Looking back, 2016 was a tough year for country music award ceremonies.
A lot of us remember Alan Jackson’s walk-out at the 2016 CMAs during the Dixie Chicks and Beyoncé’s performance, after he was told that the show was going to focus on past country music stars with it being the 50th anniversary of the awards ceremony… and they completely failed to do so.
However, that wasn’t the only unforgettable (or forgettable) moment at a country music awards ceremony that year.
With the 58th Annual ACM Awards set to take place on May 11th at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, we’ve been looking back at some of the most memorable moments from years past. And while this one is definitely memorable, it’s for all the wrong reasons.
Kelsea Ballerini was performing her new hit at the time, “Peter Pan,” at the 2016 ACM Awards, and she was joined by none other than Nick Jonas to perform the song because… who really knows?
I mean, I suppose it’s par for the course… throwing in a random pop star made famous by Disney Channel is a total ACM move.
Anyways, the performance started to head a little south when Jonas came in for the electric guitar solo. Is Jonas known as a great guitar player? No, of course not, but hey, he had his game face on and charged out there with authority.
Needless to say, my guy botched more than a few notes, and it sounded more like a third grader showing off his “new skills” in front of the whole school during the talent show.
It was a mess.
He eventually just pulled the plug on the guitar and awkwardly joined Ballerini to conclude the song.
He later called it a “brain fart,” but it was more like a “blacking out on cheap plastic bottle vodka and shitting the bed” fart.
OOF…
2023 ACM Awards Announce First Round Of Performers
With the show just a few weeks away, the 58th ACM Awards are rolling out the list of performers.
Set to be livestreamed live at The Star in Frisco, Texas exclusively on Prime Video on May 11th at 8:00 PM EDT, the show will be will co-hosted for the first time by Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks.
Morgan Wallen is up for his first Entertainer of the Year Award, and Hardy and Lainey Wilson lead the pack with seven and six nominations, respectively. Zach Bryan is also up for his first-ever ACM Award in the New Male Artist of the Year category.
You can check out the entire list of nominees HERE.
They announced the first round of performers, which includes reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Miranda Lambert, as well as Luke Combs, Cody Johnson, Jo Dee Messina, Ashley McBryde, Dolly Parton, Jelly Roll, Cole Swindell, Keith Urban, Morgan Wallen, The War And Treaty, Lainey Wilson, Bailey Zimmerman, Jason Aldean and Kane Brown.
Save for a few artists on that list, it’s probably already the best lineup we’ve seen in many years, and there should be a few more great artists added before it’s all said and done.
But possibly most exciting will be the closing performance by Mrs. Dolly, where she will premiere lead single from her forthcoming rock album, Rock Star, “World On Fire.”
Additional performers and presenters will be announced in the coming weeks.
