As prestigious as the Super Bowl halftime show is in the United States, so is the National Rugby League (NRL) Telstra Premiership Grand Final in Australia, which multiple Grammy Award (and ARIA Award) winner Keith Urban will headline.  The final match will take place at the ANZ Stadium on Sunday, October 2^nd in front of nearly 100,000 fans.  The appearance will feature songs from Urban’s #1 CMA nominated Album of the Year RIPCORD (an award that Urban has never won).

In Australia RIPCORD has exploded.  It debuted at #1 on the ARIA Album chart and the gold certified album remained in the Top 10 for 15 weeks, setting a new record for Urban for the number of weeks an album has remained in the Top 10 on release.  After 18 weeks the album still is in the Top 20.

During his trip to Australia, Urban will also perform at 2Day FM’s ‘World Famous Rooftop’ in Sydney.

Before it concludes Urban’s “ripCORD WORLD TOUR 2016” will have visited four countries including the U.S., Canada, Australia and for the first time ever Urban will perform in New Zealand at Westpac Stadium, Wellington. The tour’s arena leg began this month in Canada and will move to the U.S. in October.

Late last month Urban was nominated for four CMA Awards including the coveted Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist, Best Vocal Event (with Carrie Underwood for “The Fighter”), as well as the previously mentioned Album of the Year.

Tune-in alert for Friday (September 9th). The 10th Annual ACM Honors will air tomorrow beginning at 9pm ET/PT on CBS. The two-hour special, hosted by Lady Antebellum, is dedicated to celebrating honorees and off-camera category winners from this year’s ACM Awards. 

The television special features an all-star lineup of live performances as well as award presentations celebrating honorees, including Special Awards recipients Glen Campbell, Crystal Gayle, Eddie Rabbitt (awarded posthumously), Tanya Tucker, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Jeff Walker (awarded posthumously), Jimmy Webb, Little Big Town and The Statler Brothers. Additionally, Jason Aldean was honored with the ACM Triple Crown Award and Miranda Lambert was presented with the inaugural ACM Merle Haggard Spirit Award. Ross Copperman was also honored as Songwriter of the Year.

Artists who performed in tribute to the honorees include:

• Kelsea Ballerini performed “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” in tribute to Crystal Gayle.
• Dierks Bentley performed “Freedom” in tribute to Ross Copperman, joined onstage by participants of the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp.
• Luke Bryan and Cole Swindell performed “I Love A Rainy Night” in tribute to Eddie Rabbitt.
• Alicia Keys and Cam performed a special duet of “Girl Crush” in tribute to Little Big Town.
• Maren Morris performed “Delta Dawn” in tribute to Tanya Tucker.
• Chris Young and Dan + Shay performed “Flowers on the Wall” in tribute to The Statler Brothers.
• The Band Perry performed “MacArthur Park” in tribute to Jimmy Webb.
• Blake Shelton, Toby Keith, Keith Urban and Dierks Bentley performed an all-star medley in a special tribute to Glen Campbell. The medley consisted of Campbell’s hits “Southern Nights,” “Gentle On My Mind,” “Wichita Linemen,” “By The Time I Get To Phoenix” and the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy.”

The Academy’s Studio Recording Award winners were celebrated in a pre-televised ceremony, and many served as the house band for the night under the direction of music director Frank Liddell. Backing up artists during performances on the telecast were ACM Guitarist of the Year Derek Wells, ACM Bass Player of the Year Michael Rhodes, ACM Specialty Instruments Player of the Year Danny Rader and ACM Piano/Keyboards Player of the Year Jim “Moose” Brown, who also served as bandleader.  Other Studio Recording Award honorees included Producer of the Year Dave Cobb, Audio Engineer of the Year Justin Niebank, Drummer of the Year Shannon Forrest and Steel Guitar Player of the Year Paul Franklin.

The ceremony presenters included Blake Shelton, Cole Swindell, Dierks Bentley, Emmylou Harris, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, Maren Morris, Martina McBride, Mike Fisher, Thomas Rhett, and Toby Keith. The event was taped at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN, and sponsored by City National Bank and Kendra Scott.

