Texas Music News — September 11, 2026
The Country Music Association revealed its 60th Annual CMA Awards nominees Wednesday, and Texas artists claimed a striking share. Kacey Musgraves, Miranda Lambert, Parker McCollum and Cody Johnson also made this year’s list. And together, they turned nomination day into a Lone Star roll call. The show airs live Nov. 18 from Bridgestone Arena on ABC.
Roughly 7,000 professional voting members determine every nominee. They span songwriters, producers, engineers and performers across the format. So this year, that process handed Texas a rare sweep across generations.
Musgraves earned five nominations, including Album of the Year for her seventh record, Middle of Nowhere. The album traces straight back to Golden, Texas, the Wood County hamlet where she grew up. Listening to it feels like flipping through a shoebox of old photographs, sun-bleached but still sharp. Now Musgraves holds 27 career nominations, more than nearly anyone her age in Nashville.
Miranda Lambert pulled in seven nominations, the most of any woman this year. Now she holds 70 career nominations, a record for a female artist. Also, Lambert produced and co-wrote Ella Langley’s “Be Her” and “Choosin’ Texas,” both nominated twice over. “Congratulations to all of this year’s deserving nominees,” CMA chief executive Sarah Trahern said.
East Texas Owns the CMA Awards
Parker McCollum landed an Album of the Year nomination for his self-titled fifth record. He grew up near Conroe, Texas, and recorded the album at New York’s Power Station. Meanwhile, Cody Johnson earned four nominations, including Entertainer of the Year, country music’s top honor. Johnson hails from Sebastopol, Texas, a speck of a town near Huntsville. Between the four of them, Texas artists collected 17 nominations total.
Nashville may host the CMA Awards, but Texas is writing this year’s story. Come November, country music’s biggest stage will sound a lot like home.
Details at CMAawards.com.
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