RECORDS SET AS JUSTIN NIEBANK WINS NINTH ACM AUDIO ENGINEER OF THE YEAR AWARD AND JAY JOYCE WINS SIXTH ACM PRODUCER OF THE YEAR AWARD AFTER PRODUCING LAINEY WILSON’S ACM ALBUM OF THE YEAR WINNER BELL BOTTOM COUNTRY
WINNERS TO BE CELEBRATED AT 16TH ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC HONORS™
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 23, 2023
AT NASHVILLE’S HISTORIC RYMAN AUDITORIUM
Nashville, TN (June 26, 2023) – The Academy of Country Music® announced the winners of the ACM Industry Awards and Studio Recording Awards from the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards™ through a video announcement featuring Mickey Guyton, Little Big Town, Dustin Lynch, Ashley McBryde, Jon Pardi, Thomas Rhett, Cole Swindell, and Lainey Wilson, as well as elected officials and community leaders from around the country. All ACM Industry Award, Studio Recording Award, and soon-to-be-announced Special Award recipients will be celebrated during the 16th Academy of Country Music Honors™ on Wednesday, August 23, 2023 at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN. ACM Special Award honorees will be announced on Tuesday, June 27, along with the show’s host and ticket on-sale information. Performers will be revealed in the coming weeks.
Winner highlights include Justin Niebank winning his ninth ACM Award for Audio Engineer of the Year, extending his already-established title of winningest Audio Engineer of the Year in ACM history. Jay Joyce receives his sixth win for ACM Producer of the Year, extending his own already-established title of winningest Producer of the Year in ACM history and brings his total ACM Award count to nine. Joe’s on Weed St. receives its sixth ACM Award for Club of the Year, and the club’s owner Ed Warm receives his fifth ACM Award for Promoter of the Year. Dave Cohen receives his fourth ACM Award for ACM Piano/Keyboards Player of the Year, bringing his total ACM Award count to five. Derek Wells receives his first win in the ACM Electric Guitar Player of the Year category, with the win bringing his ACM Award total to four awards, which includes two previous wins for ACM Guitar Player of the Year before the category was split to individually recognize acoustic and electric guitar players. Fiddle player Jenee Fleenor and drummer Aaron Sterling each receive their second career ACM Award for Specialty Instrument Player of the Year and Drummer of the Year, respectively.
First-time ACM Award recipients include Bank of NH Pavilion, Bristol Tennessee’s Country Thunder, acoustic guitar player Tim Galloway, Harveys Lake Tahoe, bass player Mark Hill, Austin’s Moody Center, Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood, and talent buyer Troy Vollhoffer.
Below is a complete list of the winners of the Industry Awards and Studio Recording Awards from the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards:
Below is a complete list of the winners of the Industry Awards and Studio Recording Awards from the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards:
INDUSTRY AWARD WINNERS:
CASINO OF THE YEAR – THEATER: Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Hollywood, FL
CASINO OF THE YEAR – ARENA: Harveys Lake Tahoe – Stateline, NV
FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR: Country Thunder – Bristol, TN
FAIR/RODEO OF THE YEAR: Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo – Houston, TX
CLUB OF THE YEAR: Joe’s on Weed St. – Chicago, IL
THEATER OF THE YEAR: Grand Ole Opry House – Nashville, TN
OUTDOOR VENUE OF THE YEAR: Bank of NH Pavilion – Gilford, NH
ARENA OF THE YEAR: Moody Center – Austin, TX
DON ROMEO TALENT BUYER OF THE YEAR: Troy Vollhoffer – Premier Global Production
PROMOTER OF THE YEAR: Ed Warm – Joe’s Live
STUDIO RECORDING AWARD WINNERS:
BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Mark Hill
DRUMMER OF THE YEAR: Aaron Sterling
ACOUSTIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Tim Galloway
ELECTRIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Derek Wells
PIANO/KEYBOARDS PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Dave Cohen
SPECIALTY INSTRUMENT(S) PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Jenee Fleenor
AUDIO ENGINEER OF THE YEAR: Justin Niebank
