2012 CMA Awards Nominations Hold Several Surprises

13 years ago Liv Carter Comments Off on 2012 CMA Awards Nominations Hold Several Surprises
Image courtesy of CMA

This morning, the final nominations for the 2012 CMA Awards were announced and, along with the usual suspects, there were also several real surprises, with Eric Church grabbing the most nominations chief among these (pun totally intended). Proof of Church’s stellar year lies in the fact that he received his first CMA nom only last year, for New Artist, and now got five mentions.

In the main categories, the biggest surprise is the inclusion of Kelly Clarkson in the Female Vocalist of the Year category, a choice which seems a little difficult to justify after one duet (yes, a monster hit, but still) and one ‘country mix’ radio release. The inclusion of The Civil Wars in the Vocal Duo of the Year category might be more a statement about the lack of successful duos than anything else. The five Entertainer of the Year nominees are spot-on, they are the five biggest names in the genre today, despite some protestations I’ve seen from Keith Urban fans. Urban’s only nomination this year comes in the Male Vocalist of the Year category.

My favorite category, Song of the Year, because it honors the songwriters, is impossible to predict, as is the Single of the Year race. Also tough to call is the Vocal Group category with nothing but contenders nominated.

Some pleasant surprises for me – I like seeing the love Dierks Bentley‘s Home received, both the album and the song, and it’s great to see Will Hoge and Eric Paslay pick up their first CMA nom for penning Eli Young Band‘s recent #1 hit, ‘Even If It Breaks Your Heart.’

The Final Nominees for the 46th Annual CMA Awards:

Entertainer of the Year
Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

Single of the Year
‘Dirt Road Anthem’ – Jason Aldean
Produced by Michael Knox
Broken Bow Records

‘God Gave Me You’ – Blake Shelton
Produced by Scott Hendricks
Warner Bros. Records

‘Home’ – Dierks Bentley
Produced by Brett Beavers and Luke Wooten
Capitol Records Nashville

‘Pontoon’ – Little Big Town
Produced by Jay Joyce
Capitol Records Nashville

‘Springsteen’ – Eric Church
Produced by Jay Joyce
EMI Records Nashville

Album of the Year

Chief – Eric Church
Produced by Jay Joyce
EMI Records Nashville

Four The Record – Miranda Lambert
Produced by Frank Liddell, Chuck Ainlay, and Glenn Worf
RCA Nashville

Home – Dierks Bentley
Produced by Brett Beavers, Luke Wooten, and Jon Randall Stewart
Capitol Records Nashville

Own The Night – Lady Antebellum
Produced by Paul Worley and Lady Antebellum
Capitol Records Nashville

Tailgates & Tanlines – Luke Bryan
Produced by Jeff Stevens and Mark Bright
Capitol Records Nashville

Song of the Year

‘Even If It Breaks Your Heart’ – Will Hoge and Eric Paslay
‘God Gave Me You’ – Dave Barnes
‘Home’– Dan Wilson, Brett Beavers, and Dierks Bentley
‘Over You’ – Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton
‘Springsteen’ – Eric Church, Ryan Tyndell, and Jeff Hyde

Female Vocalist of the Year
Kelly Clarkson
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

Male Vocalist of the Year

Jason Aldean
Luke Bryan
Eric Church
Blake Shelton
Keith Urban

Vocal Group of the Year

Eli Young Band
Lady Antebellum
Little Big Town
The Band Perry
Zac Brown Band

Vocal Duo of the Year

Big & Rich
Love and Theft
Sugarland
The Civil Wars
Thompson Square

Musical Event of the Year

‘Dixie Highway’ – Alan Jackson featuring Zac Brown
ACR/EMI Records Nashville

‘Feel Like A Rock Star’ – Kenny Chesney (duet with Tim McGraw)
Blue Chair Records/Columbia Nashville

‘Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die’ – Willie Nelson with Snoop Dogg, Kris Kristofferson, and Jamey Johnson
Legacy Recordings

‘Safe & Sound’ – Taylor Swift (featuring The Civil Wars)
Big Machine Records/Universal Republic Records

‘Stuck On You’ – Lionel Richie (with Darius Rucker)
Mercury Records Nashville

Musician of the Year

Sam Bush – Mandolin
Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
Dann Huff – Guitar
Brent Mason – Guitar
Mac McAnally – Guitar

Music Video of the Year

‘Come Over’ – Kenny Chesney
Directed by Shaun Silva

‘Over You’ – Miranda Lambert
Directed by Trey Fanjoy

‘Pontoon’ – Little Big Town
Directed by Declan Whitebloom

‘Red Solo Cup’ – Toby Keith
Directed by Michael Salomon

‘Springsteen’ – Eric Church
Directed by Peter Zavadil

New Artist of the Year

Lee Brice
Brantley Gilbert
Hunter Hayes
Love and Theft
Thompson Square

 

Liv Carter

Liv Carter

Liv is a career coach for creatives, and the people who work with them.
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
Liv Carter

Latest posts by Liv Carter (see all)