Ratings Tank for the 2018 CMA Awards–Performers See Boost
It was a good night for Chris Stapleton, Kacey Musgraves, Carrie Underwood, and Keith Urban, who all picked up significant trophies. But the ratings for the 52nd Annual CMA Awards took a nosedive in the overnight numbers, dropping over 1/3rd from the previous year among key audience numbers, and falling to the lowest head count in the last decade, despite still winning the night among the major networks.
Broadcast on ABC Wednesday night (11-14), the 2018 CMAs pulled a 2.1 rating in the coveted 18-49 demographic, with 10.06 million total viewers. That’s a sharp, 34% decline among the 18-49 crowd, and a 29.5 percent drop in total viewers from 2017’s 14.29 million count. The ratings also dropped more than a point from 2017’s 3.2 rating. This means the 2018 CMA Awards were the least-watched in the last decade, even falling below the 2016 numbers when the presentation went head-to-head with Game 7 of the World Series where the Chicago Cubs took home their first championship since 1908.
The CMA Awards still won the night though, including every half-hour segment. FOX pulled an overall 1.3 rating, led by their hit show Empire. NBC was third with 1.2, showing their Chicago-themed shows Chicago Med, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Fire. And CBS came in fourth with 1.0 airing Survivor, SEAL Team, and Criminal Minds. These were the overnight numbers according to Nielsen.
Viewership for the CMA Awards For The Last 10 Years:
2018–10.06 million
2017—14.29 million
2016—12.5 million
2015—13.6 million
2014—16.1 million
2013—16.8 million
2012— 13.6 million
2011—16.3 million
2010—16.45 million
2009—17.2 million
2008 —15.9 million
Lower ratings didn’t keep certain artists and songs from spiking in sales on iTunes. The morning after, “She Got The Best Of Me” by Luke Combs rocketed to #6 on the all-genre charts. This was followed by Dan+Shay’s “Tequila” at #7, Brett Young’s “Mercy” at #8, and Chris Stapleton’s “Broken Halos” at #9, which won Single of the Year and Song of the Year. None of these songs were in the Top 25 when the CMA Awards started.
Album of the Year winner Kacey Musgraves has also spiked via iTunes, with Golden Hour was at #5 on the all-genre chart, just ahead of Kane Brown’s brand new album Experiment. The Pistol Annies Interstate Gospel was at #11, Luke Combs’ This One’s For You at #12, Album of the Year nominee From A Room Vol. 2 from Chris Stapleton at #15, and Eric Church’s Desperate Man was at #16. It won’t be until next week’s official charts before we’ll be able to gauge the true impact of the 2018 CMA Awards, but many of the winners and performers definitely saw a boost.
Overall though, the CMA presentation felt flat at the beginning, and the sound of many of the performances was washed out. On an evening when the CMAs had no major competition, they struggled to find a significant audience. Fluctuations in ratings happen year-to-year and the overall audience for television events has been on the steady decline in the last decade. But a 29% to 34% loss in audience in one year is very significant.
November 16, 2018 @ 8:59 am
The pop confections of Kane Brown and Kacey Musgraves will save us all. Srsly you guys!
November 16, 2018 @ 12:11 pm
Lumping those two together solodifies your ignorance.
Foghorn Leghorn could put out a record and you’d call him a poseur.
November 16, 2018 @ 12:42 pm
Ah say, ah say, I would call him a poseur. A COMposeur, son, — pay attention, boy — and NOT country.
November 16, 2018 @ 8:59 am
Could it be that country music has shifted from it’s roots so much in the last decade that those of us who fell in love with the genre in the 70’s and 80’s are now disappointed with the lack of true artists???? Just my opinion.
November 16, 2018 @ 9:28 am
Younger people don’t watch broadcast TV, and they definitely don’t watch broadcast TV live. They’re also more fickle. Kane Brown fans aren’t country music fans. They’re Kane Brown fans. Older, TV-watching individuals are the bread and butter of country music, and a production like the CMA Awards is just not going to appeal to them as much with the roster of talent.
November 16, 2018 @ 9:06 am
I wonder why, Trig. Maybe it’s because the majority of the performers are pop country (except for Ricky Skaggs, Chris Stapleton and a few others).