About ACM Honors™

ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Special Awards, Studio Recording Awards and Songwriter of the Year Award winners. The 10th Annual ACM Honors was taped on Tuesday, August 30, 2016 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and – for the first time ever – was produced for television by dick clark productions to be broadcast on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are executive producers. Tiffany Moon is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music. For more information, visit www.ACMcountry.com.

Photo L-R: Shannon Campbell, Keith Urban, Blake Shelton, Dierks Bentley and Toby Keith performing at the 10th Annual ACM Honors in tribute to Glen Campbell. Photo Credit: John Shearer/Getty Images for ACM/Courtesy of the Academy of Country Music)

Tune-in Friday, September 9, 2016 at 9:00pm ET/PT on CBS for the television debut of the 10^th Annual ACM Honors™. Hosted by multi-ACM Award-winning group Lady Antebellum, the two-hour special is dedicated to celebrating honorees and off-camera category winners from the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards.

 The television special features an all-star lineup of live performances as well as award presentations celebrating honorees including Special Awards recipients Glen Campbell, Crystal Gayle,Eddie Rabbitt (awarded posthumously), Tanya Tucker, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Jeff Walker (awarded posthumously), Jimmy Webb, Little Big Town and The Statler Brothers. Additionally, Jason Aldean was honored with the ACM Triple Crown Award and Miranda Lambert was presented with the inaugural ACM Merle Haggard Spirit Award. Ross Copperman was also honored as Songwriter of the Year.

Artists who performed in tribute to the honorees include:

• Kelsea Ballerini performed “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” in tribute to Crystal Gayle.
• Dierks Bentley performed “Freedom” in tribute to Ross Copperman, joined onstage by participants of the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp.
• Luke Bryan and Cole Swindell performed “I Love A Rainy Night” in tribute to Eddie Rabbitt.
• Alicia Keys and Cam performed a special duet of “Girl Crush” in tribute to Little Big Town.
• Maren Morris performed “Delta Dawn” in tribute to Tanya Tucker.
• Chris Young and Dan + Shay performed “Flowers on the Wall” in tribute to The Statler Brothers.
• The Band Perry performed “MacArthur Park” in tribute to Jimmy Webb.
• Blake Shelton, Toby Keith, Keith Urban and Dierks Bentley performed an all-star medley in a special tribute to Glen Campbell. The medley consisted of Campbell’s hits “Southern Nights,” “Gentle On My Mind,” “Wichita Linemen,” “By The Time I Get To Phoenix” and the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy.”

 The Academy’s Studio Recording Award winners were celebrated in a pre-televised ceremony, and many served as the house band for the night under the direction of music director Frank Liddell. Backing up artists during performances on the telecast were ACM Guitarist of the Year Derek Wells, ACM Bass Player of the Year Michael Rhodes, ACM Specialty Instruments Player of the Year Danny Rader and ACM Piano/Keyboards Player of the Year Jim “Moose” Brown, who also served as bandleader.  Other Studio Recording Award honorees included Producer of the Year Dave Cobb, Audio Engineer of the Year Justin Niebank, Drummer of the Year Shannon Forrest and Steel Guitar Player of the Year Paul Franklin.

 The ceremony presenters included Blake Shelton, Cole Swindell, Dierks Bentley, Emmylou Harris, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, Maren Morris, Martina McBride, Mike Fisher,Thomas Rhett, and Toby Keith. The event was taped at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN, and sponsored by City National Bank and Kendra Scott.

 About ACM Honors™

ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Special Awards, Studio Recording Awards and Songwriter of the Year Award winners. The 10th Annual ACM Honors was taped on Tuesday, August 30, 2016 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and – for the first time ever – was produced for television by dick clark productions to be broadcast on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are executive producers. Tiffany Moon is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music. For more information, visit www.ACMcountry.com.

