If contemporary country music still has a woman problem — and many observers would strongly avow that it does — you wouldn’t know it from the nominations for the 2025 CMA Awards. The Country Music Association announced this year’s nominees Monday morning, and at the front of the crop were the bold young stars Lainey Wilson, Ella Langley and Megan Moroney, tied with six nominations apiece.

Close behind was the fast-rising star Zach Top, who landed five nods from the CMAs’ voters. The country traditionalist has quickly achieved a high level of success in the genre despite only putting out his second major-label album at the end of August, past the end of the eligibility period.

Earning four nominations each were Riley Green and Cody Johnson. Following with three apiece were country superstars Morgan Wallen, Chris Stapleton and Luke Combs, along with behind-the-scenes movers and shakers Kristian Bush, Carson Chamberlain and Charlie Handsome. (Scroll down to see the complete list of 2025 nominees.)

The 59th Annual CMA Awards will be broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 19 on ABC, with next-day viewing on Hulu.

The nominees this time for Entertainer of the Year are Wallen, Wilson, Stapleton, Combs and Johnson. All of these are holdovers from last year, except for Cody Johnson, who slips into a slot claimed in the 2024 noms by Jelly Roll.

Much will be made of the fact that Wallen’s three nominations may not feel commensurate with his commercial status, as Wallen is not just the biggest reigning star in country but definably the most popular male artist in any genre now.

Wallen is the CMAs’ reigning Entertainer of the Year, having picked up what is considered the highest honor toward the end of 2024. Only, he didn’t actually pick it up; Wallen passed on attending the telecast, leading to an anticlimactic moment on the show when the genre’s most coveted award went to a no-show. Even with Wallen seeming to snub the awards show last year, voters nonetheless have nominated him for Entertainer of the Year again, along with best male vocalist and best album (for his endlessly chart-topping “I’m the Problem”).

Lainey WIlson won Entertainer of the Year just before Wallen, in 2023, and she will be a strong contender against him to reclaim it this year, with a sold-out arena tour currently cementing her bona fides. Besides the top prize, Wilson has her additional five nominations for single of the year and song of the year (both for “4x4xU”), album of the year (for “Whirlwind”), female vocalist of the year and music video of the year (for “Somewhere Over Laredo,” a single off the deluxe version of “Whirlwind”).

Moroney has been following in Wilson’s footsteps as representative of a thrilling new wave of country women — and freshman artist Langley has been treading in Moroney’s steps just about as quickly.

Moroney may still be considered too young to qualify for Entertainer of the Year, but she’s up in just about every other possible category. Her six nominations include female vocalist of the year, album of the year (“Am I Okay?”), musical event of the year (for “You Had to Be There,” which features Kenny Chesney), and then three noms for the title track of “Am I Okay?”: single of the year, song of the year and music video of the year.

Langley’s equally high number of nominations may be the most surprising, given she is still on her first major-label album — but not so surprising when you recall the rousing reception to her performance on last year’s telecast of “You Look Like You Love Me,” her breakout duet with Riley Green. Not surprisingly, that hit has multiple nominations now, for single of the year, song of the year and music video of the year. She is also nominated for new artist of the year, female vocalist of the year and musical event of the year (for “Don’t Mind if I Do”).

The dominance of Wilson, Langley and Moroney will be welcomed as a signpost for the many who have championed the underdog role of women in country in recent years. But the news outside of these awards continues to be less than encouraging for female artists in the country radio format. (At present, in the top 15 of the Billboard Country Airplay chart, there is not a single female artist represented. Even expanding it to the top 25, the only woman is Wilson, whose “Somewhere Over Laredo” currently stands at No. 16.)

Zach Top will compete against Langley for new artist of the year, a category that will be hotly contested this year. Top’s other four nominations come for male vocalist of the year, single of the year and song of the year (both for “I Never Lie”) and album of the year (“Cold Beer & Country Music”).

The album of the year category pits Post Malone’s “F-1 Trillion” against the aforementioned full-length releases by Moloney, Top, Wallen and Wilson.

Female vocalist of the year finds Langley, Moroney and Wilson up against Kelsea Ballerini and Miranda Lambert, two more veteran artists who have their only nominations this year in that category.

Male vocalist is a contest between Wallen, Top, Stapleton, Combs and Johnson.

New artist of the year has Langley and Top facing off against Shaboozey, Tucker Wetmore and Stephen Wilson Jr.

The final round of voting for the CMAs will take place from Oct. 1-29 among the organization’s 7,132 voting-eligible CMA Professional members.

