We now know some of the performers for the 2026 CMA Awards! Cody Johnson, Tim McGraw, and Miranda Lambert have been announced as performers, along with Ella Langley, Kacey Musgraves, The Red Clay Strays, Zach Top, and Tucker Wetmore. Several artists will also combine to honor Dolly Parton.
Johnson, the reigning Male Vocalist of the Year, is nominated for four CMA Awards this year, including Entertainer, Male Vocalist, Single and Music Video of the Year, both for “The Fall.”
Lambert has an impressive seven nominations this year, including two for Single of the Year, both as a producer for Langley’s “Be Her” and “Choosin’ Texas,” and one for Album of the Year for Langley’s Dandelion record. Lambert also has two for Musical Event of the Year, both for her “A Song to Sing” duet with Chris Stapleton and her “Horses and Divorces” song with Musgraves. In addition, Lambert is nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year, for the 19th time. Lambert currently holds the record for the most CMA Awards nominations by a female artist.
McGraw is nominated for Musical Event of the Year, for “McArthur,” his collaboration with HARDY, Morgan Wallen, and Eric Church. This is McGraw’s first nomination since 2017.
Langley leads this year’s nominees with nine nominations. Langley is nominated for Entertainer, Album, Female Vocalist, Musical Event and Music Video of the Year. She also has two nominations each for both Single and Song of the Year, for “Be Her” and Choosin’ Texas.”
Musgraves has five nominations this year, including Album of the Year, for Middle of Nowhere, Song of the Year and Music Video of the year for “Dry Spell,” plus Music Event of the Year with Lambert, and Female Vocalist of the Year.
The Red Clay Strays, the reigning Vocal Group of the Year, are nominated in that category again. Reigning CMA New Artist of the Year Top is nominated for Male Vocalist and Album of the Year, the latter for Ain’t In It for My Health. Wetmore earns his second CMA Awards nomination this year in the New Artist of the Year category.
See a complete list of nominees here.
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Lainey Wilson Returns to Host 2026 CMA Awards
Lainey Wilson is serving as this year’s host of the CMA Awards. This marks Wilson’s third year as host, and second year hosting the show by herself.
“I don’t know if you can ever fully prepare for that, especially being a solo female doing it,” Wilson tells Entertainment Tonight. “The last solo female to do it was ’91 with Reba [McEntire], besides last year for me. I’m just honored. It’s huge.”
Not surprisingly, Wilson immediately reached out to McEntire when she found out she was hosting the CMA Awards.
“I told Reba, a couple months back, I was like, ‘Hey, don’t tell nobody, but hey, your girl’s hosting the CMAs by herself,’” Wilson said on SiriusXM’s The Highway in 2025. “She’s like, ‘What?’ So she was happy to pass the torch. It’s a huge deal, and I’m so honored to just be invited, much less to be nominated. And then for them to ask me to host the whole thing. it feels good to be able to just champion country music, and champion all my buddies and all my friends who have worked so hard to be there. It’s awesome.”
The 2026 CMA Awards will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, November 18, at 8:00 PM ET on ABC. The show will stream the next day on Hulu.