Photo L-R: Shannon Campbell, Keith Urban, Blake Shelton, Dierks Bentley and Toby Keith performing at the 10th Annual ACM Honors in tribute to Glen Campbell. Photo Credit: John Shearer/Getty Images for ACM/ Courtesy of the Academy of Country Music)

Keith Urban received four nominations for this year’s CMA Awards, including Entertainer of the Year, which he won in 2005. Keith’s additional nominations include Male Vocalist and Album of the Year for Ripcord, which had several producers (Dann Huff, Jeff Bhasker, Tyler Johnson, Greg Wills, Nile Rodgers, busbee, K-Kov, Nathan Chapman, Jonny Price and Keith), as well as Musical Event of the Year for “The Fighter” featuring Carrie Underwood. Keith could receive an additional trophy as producer of his album.

A SIDENOTE: Keith has won the Musical Event category four times including “Start A Band” with Paisley (2009); “Highway Don’t Care” with McGraw and Taylor Swift (2013); “We Were Us” with Miranda Lambert (2014); and “Raise ‘Em Up,” featuring Church (2015).

With eight CMA Awards already under his belt, he realizes how much has already accomplished. But he also feels like there’s still a lot of gas left in the tank.

“I feel an immense amount of satisfaction for what I’ve gotten to do so far,” he tells Rolling Stone Country. “But right now, Ripcord and the way it’s been received, it feels like the start of the next chapter. It’s a great feeling.”

The 50th Annual CMA Awards will be broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 2nd at 8pm ET on ABC.

Thank you to everyone who made these nominations possible!!! I'm so grateful!!! – KU #CMAawards50 pic.twitter.com/MVvTfoUK90

— Keith Urban (@KeithUrban) August 31, 2016

The nominations for the this year’s CMA Awards have been announced, and Eric Church, Chris Stapleton and Maren Morris lead the list with five apiece. Chris could take home six awards, which includes single so he could win as both artist and producer. Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley and Carrie Underwood received four nominations, and Keith could pick up five trophies as he is both artist and producer for his album Ripcord, while Luke Bryan and Brothers Osborne each picked up two nominations.

For the first time on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” the announcement of the final nominees in six of the 12 CMA Awards categories was made live from the historic stage of the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, which was home to the annual CMA Awards broadcast from 1974 to 2004. The announcement was made by Bentley, Cam, and Urban. Following “Good Morning America” the six remaining categories were announced by the nominated trio of artists on GoodMorningAmerica.com on Yahoo! as well as the “Good Morning America” Facebook page through Facebook Live – making the announcements a complete ABC takeover for the second year.

The 50th Annual CMA Awards will be broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 2nd at 8pm ET on ABC.

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
Garth Brooks
Luke Bryan
Chris Stapleton
Carrie Underwood
Keith Urban 

SINGLE OF THE YEAR
(Award goes to Artist, Producer(s), and Mix Engineer(s))
“Die a Happy Man”
Thomas Rhett
Produced by Dann Huff and Jesse Frasure
Mix Engineered by Justin Niebank
The Valory Music Co. 

“Humble and Kind”
Tim McGraw
Produced by Byron Gallimore and Tim McGraw
Mix Engineered by Byron Gallimore
Big Machine Records 

“My Church”
Maren Morris
Produced by busbee and Maren Morris
Mix Engineered by Dave Clauss and busbee
Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

“Nobody To Blame”
Chris Stapleton
Produced by Dave Cobb and Chris Stapleton
Mix Engineered by Vance Powell
Mercury Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

“Record Year”
Eric Church
Produced by Jay Joyce
Mix Engineered by Jay Joyce and Jason Hall
EMI Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
(Award goes to Artist and Producer(s))
Black
Dierks Bentley
Produced by Ross Copperman and Arturo Buenahora, Jr.
Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville

Hero
Maren Morris
Produced by busbee, Maren Morris, and Brad Hill
Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

Mr. Misunderstood
Eric Church
Produced by Jay Joyce and Arturo Buenahora, Jr.
EMI Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