“Each year, the CMA Awards shine a light on the creativity, passion and dedication of our community,” said Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer, in a statement. “The nominees announced today represent some of the most impactful work happening across country music, and we are deeply appreciative of our voting members for lending their time and expertise to this process. Their commitment helps ensure the CMA Awards remain a true reflection of the genre’s excellence. On behalf of CMA, congratulations to all of this year’s nominees.”

Here is a full list of 2025 nominees:

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
• Luke Combs
• Cody Johnson
• Chris Stapleton
• Morgan Wallen
• Lainey Wilson

SINGLE OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artist(s), Producer(s) and Mix Engineer(s)
• “4x4xU” – Lainey Wilson
Producer: Jay Joyce
Mix Engineers: Jason Hall, Jay Joyce
• “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma” – Luke Combs
Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton
Mix Engineer: Chip Matthews
• “Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
Producer: Kristian Bush
Mix Engineer: Justin Niebank
• “I Never Lie” – Zach Top
Producer: Carson Chamberlain
Mix Engineer: Matt Rovey
• “You Look Like You Love Me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green
Producer: Will Bundy
Mix Engineer: Jim Cooley

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artist, Producer(s) and Mix Engineer(s)
• “Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
Producer: Kristian Bush
Mix Engineer: Justin Niebank
• “Cold Beer & Country Music” – Zach Top
Producer: Carson Chamberlain
Mix Engineer: Matt Rovey
• “F-1 Trillion” – Post Malone
Producers: Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome, Hoskins
Mix Engineer: Ryan Gore
• “I’m the Problem” – Morgan Wallen
Producers: Jacob Durrett, Charlie Handsome, Joey Moi
Mix Engineers: Charlie Handsome, Joey Moi
• “Whirlwind” – Lainey Wilson
Producer: Jay Joyce
Mix Engineers: Jason Hall, Jay Joyce

SONG OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Songwriter(s)
• “4x4xU”
Songwriters: Jon Decious, Aaron Raitiere, Lainey Wilson
• “Am I Okay?”
Songwriters: Jessie Jo Dillon, Luke Laird, Megan Moroney
• “I Never Lie”
Songwriters: Carson Chamberlain, Tim Nichols, Zach Top
• “Texas”
Songwriters: Johnny Clawson, Josh Dorr, Lalo Guzman, Kyle Sturrock
• “You Look Like You Love Me”
Songwriters: Riley Green, Ella Langley, Aaron Raitiere

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
• Kelsea Ballerini
• Miranda Lambert
• Ella Langley
• Megan Moroney
• Lainey Wilson

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
• Luke Combs
• Cody Johnson
• Chris Stapleton
• Zach Top
• Morgan Wallen

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
• Lady A
• Little Big Town
• Old Dominion
• Rascal Flatts
• The Red Clay Strays

VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR
• Brooks & Dunn
• Brothers Osborne
• Dan + Shay
• Maddie & Tae
• The War and Treaty

MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artists and Producer(s)
• “Don’t Mind if I Do” – Riley Green (featuring Ella Langley)
Producers: Scott Borchetta, Jimmy Harnen, Dann Huff
• “Hard Fought Hallelujah” – Brandon Lake with Jelly Roll
Producer: Micah Nichols
• “I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
Producer: Trent Willmon
• “Pour Me a Drink” – Post Malone (feat. Blake Shelton)
Producers: Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome
• “You Had to Be There” – Megan Moroney (feat. Kenny Chesney)
Producer: Kristian Bush

MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR
• Jenee Fleenor – Fiddle
• Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
• Brent Mason – Guitar
• Rob McNelley – Guitar
• Derek Wells – Guitar

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Award goes to Artist(s) and Director(s)
• “Am I Okay?” – Megan Moroney
Directors: Alexandra Gavillet, Megan Moroney
• “I’m Gonna Love You” – Cody Johnson (with Carrie Underwood)
Director: Dustin Haney
• “Somewhere Over Laredo” – Lainey Wilson
Director: TK McKamy
• “Think I’m in Love With You” – Chris Stapleton
Director: Running Bear
• “You Look Like You Love Me” – Ella Langley & Riley Green
Directors: Ella Langley, John Park, Wales Toney

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
• Ella Langley
• Shaboozey
• Zach Top
• Tucker Wetmore
• Stephen Wilson Jr.

