Kacey Musgraves, along with Taylor Swift, lead the list of this year’s CMA Awards with 6 nominations each.

Kacey, who is a first-time nominee in 2013, has six nominations spanning several categories including Female Vocalist and New Artist of the Year, as well as two nominations for Album of the Year for Same Trailer Different Park and Single of the Year for “Merry Go ‘Round,” which she co-produced with Luke Laird and Shane McAnally. In the Song of the Year category (which is presented to songwriters), she is nominated twice, once for “Merry Go ‘Round” with songwriters Josh Osborne and McAnally and for the hit that Miranda Lambert took up the country charts, “Mama’s Broken Heart,” with songwriters Brandy Clark and McAnally. Kacey took to Twitter to say, “6 great reasons to get out of bed today.. SO grateful!!”

Keith Urban received four nominations including Male Vocalist of the Year, which he has won three times (2004-2006); and three more (Single, Musical Event and Music Video of the Year) with Tim McGraw and Taylor Swift for “Highway Don’t Care.”

Luke Bryan and Little Big Town picked up three nods each. Luke, who was named the ACM Entertainer of the Year in April, receives his first Entertainer of the Year nomination this year. He’s also nominated for Male Vocalist and Musical Event of the Year for “The Only Way I Know” with pals Jason Aldean and Eric Church.

Reigning CMA Vocal Group of the Year, Little Big Town received three nominations, including their eighth Vocal Group of the Year nod; Album of the Year for Tornado, which was produced by Jay Joyce; and Music Video of the Year for “Tornado,” which was directed by Shane Drake. Songwriters Natalie Hemby, Laird, and Barry Dean picked up a Song of the Year nomination for their hit, “Pontoon.” The band was on a plane when they found out the news of their nominations. “Just heard INCREDIBLE news about our #CMA nominations! This plane’s about to be a big ‘ol party!,” they tweeted.

The reigning CMA Album of the Year winner, Eric Church, received nominations for Male Vocalist of the Year and Musical Event of the Year with Aldean and Bryan for “The Only Way I Know.” Church received his first CMA Awards nomination in 2011 for New Artist of the Year.

Lady Antebellum also picked up a pair of nominations for Vocal Group of the Year (a trophy they’ve won three times) and Music Video of the Year for “Downtown,” which was directed by Peter Zavadil. Lady A’s Charles Kelley tweeted, “So excited to have a couple CMA nominations. And how about our opening acts Kip and Kacey with huge nominations. We know how to pick em.”

*George Strait enters the field of nominees again in 2013 in the coveted Entertainer of the Year category. Strait is now the most nominated artist in CMA Awards history with 82, breaking a previous tie with Alan Jackson. Strait was last nominated for Entertainer of the Year in 2009, and has picked up the night’s top honor twice (1989, 1990).

Darius Rucker picks up a nomination for Single of the Year and songwriters Bob Dylan and Ketch Secor received a nomination for Song of the Year.

Kip Moore and Kacey Musgraves both pick up their first nomination in the New Artist of the Year category. “It’s been a long road. I think back on the thousands of hours of songwriting and hundreds of thousands of miles we’ve logged on the road…I wouldn’t trade any of that for the quick and easy route. I’ve learned so much, and I’m truly honored to be up for the CMA’s ‘New Artist Of The Year’ Award,” says Kip, who just scored his third No. 1 single with “Hey Pretty Girl.” “I have to admit…this is also a little extra inspiration for us as we finish up the next album!”

2013 CMA Nominations:

Entertainer of the Year 

Jason Aldean

Luke Bryan

Blake Shelton

George Strait

Taylor Swift

 

Album of the Year  

Based On A True Story – Blake Shelton

Blown Away – Carrie Underwood

Red – Taylor Swift

Same Trailer Different Park – Kacey Musgraves

Tornado – Little Big Town

 

Single of the Year

“Cruise” – Florida Georgia Line

“Highway Don’t Care” – Tim McGraw with Taylor Swift & Keith Urban

“Mama’s Broken Heart” – Miranda Lambert

“Merry Go ‘Round” – Kacey Musgraves

“Wagon Wheel” – Darius Rucker

Song of the Year

I Drive Your Truck – Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, Jimmy Yeary (Lee Brice)

Mama’s Broken Heart – Kacey Musgraves, Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally (Miranda Lambert)

Merry Go ‘Round – Kacey Musgraves, Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne (Kacey Musgraves)

Pontoon – Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird (Little Big Town)

Wagon Wheel – Bob Dylan, Ketch Secor (Darius Rucker)

 

Female Vocalist of the Year 

Kelly Clarkson

Miranda Lambert

Kacey Musgraves

Taylor Swift

Carrie Underwood

 

Male Vocalist of the Year 

Jason Aldean

Luke Bryan

Eric Church

Blake Shelton

Keith Urban

 

Vocal Group of the Year  

Eli Young Band

Lady Antebellum

Little Big Town

The Band Perry

Zac Brown Band

 

New Artist of the Year  

Lee Brice

Brett Eldredge

Florida-Georgia Line

Kip Moore

Kacey Musgraves

 

Vocal Duo of the Year  

Big and Rich

Florida-Georgia Line

Love and Theft

Sugarland

Civil Wars

Thompson Square

 

Musical Event of the Year

Boys ‘Round Here – Blake Shelton with Pistol Annies

Cruise – Florida Georgia Line feat. Nelly

Don’t Rush – Kelly Clarkson with Vince Gill

Highway Don’t Care – Tim McGraw with Taylor Swift & Keith Urban

The Only Way I Know – Jason Aldean feat. Eric Church & Luke Bryan

Video of the Year

Blown Away – Carrie Underwood

Boys ‘Round Here – Blake Shelton with Pistol Annies

Downtown – Lady Antebellum

Highway Don’t Care – Tim McGraw with Taylor Swift & Keith Urban

Mama’s Broken Heart – Miranda Lambert

Tornado – Little Big Town

Musician of the Year

Brent Mason

Dann Huff

Mac McAnally

Paul Franklin

Sam Bush

AUDIO: Kacey Musgraves says her debut album, Same Trailer, Different Park, took a lifetime to make.

Kacey Musgraves (debut album) OC: …was in and whatever. :20
“I made it with two friends of mine – Shane McAnally and Luke Laird. It was, for all three of us, the first time that we’ve ever gotten to produce anything, but it just felt right and natural and good. The songs all came from different aspects of my life over the years. You know, you have your whole life to make your first record, so it really comes from inspiration from everywhere – relationships I was in and whatever.”

AUDIO: Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild says the band’s album, Tornado, has an overall feeling to it.

LBT (album has a feeling to it) OC: …same feeling. :34
“This record has a feeling to it. [PHILLIP: “Yeah.”] I mean, we were feeling it in the moment in the studio, every song. But when you hear it, I think it has an overall feeling to it. We laugh about like ‘Pontoon’ has a little bit of a swagger to it, but this whole record has this sentiment – and I don’t even know how to define what the sentiment is, it just has its own unique voice, and it really describes the mood that the band’s been in and the place that we’ve been in our career. It’s that same feeling.”

AUDIO: George Strait received a nomination for “Entertainer of the Year. George explains he’s thrilled to still be a viable act.

George Strait (awards) OC: …as I can. :15
“To be here and still being a part of the business and nominated for awards and current and everything, it’s just unbelievable. And I’m enjoying every bit of it, and I’m gonna keep on doing it for as long as I can.”