Ripcord
Keith Urban
Produced by Jeff Bhasker, Tyler Johnson, Dann Huff, Greg Wells, Nile Rodgers, busbee, K-Kov, Nathan Chapman, Jonny Price, and Keith Urban
Hit Red Records/Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

Storyteller
Carrie Underwood
Produced by Jay Joyce, Mark Bright, and Zach Crowell
19 Recordings/Arista Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

SONG OF THE YEAR
(Award goes to Songwriter(s))
“Burning House”
Camaron “Cam” Ochs, Tyler Johnson, Jeff Bhasker

“Die a Happy Man”
Sean Douglas, Thomas Rhett, and Joe Spargur 

“Humble and Kind”
Lori McKenna 

“My Church”
busbee and Maren Morris

“Record Year”
Eric Church and Jeff Hyde 

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Maren Morris
Kacey Musgraves
Carrie Underwood 

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Dierks Bentley
Eric Church
Tim McGraw
Chris Stapleton
Keith Urban 

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
Lady Antebellum
Little Big Town
Old Dominion
Rascal Flatts
Zac Brown Band 

VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Florida Georgia Line
Joey + Rory
Maddie & Tae 

MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR
(Award goes to each Artist)
“Different For Girls”
Dierks Bentley feat. Elle King
Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

“Home Alone Tonight”
Luke Bryan featuring Karen Fairchild
Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

“The Fighter”
Keith Urban (featuring Carrie Underwood)
Hit Red Records/Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

“Think of You”
Chris Young (duet with Cassadee Pope)
RCA Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

“You Are My Sunshine”
Morgane Stapleton with Chris Stapleton
Low Country Sound/Elektra Records 

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(Award goes to Artist and Director(s))
“Burning House”
Cam
Directed by Trey Fanjoy 

“Fire Away”
Chris Stapleton
Directed by Tim Mattia 

“Humble and Kind”
Tim McGraw
Directed by Wes Edwards 

“Record Year”
Eric Church
Directed by John Peets and Reid Long 

“Somewhere On A Beach”
Dierks Bentley
Directed by Wes Edwards 

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Kelsea Ballerini
Brothers Osborne
Maren Morris
Old Dominion
Cole Swindell 

So honored to be nominated!! #CMAawards50 pic.twitter.com/Gydaj9H2HW

— Little Big Town (@littlebigtown) August 31, 2016

https://twitter.com/HillaryScottLA/status/770999693971161088

Don’t forget to tune into ABC’s Good Morning America on Wednesday (August 31st) to watch Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley and Cam announce some of the nominees for this year’s CMA Awards.

Luke Bryan and Zac Brown Band have been announced as headliners for next year’s We Fest in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. The three-day event, which will celebrate its 35th anniversary in 2017, will take place August 3rd – 5th.

Vince Gill, along with Patty Loveless, Charlie Worsham and The Time Jumpers are set to perform a free show at Nashville’s Walk of Fame Park September 25^th, celebrating the 50^th anniversary of the CMA Awards.

Luke Bryan was just added to the list of artists performing at Charlie Daniels’ Volunteer Jam. The event, to celebrate Charlie’s 80th birthday, will feature additional performances by Chris Stapleton, Kid Rock, Travis Tritt and Larry the Cable Guy and will take place November 30th at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

Lauren Alaina will perform her hit single, “Road Less Traveled,” on NBC’s Today Show September 8th.

Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley, Toby Keith and Blake Shelton will pay tribute to Glen Campbell at the 10th Annual ACM Honors Tuesday night (August 30th). The legendary performer will be honored with the ACM Career Achievement Award, and the artists will perform an all-star medley of Glen’s greatest hits, finishing with a group performance of the hit “Rhinestone Cowboy.”

Keith says Glen is one of his biggest influences, mainly because he’s a “guitartist.” “I’ve always been a fan of what I like to call guitartists, you know those guitar-artists like Glen Campbell, who’s probably one of my biggest influences; those guys who knew a good song, had a great voice and played great and just the all-around guys with a guitar,’ says Keith. “When you think of Glen Campbell, you think of, I think of ‘Galveston,’ ‘Wichita Lineman,’ then I also think of him being a phenomenal guitar player.”

