music they like and let everybody around them decide or chance being ‘un-cool’.” or claim I have no knowledge of what country music is and being true to what I like. Most of what I truly revel in (not just the “country” format either, by the way) are artists you won’t even find in the hinterlands of the “country” radio establishment. I also listen to “country” radio because I am an occasional reviewer that feels the need to scrutinize the format and its trendlines so I can more effectively explain WHY it sucks as opposed to merely interjecting “This sucks!”
In this context, though, you’re going to find trace amounts of “true country music” represented at the Country Music Awards (at least in its present carnation). That’s not the point. The point of this thread is to briefly set our opinions of “country” radio superstars and celebrities aside and how much merit they actually are warranted………..and analyze each respective artist’s standing in every given category based on their inner-format appeal, outer-format appeal, sales, name recognition, tour revenue, connections with Nashville and so forth.
I discussed Jason Aldean and Taylor Swift not because I actually adore this “mis-branded trash” (I’m not a fan of either artist, especially Aldean, but can nonetheless also willingly when they have an individual cut or effort that is worthwhile)…………but because I’m contributing to the discussion at hand and comparing and contrasting Swift’s sales and tour revenue with Aldean’s sales and tour revenue to get a flavor as to who is better primed for the category they’re competing in. And if merely discussing this is capitulating to “mis-branded trash”, so be it.
September 13, 2013 @ 7:25 am
I’m with Noah, I think you’re misunderstanding the topic of this particular discussion.
To make my stance perfectly clear, I am not a fan of pop/country acts like Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, and Rascal Flatts.
That being said, pop/country has had a presence in country music since the beginning of time so I don’t really think that those artists are the real problem with country music today.
I believe that the prevalence of interchangeable douchenozzle wannabe country boy poseurs like Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean is what makes today’s mainstream country much more intolerable now than at any other time in the history of the genre.
As to the current discussion; Like Noah mentioned, we’re talking about the 2013 CMA award nominees. Because the nominees are primarily country/pop artists andthe aforementioned interchangeable douchenozzle wannabe country boy poseurs, that’s who we are talking about. Not because we like them, but because they are the topic of discussion in this section. I would normally completely ignore a discussion on this topic but felt that I had to set the record straight for a couple of fangirls who seem to think that Carrie Underwood is less of a pop sellout than Taylor Swift. End of story.
September 12, 2013 @ 1:04 pm
The difference between actors and singers is that I can watch the previews and decide whether or not I want to watch a movie before I watch it. But when I turn on the radio to listen to some music I should have a reasonable expectation as to the kind of music I hear. When I turn on a country radio station I want to hear country music, not pop music.
That being said, I don’t blame Taylor Swift or any other artist for singing whatever the heck they want to sing. The problem I have is when “country” radio stations choose to play those pop songs.
September 12, 2013 @ 1:45 pm
I’m looking forward to the Ameripoltian awards than this train wreck.
September 12, 2013 @ 2:29 pm
They really have those? I might actually watch that one.
Although, in general, I tend to agree with Waylon; I’m not a big fan of artists competing against each other. I like what I like, whether anybody else does or not really doesn’t mean a damn thing.
September 14, 2013 @ 3:42 pm
Here’s the url
http://ameripolitanaward.com/
October 23, 2013 @ 9:45 am
I wish the Tornado and Blown Away power ballads would go extinct….just another part of the new crap machine.
November 3, 2013 @ 10:09 am
It’s only 3 days and 5 hours until the CMA’s start….yay!!!
Jason Aldean won’t win…yay!!!
Kenny won’t win…yay!!!
My fave earthworm with lips won’t win…yay!!!
November 6, 2013 @ 1:29 pm
You people need to stop crying about who does or does not get nominated at these award shows these days. This is the new country. Don’t like it, Turn off the radio and TV. Cause Nashville is cashing in.
November 6, 2013 @ 8:13 pm
Well thank you George and Alan, nice to hear some real country music,,,