November 16, 2018 @ 9:32 am
I thought the beginning of the 2018 CMA Awards was really flat, and not just because I’m not a fan of Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean. I just don’t think they gave folks a reason to keep watching. The sound was washed out, the performances were unimpressive, and there’s too many other entertainment options out there to stay glued to your TV. We’re also in the post Bro-Country era, and all of those fickle fans have left the building.
November 16, 2018 @ 9:36 am
What percentage of it do you have to stick around for, to be considered having watched it?
November 17, 2018 @ 5:20 am
I didn’t watch this particular one, but the sound has been terrible for a long time on that show for the performances, which I think is really weird for a music performance show.
I recall watching the whole thing as a kid with my family… but my sis and I don’t even bother anymore.
November 16, 2018 @ 9:12 am
I only tuned in to see Pistol Annies and Ricky Skaggs. I nearly turned it off after the amateur Kelsea Ballerini chair thing. It still make me nauseas to think if it. That had to be the lowest point in CMA history. I think she’s the new pubic enemy number one in country music. Anyways, I’m glad I stayed tuned in… Pistol Annies, Ricky Skaggs, and Chris Stapleton was worth the wait. Like this country, country music is truly divided. It was two different award shows for two different genres.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:16 am
Good point. The more the CMA’s try to keep the real folks in the building––like Skaggs, Stapleton, and Musgraves––the more they underscore that the current mainstream “country” acts are not recognizably country in any sense of the tradition.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:20 am
Kelsea should get an even bigger backlash than what Taylor Swift was getting…….nauseating in every sense.
November 16, 2018 @ 12:08 pm
Well well hells bells I was wanting Miranda Lambert to win she all country although she sings with her pistal Annie’s they are great I don’t know where chris Stapleton com from but we didn’t know every voted
For he comes out know where and wins all the award he can’t sing.
November 16, 2018 @ 3:26 pm
Norma, Norma, Norma. Lunchtime is way too early to start drinking, ma’am.
November 17, 2018 @ 6:41 am
Norma, may I suggest the book: ‘Hooked On Phonics’? – You’re welcome.
November 18, 2018 @ 6:26 am
Y’all calm down. I think Norma might just be a little touched.
November 16, 2018 @ 9:20 am
Could it be that those of us who fell in love with the genre in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s can’t find anything remotely country in today’s songs? Just my opinion….. but if the shoe fits….
November 16, 2018 @ 9:56 am
Well, I was at a church auction until probably 7:30, and when I got home I watched a two-year-old rerun of Law & Order: SVU on Hulu. So I certainly didn’t contribute.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:09 am
I’ve totally given up on mainstream country at this point. Just not interested anymore. Saw no reason to watch last night, just as I see no reason to listen to country radio anymore.
Plus, the “country” singers are all such fake looking douchebags, and maybe even more pretentious than Hollywood.
Hard pass.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:10 am
I guess you could use anything that happened to justify the lower ratings. Maybe people are sick of Chris Stapleton winning all these awards and barely having any new material.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:17 am
I also believe the industry produces singles people like on the radio but there is no connection to the artist beyond that so they in turn don’t go running to watch the awards because of that disconnect. What led me to these shows was the connection and admiration I felt for the artists.
Like Trig stated, when a guy has to announce his name and how many consecutive #1’s he has had after his performance, that says a lot.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:33 am
Very good point. Albums tell the story of an artist. At least they’re supposed to. Singles are a one-use consumable that you throw away afterwards. It doesn’t allow for that emotional connection with an artist.
November 16, 2018 @ 12:48 pm
How can we have emotional connections with confected industry personas? It’s all fake.
I don’t know a helluva lot about Carrie Underwood, but it looks like she was just some Okie who impressed Simon Cowell one day and went on to be a big star. Cowell saw that, in addition to having a great vocal talent, Carrie was one of us. So we cheer her on.
It’s when we suspect the industry is putting one over on us that we tune out. It’s pretty funny to see how people like some commenters above are still confused by all this.
November 16, 2018 @ 5:32 pm
That’s bullshit. Before the Beach Boys, singles were the only thing on existence and fans had plenty of connection with the artists. Hell, you can see what your favorite artist is having for lunch with social media, Trigg. If that ain’t a connection, what is?