2025 CMA BROADCAST AWARDS – FINALISTS FOR BROADCAST PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR (by market size):

Weekly National
• “Country Countdown USA with Lon Helton” (Lon Helton) – LH Productions
• “The Country Top 40 with Fitz” (Cory “Fitz” Fitzner) – Hubbard Broadcasting
• “The Original Country Gold” (Rowdy Yates) – Syndicated Media
• “Today’s Country Radio” (Kelleigh Bannen) – Apple Music Radio
• “Y’all Access with Kelly Sutton” (Kelly Sutton) – Compass Media Group

Daily National
• “Big D & Bubba” (“Big D” Derek Haskins, “Bubba” Sean Powell, Carsen Humphreville, Jonathan Shaffer, and Garrett Freche) – Silverfish Media
• “Highway Mornings with Cody Alan” (Cody Alan and Lauryn Snapp) – SiriusXM
• “Ridin’ With Rowdy” (Rowdy Yates) – SuiteRadio / RFC Media
• “The Rob and Holly Show” (Rob Stone and Holly Hutton) – Audacy
• “Wilhite and Wall Show” (Darren Wilhite and Tim Wall) – Ebert Productions

Major Market
• “Chris Carr & Company” (Chris Carr, Sam Sansevere, and “Dubs” Michael Wilczynski) – KEEY, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
• “Hawkeye and Michelle” (“Hawkeye” Mark Louis Rybczyk and Michelle Rodriguez) – KSCS, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
• “The Lo Show” (Lauren “Lo” Barker) – KKBQ, Houston, Texas
• “Rachel Ryan” (Rachel Ryan) – KSCS, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
• “The Scotty Kay Show” (Scotty Kay) – WUSN, Chicago, Ill.

Large Market
• “Deb & Matt in the Morning” (Deborah Honeycutt and Matt Malone) – WFMS, Indianapolis, Ind.
• “The Q Morning Crew w/ Mike & Amanda” (Mike Wheless and Amanda Daughtry) – WQDR, Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
• “Scott and Shannen” (Scott Dolphin and “Shannen O” Oesterreich) – WMIL, Milwaukee, Wis.
• “Tim & Chelsea” (Tim Leary and Chelsea Taylor) – WIRK, West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, Fla.
• “Wayne D and Tay” (“Wayne D” Danielson and Tay Hamilton) – WSIX, Nashville, Tenn.

Medium Market
• “The Doc Show with Chewy” (Ken “Doc” Medek and Sean “Chewy” Medek) – WGGY, Wilkes Barre-Scranton, Pa.
• “Ellis and Bradley Show” (Bill Ellis and Beth Bradley) – WSSL, Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.
• “Joey & Nancy” (Joey Tack, Nancy Barger, and Karly Duggan) – WIVK, Knoxville, Tenn.
• “Mo & StyckMan” (Melissa “Mo” Wagner and Greg “StyckMan” Owens) – WUSY, Chattanooga, Tenn.
• “Spencer Graves Show” (Spencer Graves, Megan Terry, and Blair Davis) – WDXB, Birmingham, Ala.

Small Market
• “Ben & Arnie” (Ben Butler and Arnie Andrews) – WCOW, La Crosse, Wis.
• “Brent Lane and The Cat Pak Morning Show” (Brent Lane and Jordan Glass) – WYCT, Pensacola, Fla.
• “Dan Austin Show” (Dan Austin) – WQHK, Fort Wayne, Ind.
• “Hilley & Hart” (Kevin Hilley and Erin Hart) – KATI, Columbia, Mo.
• “Liz & Scotty in the Morning” (Liz Del Grosso and Scotty Cox) – KCLR, Columbia, Mo.

2025 CMA BROADCAST AWARDS – FINALISTS FOR RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (by market size):

Major Market
• KKBQ – Houston, Texas
• KSCS – Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
• KYGO – Denver-Boulder, Colo.
• WUSN – Chicago, Ill.
• WXTU – Philadelphia, Pa.

Large Market
• WCTK – Providence-Warwick-Pawtucket, R.I.
• WMIL – Milwaukee-Racine, Wis.
• WSIX – Nashville, Tenn.
• WUBE – Cincinnati, Ohio
• WWKA – Orlando, Fla.

Medium Market
• KUZZ – Bakersfield, Calif.
• WHKO – Dayton, Ohio
• WIVK – Knoxville, Tenn.
• WLFP – Memphis, Tenn.
• WQMX – Akron, Ohio

Small Market
• KATI – Columbia, Mo.
• KCLR – Columbia, Mo.
• WCOW – La Crosse, Wis.
• WKML – Fayetteville, N.C.
• WXBQ – Johnson City-Kingsport-Bristol, Tenn.-Va.

Lainey Wilson at the Variety Hitmakers Brunch held at nya West on December 07, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Variety via Getty Images

Ella Langley at the 60th Academy Of Country Music Awards held at the Ford Center at The Star on May 8, 2025 in Frisco, Texas.
Gilbert Flores for Variety

Megan Moroney at the 60th Academy Of Country Music Awards held at the Ford Center at The Star on May 08, 2025 in Frisco, Texas.
Michael Buckner