Toby says despite his debilitating illness with Alzheimer’s, he’s still an amazing guitar player. “He was one of the greatest guitar players of all time, and I don’t think most people realize that. I think most people saw him on the Glen Campbell Good Time Hour and some movies, and they just thought he’s a singer that sings some pop country,” says Toby. “But Glen was one of the greatest guitar players of all time too, and even when he couldn’t remember his songs he could still play them without remembering the words. It’s nice that they’re paying tribute to Glen.”

Last week, Dierks told us, “I’m honored to get the chance to perform on this tribute show for the ACMs [Honors], to be a part of this tribute. I’ve always felt connected to his music, grew up listening to it. I’m honored to be a part of it.”

Kim Campbell will accept the award on behalf of her husband of 35 years.

Previously announced performers include Luke Bryan, The Band Perry, Jason Aldean, Kelsea Ballerini, Cole Swindell, Maren Morris, Cam, Chris Young, Miranda Lambert and the night’s hosts Lady Antebellum, among others.

The ACM Honors is dedicated to celebrating all of the special honorees and off-camera category winners from this year’s ACM Awards. The two-hour special tapes Tuesday (August 30th) at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and will air September 9th at 9pm ET/PT on CBS.

Dierks Bentley and Keith Urban, along with newcomer Cam, will reveal the final nominees for this year’s CMA Awards live from the Grand Ole Opry House on ABC’s Good Morning America Wednesday (August 31st).

The location of this year’s announcement adds to the already auspicious occasion as the Grand Ole Opry House served as home to the CMA Awards from 1974 until 2004, making it the longest running backdrop of the Awards and home to some of its most iconic moments. Bentley and Urban, with a combined 50 nominations and 12 wins across 8 CMA Awards categories, will be live with Cam from the Opry House stage adding another special moment to that history.

Following the announcements on GMA, the remaining categories will be revealed live on GoodMorningAmerica.com, as well as via Good Morning America’s Facebook page through Facebook Live.

CMA will then release the full list of CMA Awards nominees.

The full list of nominees will be available at CMAawards50.com immediately following announcement.

The 50th Annual CMA Awards will air live from Nashville November 2nd at 8pm ET on ABC.

The Academy of Country Music® (ACM) announced that Dierks Bentley, Toby Keith, Blake Shelton and Keith Urban will take the stage at the 10TH ANNUAL ACM HONORS™ for a special tribute to Glen Campbell, who as previously announced will be honored with the ACM Career Achievement Award. The country music luminaries will perform an all-star medley of Campbell’s greatest hits, culminating to an ensemble performance of the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy.” Kim Campbell will accept the award on behalf of her husband (of 35 years).

Toby Keith and Blake Shelton join previously announced performers Jason Aldean, Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Cam, Maren Morris, Cole Swindell, Keith Urban and hosts Lady Antebellum. Additional performers and presenters will be announced.

The 10^TH ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to celebrating the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards. Hosted by multi-ACM Award-winning group Lady Antebellum, the two-hour special will tape on Tuesday, August 30 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium, and make its television debut on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Tickets for the special taping are available for purchase to the general public now at Ticketmaster.com.

For more information on the Academy of Country Music and the ACM Honors, please visit www.acmcountry.com.

About ACM Honors™
ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Special Awards, Studio Recording Awards and Songwriter of the Year Award winners. The 10th Annual ACM Honors takes place Tuesday, August 30, 2016 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and – for the first time ever – will be produced for television by dick clark productions to be broadcast on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are executive producers. Tiffany Moon is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music. Tickets to ACM Honors are priced at $60 and $100 and will go on sale to the general public at Ticketmaster.com and the Ryman box office at 10:00 AM CT on Wednesday, August 10, 2016. For more information, visit www.ACMcountry.com.