November 16, 2018 @ 6:24 pm
The singles of Hank Williams and other early popular artists are leagues ahead of what we get today. They could say in one single what many modern artists struggle to say in an entire album today.
November 18, 2018 @ 8:40 pm
10″ country EP’s go back to the late 40’s (e.g. Merle Travis’ “Folk Songs of the Hills” from 1947).
Before that, radio programs like Opry and Louisiana Hayride allowed performers to go beyond the limitations of the two-sided 78 rpm.
Country concept albums predate rock concept albums. For example, Hank Thompson’s “Songs for Rounders” appeared 7 years before “Pet Sounds” and 8 years before “Sgt. Pepper.”
November 18, 2018 @ 8:42 pm
Correction: Folk Songs of the Hills was originally an album of multiple 2-sided 78’s and was later released as a 10″ EP.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:21 am
A theory; with the awards being mostly meaningless, aside from Musgraves’ win, and only a handful of the performances worth watching, most country fans would’ve found it more worthwhile to skip the live broadcast and watch the best parts online the day after. I only watch for the performances and this year I was seriously questioning my choice to give up three hours of my time for a show that delivered only about twenty minutes of somewhat memorable content.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:25 am
How does DVR recording play into ratings? My assumption is they count it as a viewing?
November 16, 2018 @ 10:31 am
The DVR +3 and +7 (days) ratings will be released later, and though they will result in more people watching it, they usually hold serve with the overnight numbers in regards to ratings share unless there’s some huge, buzzy moment, which I’m not sure the 2018 CMA Awards had.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:28 am
I admit I didn’t watch either. Didn’t last year. And yes I watched Cubs in World Series in 2016. But could it also be that general audience sees the same people being nominated and went meh. Someone posted when you listed the nominations while back that you would think it’s 2016. Nothing new (except Kacey winning) or fresh. Not sure what award shows can do to bring in more viewers.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:57 am
I think it’s certainly time for some new hosts on this one. 11 years for Brad and Carrie!!?? C’mon man. The show looks like a rerun. Stale as all hell. New performers, nominees and winners wouldn’t hurt either…lol
November 16, 2018 @ 11:50 am
Question we were debating watching…who is the new younger stars that could do it?
November 16, 2018 @ 1:29 pm
Kellie Pickler and Ben Aaron. As much as I love Brad & Carrie, the show is looking the same year after year. It’s time for new hosts, and IMHO, a change of venue. Take it back to the Opry or at least a non-arena. Focus on the music, not the spectacle. But definitely, I would love to see Pickler & Ben host.
November 16, 2018 @ 12:23 pm
I wouldn’t mind new hosts, but Brad and Carrie seem to still be held in pretty high regard in terms of hosting throughout entertainment. This definitely wasn’t their best monologue, but they’ve still been solid the last few years. I’m just worried because any other country award show in their last 11 years had horrendous hosts, until the ACMs went back to Reba because everyone else crashed so hard. If they continue, I’d like to see them do more parodies again, rather than so many jokes. They still do a really nice job with the smaller sections throughout the show too.
Brad and Carrie have been a really good and classy representation of country, and I’m just not sure right now who could take over and stay on par. But I’m not against new hosts.
November 16, 2018 @ 6:28 pm
Generally speaking I think Brad and Carrie are great. I thought they did a good job last year. This year, most everything fell flat. Comedy works best when it’s edgy. They were walking on eggshells after an extremely small minority complained about the Trump jokes last year, which were playful and fine.
Remember Dierks and Luke Bryan hosting the ACMs? Yes, it could be much worse.
November 16, 2018 @ 12:51 pm
Clint’s right. Who else could do it? We saw the disaster that was Luke and Dierks hosting the ACM’s. You have to be personable, likable, have a sense of humor, be a bit self-deprecating, and so forth. Brad and Carrie have all of that. This was not their best year, in terms of humor, but they’ve done a great job on the whole for these 11 years. God forbid we have Kelsea and Kane co-hosting the CMA’s, and that’s what we’ll get at this rate. So, I’m happy if Brad and Carrie can go another 11 years.
