Nashville, TN (June 17, 2024) – The Academy of Country Music announced the winners of the ACM Industry Awards and Studio Recording Awards for the 59th Academy of Country Music Awards through video announcements featuring Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, Dan + Shay, Jordan Davis, Vince Gill, Cody Johnson, Parker McCollum, Justin Moore, Thomas Rhett, Tigirlily Gold, and Keith Urban, as well as local media personalities from around the country. All ACM Industry Awards and Studio Recording Awards winners, as well as the soon-to-be-announced Special Award recipients, will be celebrated at the 17th Academy of Country Music Honors on Wednesday, August 21, 2024 at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN. ACM Special Award honorees, hosts, and ticket information will be announced tomorrow, Tuesday, June 18. Performers will be revealed in the coming weeks.
Winner highlights for ACM Studio Recording Awards include Paul Franklin winning his second ACM Specialty Instrument Player of the Year Award, marking his 18th ACM Award overall and tying fellow steel guitar player J.D. Maness for most ACM Studio Recording Award wins. Dann Huff receives his fifth win for ACM Producer of the Year, bringing his total ACM Award count to 11. Huff is the most-nominated non-artist in ACM Awards history with 57 nominations, surpassed only by artists Alabama, Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Merle Haggard, Alan Jackson, Miranda Lambert, Tim McGraw, and George Strait with more ACM Award nominations. Jimmie Lee Sloas receives his fifth win for ACM Bass Player of the Year. Rob McNelley wins his first ACM Electric Guitar Player of the Year award, bringing his ACM Award total to four; his previous three awards fell in the ACM Guitar Player of the Year category, which was split into standalone Electric and Acoustic categories in 2021. Jim “Moose” Brown receives his third win for ACM Piano/Keys Player of the Year. Audio Engineer Jim Cooley, piano/keys player David Dorn, and guitar player Charlie Worsham each receive their second career ACM Award for Audio Engineer of the Year, Piano/Keys Player of the Year, and Acoustic Guitar Player of the Year, respectively. Drummer Jerry Roe wins his first ACM Award with this recognition as ACM Drummer of the Year.
Winner highlights for the ACM Industry Awards include Nashville, TN venues Ryman Auditorium and Bridgestone Arena, which are one block away from each other, winning ACM Theater of the Year and ACM Arena of the Year, respectively. This marks the Ryman Auditorium’s eighth win, and Bridgestone Arena’s sixth win. Uncasville, Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun Arena took home its eighth ACM award as well, in the Casino of the Year – Arena category. Morrison, Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre wins its third ACM Outdoor Venue of the Year award and fifth overall ACM Award. Rosemont, Illinois’ Joe’s Live receives its third ACM Award for Club of the Year, and the club’s owner, Ed Warm, receives his first win for ACM Talent Buyer of the Year, bringing his total personal trophy count to six. Fort Lauderdale, Florida’s Tortuga Music Festival receives its third ACM Award for ACM Festival of the Year, and Durant, Oklahoma’s Choctaw Grand Theater receives its third ACM Award, taking home ACM Casino of the Year – Theater. San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo received its second ACM Award for ACM Fair/Rodeo of the Year. And AEG Promoter Adam Weiser wins his first ACM Award for ACM Promoter of the Year.
Below is a complete list of the winners of the Industry Awards and Studio Recording Awards from the 59th Academy of Country Music Awards:
INDUSTRY AWARD WINNERS:
CASINO OF THE YEAR – THEATER: Choctaw Grand Theater – Durant, OK
CASINO OF THE YEAR – ARENA: Mohegan Sun Arena – Uncasville, CT
FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR: Tortuga Music Festival – Fort Lauderdale, FL
FAIR/RODEO OF THE YEAR: San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo – San Antonio, TX
CLUB OF THE YEAR: Joe’s Live – Rosemont, IL
THEATER OF THE YEAR: Ryman Auditorium – Nashville, TN
OUTDOOR VENUE OF THE YEAR: Red Rocks Amphitheatre – Morrison, CO
ARENA OF THE YEAR: Bridgestone Arena – Nashville, TN
DON ROMEO TALENT BUYER OF THE YEAR: Ed Warm
PROMOTER OF THE YEAR: Adam Weiser – AEG
STUDIO RECORDING AWARD WINNERS:
BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Jimmie Lee Sloas
DRUMMER OF THE YEAR: Jerry Roe
ACOUSTIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Charlie Worsham
ELECTRIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Rob McNelley
PIANO/KEYBOARDS PLAYER OF THE YEAR: (TIE) Jim “Moose” Brown & David Dorn
SPECIALTY INSTRUMENT(S) PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Paul Franklin
AUDIO ENGINEER OF THE YEAR: Jim Cooley
PRODUCER OF THE YEAR: Dann Huff
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 to become a leading association for the Country Music industry over the last 60 years. Now headquartered in Nashville, Tenn., and boasting record-high membership of more than 5,000 worldwide, 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. 2024 has been another monumental year for the Academy, with the 59th ACM Awards, hosted by entertainment icon Reba McEntire, broadcast live from Texas for a second consecutive year on Prime Video. 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 proudly presents 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, visit ACMcountry.com or ACMLiftingLives.org.
