Country music's biggest party of the year is happening next month, and we're taking a deep dive into this year's nominations including the biggest snubs, surprises, and our predictions of who might take the award home.

New Female Artist Of The Year

• Prediction: Megan Moroney who is known for “Tennessee Orange” which had a ton of online speculation to be about Morgan Wallen, I think she’s a front-runner because she just won a fan-voted CMT Award for Breakthrough Female Artist and is really well-respected by critics for her songwriting and originality.

• Surprise: Caitlyn Smith is known for being the songwriter of Garth Brooks’ Tacoma. She's been established for a while as a songwriter so it's interesting to see her in a "new" category

• Prediction: Morgan Wade could also take it home. Everyone fell in love with her song “Wilder Days and she is surely a critic favorite for her music.

New Male Artist Of the Year

• Surprise: It's interesting to see Dylan Scott placed here since he’s been releasing consistent radio singles for years now. “My Girl,” “Hooked,” and “New Truck” are probably his stand-out songs.

• Prediction: Both Bailey Zimmerman and Zach Bryan are the front-runners but technically their votes are going to be split from their label since they are both attached to Warner Music.

• Snub: Jelly Roll who just won three fan-voted CMT Awards.

Female Artist of the Year:

• Prediction: Lainey Wilson could win big again because she won this award at the CMAs last year.

• Snub: Carrie Underwood was left out of the Female Artist of the Year category which is a rare instance especially because she just had a huge tour in support of her Denim & Rhinestones album

Male Artist Of The Year:

• Prediction: Morgan Wallen and Luke Combs are the two biggest country artists currently so one of them taking it home would make the most sense.

• Surprise: Jordan Davis is nominated here despite being newer but he has had two big hits within the last two years

• Surprise: Kane Brown is nominated. This is his first nomination in this category despite being a big name for years. This is a good surprise.

• Snub: Thomas Rhett received no nominations at the 2023 ACM Awards after being nominated for Male Artist of The Year for the past 6 consecutive years.

Duo Of The Year

• The War And Treaty received their first nomination at the ACMs this year, making them the first ever Black duo to receive a nomination in the Duo Of The Year category.

• Prediction: Brother’s Osborne nomination in this category marks their 16th ACM nomination and their ninth year in a row being nominated for Duo Of The Year. They have won this category three times including last year and we think they could easily take it again this year.

Group Of The Year

• Prediction: Old Dominion received their eighth consecutive nomination in this category. Old Dominion has taken home the title every year for the last five years so it'd be easy to guess they'll win again.

• Snub: Parmalee - They are the only country group nominated to actually have a mainstream #1 country hit in 2022.

Entertainer of the Year:

• Surprise: Jason Aldean saw success in early 2022 with “I Didn’t Love You,” but other than that he didn’t particularly leave a mark. Based on the definition of this category, he wasn’t instrumental in bringing country music forward.

• Prediction: A case could be made for Morgan Wallen given his success over the past year. Luke Combs is also a strong prediction, and the industry seems to be 100% behind him.

Album of the Year:

• Prediction: Since Luke Combs took home the CMA award for this category, he is a likely frontrunner. Growin’ Up also spawned hit songs “Going, Going, Gone,” “The Kind Of Love We Make,” and “Doin’ This.”

• Prediction: Lindeville by Ashley McBryde is a critically acclaimed record. With several collaborations and the support McBryde has, she might just take home the prize.

• Snub: Maren Morris received a CMA nomination for this category with Humble Quest. Given her past nominations at the ACMs, this was somewhat of a surprise.

Song of the Year:

• Surprise: While Cole Swindell’s “She Had Me At Heads Carolina” was a radio hit, the song itself doesn’t seem like it would elicit an award for its writing.

• Prediction: This award might go to “wait in the truck,” or “Til You Can’t.” Both songs had messages that resonated with fans and industry alike.

• Snub: Jelly Roll’s “Son Of A Sinner” opened him up to the country music audience. The song has seemingly struck a chord with many and was a commercial success.

• Snub: Even though Zach Bryan doesn’t seem to prioritize industry awards, it’s shocking that “Something In The Orange” wasn’t nominated. It became a breakout favorite and opened up Bryan into the mainstream. Lyrically, it was a song that stood out in the last year.

Single of the Year

• Predictions: This award could very well go to “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” by Carle Pearce and Ashley McBryde. This song won a Grammy and a CMA, so it would be a safe bet. “Til You Can’t” could also snag the award given its massive success.

• Snub: “The Kind Of Love We Make” by Luke Combs was a #1 song, and has high production value. It simply seemed like it would be a contender for Single of the Year.

The 2023 Academy of Country Music Awards will take place on Thursday, May 11th from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas. It will be broadcasted at 8 p.m. ET on Prime Video.

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