November 16, 2018 @ 1:05 pm
There’s no reason the hosts have to follow the Brad & Carrie model. Why not have Marty Stuart run a clinic on amazing musicians in country music today, and have the industry awards be afterthoughts?
Ah, because the show is actually about the industry congratulating ITSELF.
Hard pass.
November 16, 2018 @ 3:53 pm
I vote for Johnny Knoxville & Roger Alan Wade!
November 16, 2018 @ 1:34 pm
I suppose Sunny & Sturgill is out of the question?….LOL
Sarah & Whitey? Nah…… they’d never do it…..
Cody & Ashley?….. Pardi & Kacey might work for 2021.
Heck, let’s start training Mason Ramsey?…Ahhhhh shit you guys are right there isn’t anyone with talent, looks AND personality, (I’m kidding of course those 9 have it and then some) except they have to already be multi platinum household names in PopCountry music which leaves some of our hero’s out. I hated those other awards hosts combos as well.
Brad and Carrie another 11 years it is!!
January 11, 2019 @ 10:00 am
Brad and Carrie make fools of themselves trying to be funny; they’re not…I forced myself to watch for 1/2 hr. and couldn’t take it anymore, the music was god awful.
November 16, 2018 @ 11:23 am
I posted this on Facebook and many people seemed to relate, so I’ll post it here too. This sentiment is why the ratings are why ratings are plummeting:
Country Music sickens me.
It has been beaten, defeated, and replaced with something that isn’t even close to what it started as.
There have been lots and lots of red flags and heartbreak. Sam Hunt with “Body Like a Backroad”, Walker Hayes with “You Broke Up with Me”, and the *PURELY POP SONG* “Meant To Be” by Bebe Rexha (ft. The Two Tools Themselves), becoming the longest charting #1 song in country music history due to blatantly biased and inauthentic spins on pop radio that Billboard now allows to count as spins for country radio.
All of this has been terribly difficult to watch, but nothing was as devastating as watch Keith Urban win Entertainer of the Year at the 2018 CMA’s last night. For someone to have completely abandoned anything that could even resemble country music with their latest record, Graffiti U, and then be rewarded with the highest distinction of the year is abysmal.
There were SOME glimmers of hope last night. Chris Stapleton of course won Male Vocalist, and Single/Song of the year, but Chris is starting to become a scapegoat for the CMA’s to say “look, we voted for him so obviously we care somewhat about country music!”
No you don’t.
Kacey Musgraves winning album of the year was huge too. I’m not sure if you’ve heard her album “Golden Hour” but you should. No, it’s not “classic country” but songs like Slow Burn, Space Cowboy, Rainbow, and others on that record truly show that songwriting is still important, a banjo and a steel guitar can still be utilized without your record sounding “dated”, and there’s more to a song than just a catchy pop beat. It was also a win for women in a market that considers them tomatoes on a salad (Google that if you dont get the reference to women in country music).
Luke Combs winning new artist of the year was a bright spot too. I didn’t buy his record, I have never seen him live, I was iffy about “Hurricane” , but I would much rather see a homegrown boy like himself, who isnt trying to be something he isn’t, winning than someone like Kane Brown who doesn’t care about country music or its legacy at all, he just cares about a paycheck.
Brad Paisley, The Pistol Annie’s, and surprisingly, Garth Brooks all had very good, and very COUNTRY performances. Eric Church performed a song he cowrote with freakin’ Ray Wylie Hubbard. He also gave Joanna Cotten a time to shine in the national spotlight (Another woman who was screwed over by Corporate labels). I was wishing that Hubbard would have made an appearance, but still:
Authenticity. Real instruments.
All the way up until they announced Entertainer of the Year, I thought country music had hope.
I’m not sure if anyone watched the Americana awards a few weeks ago, or if anyone knows who Tyler Childers is (listen to “Feathered Indians” & proceed to fall in love) but Tyler Childers won Emerging Artist of the year at the Americana Awards, and he specifically called out the industry and said he was under the impression he made a COUNTRY record. We must stop labeling everything that’s actually country as “Americana” or “Folk” or whatever misnomer you want to give it. Let country music be country music.
