It was ladies night at the CMA Awards in Nashville, Tennessee on Wednesday (November 13, 2019), with big wins for Maren Morris and Kacey Musgraves.
Pregnant Maren picked up the Album of the Year prize for Girl, while Kacey was a double winner, collecting the Music Video of the Year for Rainbow and the Female Artist of the Year.
Female empowerment was a big theme of the whole awards show, which kicked off with a tribute to the ladies of country, featuring performances from co-hosts Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, and Dolly Parton and The Highwomen, Martina McBride, Tanya Tucker, and Emmylou Harris, among others.
And the women made their voices heard on the red carpet, demanding equal play to their male counterparts on country radio – Sugarland star Jennifer Nettles even incorporated the message into her look, scribbling on the inside of her caped gown: “Play our f*#!!in records. Please and thank you.”
There was also history made when fiddler Jenee Fleenor became the first woman to win the Musician of the Year title, but unfortunately, Carrie Underwood couldn’t complete a huge night for the women of country – she lost out on the coveted Entertainer of the Year honor to now-seven time winner Garth Brooks. He last lifted the prize in 2017.
It was also a big night for Luke Combs, who took home two awards – Male Artist and Song of the Year for Beautiful Crazy – and Blake Shelton, who picked up his first win for Single of the Year (God’s Country).
The full list of 2019 CMA Awards winners is:
Entertainer of the Year
Garth Brooks
Female Vocalist of the Year
Kacey Musgraves
Male Vocalist of the Year
Luke Combs
Album of the Year
Girl – Maren Morris
Single of the Year
God’s Country – Blake Shelton
Song of the Year
Beautiful Crazy – Luke Combs, Wyatt B. Durrette III and Robert Williford (songwriters)
Vocal Group of the Year
Old Dominion
Musical Event of the Year
Old Town Road (Remix) – Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
Music Video of the Year
Rainbow – Kacey Musgraves
Vocal Duo of the Year
Dan + Shay
New Artist of the Year
Ashley McBryde
Musician of the Year
Jenee Fleenor (fiddle)
Lifetime Achievement
Kris Kristofferson
