TWO-TIME ACM AWARD WINNER CARLY PEARCE TO HOST 14TH ANNUAL ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC HONORS™ WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2021 AT NASHVILLE’S HISTORIC RYMAN AUDITORIUM

LOS ANGELES, CA (July 15, 2021) – The Academy of Country Music® announced today the first round of talent participating in the 14th ANNUAL ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC HONORS™, which is set to be hosted by two-time ACM Award winner Carly Pearce. Artists confirmed to perform include Lauren Alaina, Devin Dawson, Sara Evans, HARDY, Chris Janson, Lady A, Ashley McBryde, RaeLynn and Lee Ann Womack, with more talent to be announced in the coming weeks. The 14th ANNUAL ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC HONORS™, considered one of the industry’s favorite nights, is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and winners from the 55th and 56th Academy of Country Music Awards™. The event will take place on Wednesday, August 25, 2021 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and will be livestreamed on Circle Network’s social channels – Circle All Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Circle Network will also air a television special around the 14th Annual Academy of Country Music Honors at a later date this year. Tickets are available to the public now at Ticketmaster.

“I am humbled and excited to be hosting the 14th Annual Academy of Country Music Honors ceremony for the first time,” expressed Carly. “Winning two ACM awards this year was a dream come true, and I cannot wait to share that same feeling with my fellow artists and industry friends as their special moments are recognized. I look forward to a night of honoring the best in Country Music on August 25!”

“This has always been a night that the ACM honors the Nashville music community. Now, with this Circle All Access livestream, we’ll be able to bring it to fans around the world besides those in the Ryman pews. And then later we’ll air it as a tv special on Circle TV,” said Drew Reifenberger, general manager of Circle Network.

“The Academy is excited to be back in Nashville with our star-studded 14th Annual Academy of Country Music Honors celebration and to welcome ACM Award winner Carly Pearce as our host,” said Damon Whiteside, CEO of the Academy of Country Music. “We look forward to having industry and fans join us as we recognize the significant accomplishments of our 55th and 56th Studio Recording Awards, Industry Awards, Songwriter of the Year and Special Awards winners with a night of unforgettable performances. A special congratulations to all of our winners and honorees, and a huge thank you to all of our performers, partners and the Country Music community for joining us to celebrate them together at the Ryman.”

City National Bank is the presenting partner of the evening. Other partners include Prevost and 1000 Stories Wine is the official wine partner for the Academy and Academy of Country Music Honors.

A limited number of VIP Package tickets are available to the public. VIP seating includes parking, VIP Artist Pit seating location, VIP Pre-Party Reception with complimentary beverages and light hors d'oeuvres and an official commemorative ACM Honors Hatch Print. Tickets for VIP are priced at $1,000 and available at Ticketmaster.com.

As previously announced, Special Award recipients to be celebrated at the 14th Annual Academy of Country Music Honors include Joe Galante and Rascal Flatts (ACM Cliffie Stone Icon Award), Lady A and Ross Copperman (ACM Gary Haber Lifting Lives Award), Luke Combs (ACM Gene Weed Milestone Award), Dan + Shay (ACM Jim Reeves International Award), RAC Clark (ACM Mae Boren Axton Service Award), Toby Keith (ACM Merle Haggard Spirit Award), Loretta Lynn, Gretchen Peters and Curly Putman (ACM Poet’s Award) and Ken Burns’s Country Music (ACM Tex Ritter Film Award). The evening will also honor winners of the 55th ACM Industry Awards, 55th & 56th ACM Studio Recording Awards, along with 55th and 56th ACM Songwriter of the Year winner, Hillary Lindsey.

To apply for press credentials to cover the 14th Annual Academy of Country Music Honors, please click HERE for the online application. All applications must be received by 2:00 PM PT on Friday, August 6. Late applications will not be considered. 

For more information, visit ACMcountry.com. You can also like Academy of Country Music on Facebook, follow the Academy on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, all at @ACMawards, and sign up for the FREE ACM A-List for the latest news and updates in your email inbox. For information on ACM Lifting Lives, please visit www.acmliftinglives.org.

About Academy of Country Music Honors™

Academy of Country Music Honors™ is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and additional winners from the Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Special Awards, Studio Recording Awards, Industry Awards and Songwriter of the Year Award. The 14th Annual Academy of Country Music Honors will take place Wednesday, August 25, 2021, at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium. The show is executive produced by Damon Whiteside. For more information, visit www.ACMcountry.com.

About Carly Pearce:

Fiercely rooted in the classics, the girl who left her Kentucky home and high school at 16 to take a job at Dollywood has grown into a woman who embraces the genre’s forward progression and is confident in what she wants to say. In a full circle surprise, iconic superstar and Grand Ole Opry member Dolly Parton extended the coveted invitation to Carly after 85+ appearances. She also partnered with the Country Music Hall of Fame on Unbroken Circle: Exploring Country Music History with Carly Pearce to connect the genre’s legacy and future. Lighting a fire with her debut album EVERY LITTLE THING and the PLATINUM-certified history making title track, Carly has since become “Country’s ‘it’ girl” (ABC Radio). With the most CMA Awards nods for any new artist in 2020, she won Musical Event of the Year with “I Hope You’re Happy Now.” The PLATINUM-certified, No. 1 duet with Lee Brice also took the 2021 ACM Awards Single and Music Event of the Year, plus she scored a Female Artist nomination. During a pivotal time, Carly turned to the comfort of records she’s drawn inspiration from since her childhood dream started to take hold – Dolly, The Chicks, Trisha, Reba, Patty Loveless. Carly marked a new chapter coming of age and finding creative simpatico with Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne following the unexpected death of her mentor and former producer busbee, she put out a seven-song collection called 29 (Big Machine Records) featuring Top 20-and-rising, GOLD-certified “Next Girl.” Leaning into her faith, Carly joined five-time GRAMMY® nominated singer/songwriter Matthew West on a new version of his No. 1 "Truth Be Told.” For the latest tour dates, including direct support for Lady A, visit CarlyPearce.com.

About CIRCLE: 

Circle is the award-winning music and lifestyle network dedicated to celebrating everything country. Circle offers entertainment news, documentaries, movies, archival, new and licensed programming, Grand Ole Opry performances, and more. The network recently announced ad-support streaming distribution partnerships with Redbox, Peacock, The Roku Channel, Samsung TV Plus, XUMO and VIZIO Free Channels, bringing its country lifestyle programming to millions more through TVs, smartphones and tablets. Named Digiday’s 2021 Best Streaming TV Platform and Pollstar’s #1 Livestreamer for 2020, Circle is a joint venture between Opry Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties, and Gray Television.

Media Contacts:
Academy of Country Music / ACM Lifting Lives                              

Melissa Moldovan / Bridget Cirone                                     

818.788.8000

Melissa@acmcountry.com   

Bridget@acmcountry.com

Ryman Auditorium
Essential Broadcast Media, LLC
Ebie McFarland | Joseph Conner
ebie@ebmediapr.com | joseph@ebmediapr.com
 
Ryman Hospitality Properties
Alyson Stokes
615-316-6727
astokes@rymanhp.com
 

Circle Network:

Teresa George

tgeorge@circleplus.com

NVE Experience Agency:

Brian Rubin / Lauren Mynderse

323-305-7696

760-994-9461

brian.rubin@experiencenve.com

lauren.mynderse@experiencenve.com