I’m fine with SOME mainstream country, but Keith Urban is the worst of the worst there is. He will go down in history as the most embarrassing Entertainer of the Year ever.
I know a lot of people will claim that this is an over reaction and that it’s just music and let everyone listen to what they please, but I cannot sit by while an institution as revered and as important as country music is torn to shreds. Country music is important to me, it’s important to this nation, and it’s important to the world. Where did the days of 3 chords and the truth go? It is embarrassing to tell people that I listen to country music because it has become such a God-awful genre. If you turn on the radio and listen for an hour you’ll hear maybe 1 actual country song. Just because you say “beer” or “truck” in a song doesn’t make it country.
And no, I don’t want country music to always sound like Merle and Waylon and Willie and Cash, etc. I COMPLETELY understand and love the fact that country music must evolve. Folks like Jon Pardi, Dierks Bentley, Kacey Musgraves, Midland, Eric Church, Chris Stapleton, Brad Paisley, Scotty McCreery, and so many others are doing so much to allow country music to evolve without it becoming unrecognizable.
Most of the time if someone says “I hate country music, except for ________” the artist that’s in the blank is a pop artist who knows they would be swallowed whole by the pop industry. Country music shouldn’t be the dumping grounds for Pop-Star rejects. We need more people who have dedicated their lives, their talents, their tears, and their entire soul to country music.
I know there have to be others out there that are sick of the steaming piles of garbage that are passed off as “country artists” these days.
Congratulations, Keith Urban.
You won and Country music lost.
November 16, 2018 @ 11:56 am
#1s are usually poor quality songs. If you can’t get great #1, I doubt the Awards are meaningful. That’s where the problem is. real country fans are not fooled. They know that this is a sub par product.
November 16, 2018 @ 12:05 pm
It’s like going to a buffet.So much crap you pass by and search for the real stuff. Problem is yall got to pay full price for a shit sandwich you won’t even go near and hope there is an appetizer in there some where you can munch on.
November 16, 2018 @ 12:33 pm
A 2.1 demo for the CMA awards is equivalent to what hit shows like The Big Bang Theory and This Is Us average each week. Yes, a 2.1 is a major fall from last year’s 3.2 demo… But every award show and sitcom experience % declines in viewership from year to year. Tv numbers are falling due to dvrs, streaming services…
Besides football, the CMA award show should rank as the #3 most watched telecast of the week. (Go look at tvbythenumbers website come Monday)
2.1 demo is decent in todays tv ratings climate for any show.
It’s still a sharp fall from last year, but next year it will probably get a 1.8 demo.
November 16, 2018 @ 6:31 pm
Everybody loves to blame DVRs for ratings these days, but they don’t factor into the ratings themselves, only the head count. The rating is still a percentage of the overall television audience. Also, TiVo was introduced 20 years ago.
November 16, 2018 @ 8:52 pm
I thought dvr factored into same day + 7 (after 7 days) according to Tvbythenumbers site. Maybe I’m wrong though. But most award shows, live shows, sports don’t rack up big dvr viewerships. Only scripted shows.
November 16, 2018 @ 1:06 pm
While I think Brad and Carrie represent the genre extremely well, the opening monologue fell a bit flat compared to other years. I just don’t know who could take on such a role. I think Blake Shelton is great at hosting….would love to see Vince back, of course.
It’s nice to see the CMA giving exposure opportunities to the next generation – especially people like Ashley McBryde and Lindsay Ell. However, there seems to be a lot of entitlement issues with some of these newer acts.
There was Kane Brown who took to social media complaining about his lack of nominations…Dustin Lynch made a similar stance earlier this year regarding his single not being nominated for an ACM Award….then yesterday, Dan of Dan + Shay made a long Instagram post about not winning any CMA Awards this week, mentioning how he spent the entire next day being sad and how hard they worked. He appeared as if he was almost crying, or at least visibly shaken when the Brothers Osborne took home the award….I don’t ever recall the Bellamy Brothers being emotionally affected after losing the award for 15 consecutive years. It shows how many of these mainstream acts simply care about the fame, awards, and the need for gratification.