PRODUCER OF THE YEAR: Jay Joyce
INDUSTRY AWARD WINNERS:
CASINO OF THE YEAR – THEATER SEMINOLE HARD ROCK HOTEL & CASINO HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA
CASINO OF THE YEAR – ARENA HARVEYS LAKE TAHO STATELINE, NEVADA
FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR COUNTRY THUNDER BRISTOL, TENNESSEE
FAIR/RODEO OF THE YEAR HOUSTON LIVESTOCK SHOW & RODEO HOUSTON, TEXAS
CLUB OF THE YEAR JOE’S ON WEED ST. CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
THEATER OF THE YEAR GRAND OLE OPRY HOUSE NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
OUTDOOR VENUE OF THE YEAR BANK OF NH PAVILION GILFORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE
ARENA OF THE YEAR MOODY CENTER AUSTIN, TEXAS
DON ROMEO TALENT BUYER OF THE YEAR TROY VOLLHOFFER PREMIER GLOBAL PRODUCTION
PROMOTER OF THE YEAR ED WARM JOE’S LIVE
STUDIO RECORDING AWARD WINNERS:
BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR MARK HILL
DRUMMER OF THE YEAR AARON STERLING
ACOUSTIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR TIM GALLOWAY
ELECTRIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR DEREK WELLS
PIANO/KEYBOARDS PLAYER OF THE YEAR DAVE COHEN
SPECIALTY INSTRUMENT(S) PLAYER OF THE YEAR JENEE FLEENOR
AUDIO ENGINEER OF THE YEAR JUSTIN NIEBANK
PRODUCER OF THE YEAR JAY JOYCE
ACM Industry Awards recognize venues and talent buyers/promoters who have bought or promoted a predetermined number of Country Music concerts and helped promote Country Music ticket sales. Nominees are selected by a professional panel of judges approved by the ACM Officers, with ACM members classified in the Artist/Musician/Producer/Engineer, Venue, Manager, Talent Agent, Talent Buyer/Promoter categories voting to decide the winner. For more information on Industry Awards eligibility and nominees, view here.
The Academy’s Studio Recording Awards recognize the creators behind the music. To be eligible, each artist, musician, producer, and engineer must have played a part in a commercially released single or album embodying the creator’s performance that achieves Top 20 chart position or better during the eligibility period. Nominees are then selected by a professional panel of judges approved by the ACM Officers before being voted on by members classified in the Artist-Entertainer/Musician-Bandleader-Instrumentalist categories and the Producer-Engineer-Studio Manager categories. For more information on Studio Recording Awards eligibility and nominees, view here.
To search the Academy’s database and view the full list of previous winners for each category, visit here.
For more information on the ACM Awards and all ACM events, visit www.ACMcountry.com. You can like Academy of Country Music on Facebook or follow on Twitter at @ACMawards and Instagram @ACMAwards for more immediate updates.
About the Academy of Country Music
Founded in Southern California in 1964 as a regional trade organization, the ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC (ACM) has grown in the almost-60 years since into a leading association for the country music industry. Now headquartered in Nashville, TN and boasting record-high membership of nearly 5,000 nationwide, the Academy serves as a powerhouse advocate for country fans, artists, and all facets of the business, as well as a supporter of philanthropic work through charitable partner ACM LIFTING LIVES, dedicated to improving lives through the power of music and providing aid in times of need, with a focus on health initiatives. 2023 is another monumental year for the Academy, with the ACM Awards having returned to Texas in May and streamed live for a global audience on Prime Video, still the only major awards show to livestream exclusively. The Academy also remains relentlessly committed to creating a more inclusive environment for underrepresented groups in country music, from the boardroom to the stage, and over the last year has launched both ACM LEVel Up, a two-year professional development and enrichment curriculum for rising leaders, and OnRamp, a guaranteed income program for Black members of the Nashville music community, in partnership with the Black Music Action Coalition. For more information, log onto ACMcountry.com or ACMLiftingLives.org.