I think the CMA has improved their efforts on ensuring that talent like Ricky Skaggs, Alan Jackson, Loretta Lynn, etc. are featured on the show the last few years….but so much more could be done. It baffles me that legends like Merle Haggard and George Jones last appeared performing on the show in 1999 and 2004 when they each lived and continued their careers many years after those performances.
There such a concern for award shows to create “moments” in hopes that they go viral or create a buzz….so they pair pop stars and b-list stars…but country music is so much better than that….we don’t need Bebe Rhexa…we have people like Ricky Skaggs and Marty Stuart who show up and prove that talent and good songwriting overpowers any commercialized and strategic efforts.
November 16, 2018 @ 1:13 pm
We got home around 8:15 from visiting family. I read the article on here about the line up for the night and it just didn’t impress me, so I didn’t even bother turn it on. If they want more people to watch, make the Country Music Awards, COUNTRY Music Awards. Problem solved.
November 16, 2018 @ 3:35 pm
Why am I not surprised by this?
November 16, 2018 @ 3:40 pm
I grew up with the oldies playing on the radio in my dad’s car, and the country station playing in my mom’s car. I can sing the chorus to every single 90s and early 2000s country radio hit because I’ve heard them so many times in my youth. My mom called me Wednesday night halfway through the show (we always call each other Wednesday nights), and told me she had it on for the first hour but turned it off because it was too pop and uninteresting. Maybe the new Nashville is trying to appeal to a younger audience, but that audience no longer watches live television or listens to the radio. They’re turning away the baby boomer generation who still does these things regularly. Country music should appeal to all generations, the same way it did when I was 10 years old in my mom’s car. And it just doesn’t do that anymore.
November 16, 2018 @ 4:31 pm
At this site we would say the declining ratings are obviously because the industry has abandoned country music. Many other viewers might say it’s because Stapleton is boring and there weren’t any pop stars. And this is the real problem, I think. The CMA’s have driven away their base of loyal viewers while also failing to attract new viewers to replace them. It’s like they have one foot in each world and don’t know what direction to take. We can see this in the awards as well – Stapleton/Musgraves on one hand, and then Keith Fucking Urban as EotY. If they wan’t to retain relevancy they need to pick a direction and stick to it.
November 16, 2018 @ 6:34 pm
I said during the CMAs live blog that I thought the Stapleton awards were uneventful and felt like a default. The song categories in general had no life to them. Truth be told, if you wanted to get more people to tune in, you probably needed to have Kane Brown perform. I don’t think he should, but I think that would have driven more viewers than a Brad Paisley performance.
November 16, 2018 @ 4:41 pm
I would have loved for Kane Brown to win multiple awards. This would have accelerated the miserable death of what is now called country music. If it’s going to die, lets get it over with.
December 18, 2018 @ 7:22 pm
Laughed out loud at this comment. FUNNY!
November 16, 2018 @ 6:43 pm
My first takeaway from this article…Survivor is still on TV?
I will say that the promotion for the awards seemed very light, although maybe it is just because I don’t watch much of ABC. I had to check multiple times to make sure I didn’t miss when it was, especially with it being a couple weeks later than normal. Not sure if the date change had an impact, but long term I support it given the competition of the World Series as we saw 2 years ago.
November 16, 2018 @ 7:55 pm
When people think country music, they think George Strait, Dolly Parton, Alan Jackson, Shania Twain. So why did Lionel Richie get to present the biggest award of the night? I assume because ABC was plugging “American Idol” throughout. Every year that I have attended the CMAs, the arena erupts when Dolly walks out on stage. I would love to see not only the past honored (thank you CMA for the Ricky Skaggs tribute), but also the future. How about a segment featuring newer artists like Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde or Americana artists that are expanding the “country” trademark (Jason Isbell, Tyler Childers).
November 16, 2018 @ 8:48 pm
Lionel Richie was a terrible pick to hand out Entertainer of the Year.
What I think could have really made this year’s awards show was some sort of “A Star Is Born” segment. They always have a pop star on the show, so have it be Lady Gaga. Bring Bradley Cooper out, have Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real back him and Gaga up just like the movie, and have Bradley sing “Maybe It’s Time” with Jason Isbell who wrote the song, and was nominated for Album of the Year last year.
Use some imagination.
November 16, 2018 @ 9:16 pm
I follow these award shows for the most part. I honestly had no idea it was even on. I think terrible advertising had something to do with the low ratings. I agree that most folks are tired of Luke Bryan, FGL, Jason Aldean & the same artists with the same songs just re-written over some auto tune and drum beats. If you took all the names off the artists and just called it an awards show, there would be no way to even tell this is a country show, it could have been an all genre show for all I would know. You would think industry execs would take notice that people are tired of being shoved pop music in the country medium, but they won’t. Most true country fans don’t even listen to “Country Radio” or watch pop artists on terrible award shows anymore. Congrats to Kacey Musgraves, deserving winner.
November 16, 2018 @ 10:23 pm
At least Bebe Rexha wasn’t nominated for Best Female Country Vocalist. Could’ve been worse, way worse.
November 17, 2018 @ 8:41 am
It’s been 10 years are more since I watched the CMA’s. I would rather prick My gonads and bleed in a cup! I can watch clips of Ricky Skaggs, Stapleton and Kacey and pistol Annie’s on line later. I’d rather spend my time supporting live independent music here in Texas!!!
November 17, 2018 @ 10:00 am
CMA’S and ACM’S are like The Grammy’s redheaded step children. I’m not in love with the Grammy’s, but at least there is a variety to keep me entertained.
November 17, 2018 @ 1:44 pm
This is sorta off topic but not really because I think this song really says a lot to this group. It’s the CMA Vocal Event of the Year 2001 – from a very young Brad Paisley but with some VERY special guests. If you haven’t heard it please go to YouTube and search: Brad Paisley – Too Country (Feat. George Jones, Bill Anderson, Buck Owens). It’s amazing!
November 17, 2018 @ 6:13 pm
Would love to see the performances on you tube. In the past , they used to do that. The show format needs to have something ‘participant friendly’ live, for viewers to feel engaged. This particular show did drag on in parts and was great in other areas. Performances are always remembered, the rest of the show , not too much. Shania Twain needs to be on this show, don’t recall her being presenter in recent years. I liked Midlands performance, they have respect for their heroes. Good to see Jerry Reed’s song in there and honoring Burt too. I was dissapointed in Kelsea’s performance, she does seem to be heading over to pop like Taylor. Enjoyed Pistol Annies, Ricky Skaggs, Chris Stapleton. Nice to see Marty Stuart on as well. I agree with others who said time for change in the hosts. Carrie is wonderful, but Brad’s bit is not as enjoyable. Happy for Luke Combs. He is popular among many fans, not just twenty somethings.
November 17, 2018 @ 6:32 pm
This particular show was not as entertaining as in prior years. I did enjoy several of the performances but I would appreciate the performances to be up on you tube. Everyone usually remembers the performances, not the show. Maybe they should have some type of participant friendly live segment to get the audience more engaged. I agree with others who want new co hosts. Carrie is wonderful , but Brad’s bit is getting old. Enjoyed the Pistol Annies, Ricky Scaggs, Chris Stapleton and nice to see Marty Stuart on the show.
November 17, 2018 @ 6:37 pm
You can see some of the performances here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/CMAOfficialVEVO
November 17, 2018 @ 6:47 pm
Thank you Trigger, sorry for double comment, did not think first one went through.
Appreciate the link 🙂
November 18, 2018 @ 9:14 am
We’re not the only ones- be sure to read thh comments.
http://thefederalist.com/2018/11/16/years-cmas-depicted-country-music-crossroads/
November 19, 2018 @ 7:26 am
Before you use these ratings as a commentary on how bad the popular country music scene is – or the lack of interest of the average ‘country music fan’ – you have to consider a couple of things. The ratings still indicate that the awards show took the highest rating of the night, although competing with the forty-third (or whatever) Survivor season is not very compelling. Ratings are lower now than ever for television viewing because of all the other options out there with the streaming landscape. And, you should compare ratings with other awards shows and consider that it might be a shift away from awards shows for all mediums as we all realize how stupid they are and the tendency for the movie, television, and music industries to stroke themselves is just tiresome. While I have a strong distaste for the current popular country music, the average ‘country music fan’ is all about the performers and music presented a the last show, whether I like it or not.