ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC® ANNOUNCES SUBMISSIONS & VOTING TIMELINE FOR 2023 ACM AWARDS®
ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC® ANNOUNCES
SUBMISSIONS & VOTING TIMELINE FOR 2023 ACM AWARDS®
SUBMISSIONS OPEN JANUARY 9 – JANUARY 27, 2023
Nashville, TN (December 1, 2022) – The Academy of Country Music® announced today the submissions and ballot timeline for professional membership voting for the 58thAcademy of Country Music Awards™ coming in 2023. The Academy also announced changes and additions within numerous Awards categories. The 58th Academy of Country Music Awards™ is produced by dick clark productions and will livestream exclusively on Prime Video for a global audience on Thursday, May 11, 2023 live from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas.
Submissions for the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards™️ will be open at 11 a.m. CT / 9 a.m. PT Monday January 9, 2023. The Academy will be accepting entries through Friday, January 27, 2023 at 7 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. PT. Please click here to submit.
The ACM Board of Directors approved changes (expanded details below) to the Academy’s Entertainer of the Year category, extending the final round nominees from five to seven. The Academy’s Songwriter of the Year category will be split into two categories, Songwriter of the Year and Artist-Songwriter of the Year. Criteria for the Academy’s Album of the Year category has been changed to increase the required amount of previously unreleased content from 51% to 75%, and the release window has been updated to better accommodate gradual release schedules. The Academy’s Video of the Year category has been expanded into Visual Media of the Year to include additional formats of visual content.
Additionally, the Academy’s Radio Award criteria for National Personality of the Year has been updated to require that show submissions are distributed across all continental time zones. This impacts both National Weekly On-Air Personality of the Year as well as National Daily On-Air Personality of the Year.
“The 58th ACM Awards cycle brings thoughtful and well-considered changes to numerous awards categories to better match the landscape of our industry’s music, visual content, and radio broadcasts and, specifically, how they have changed and grown with the times,” said Kelly Rich, Chair of the ACM Awards, Voting, and Membership committee. “I’d like to thank the Awards committee members, Board members, and Board Officers for their active and invaluable contributions in joining these important conversations and helping to shape the categories for this coming year to reflect our evolving industry.”
“Making these changes clarifies eligibility and allows artists, songwriters, and radio broadcasters to put their best foot forward in having their accomplishments recognized by their peers and celebrated by the Academy.” said Tommy Moore, VP Artist and Industry Relations, Governance and Board Administration. “We’re thrilled to be able to expand our Entertainer of the Year category, introduce a Songwriter of the Year category specifically for artists, and expand the scope of the visual media able to be considered. We look forward to robust submissions from our industry in the new year and a stellar selection of exceptional creative work to celebrate in Texas in May.”
The eligibility period for submissions for the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards is November 16, 2021 through December 31, 2022. Key dates for Academy professional members for the 2022 ACM Awards cycle are as follows:
- Submissions Period Opens: January 9, 2023
- Submissions Period Closes: January 27, 2023
- First Round Voting Main Awards: February 27, 2023 – March 6, 2023
- First Round Voting Radio Awards: February 27, 2023 – March 13, 2023
- Second Round Voting Main Awards: March 27, 2023 – April 3, 2023
- Final Round Voting Radio Awards: March 27, 2023 – April 10, 2023
- Final Round Voting Main Awards: April 17, 2023 – April 24, 2023
*All submission/voting windows close at 8 p.m. E.T. / 7 p.m. C.T. / 5 p.m. P.T.
Category Updates:
- ACM Entertainer of the Year extended number of final round nominees from five to seven
- ACM Songwriter of the Year split into two categories
ACM Songwriter of the Year: This award is presented to an individual known predominately as a songwriter and does not serve as the primary artist on any songs in the top 20 Billboard’s Hot Country Songs or Mediabase Country charts during the eligibility period. Nominees will be selected by a professional panel of judges whose members are approved by the ACM officers and composed of songwriters, publishers, producers, and performing rights organization (PRO) representatives. The panel will submit five (5) nominees, which will be placed on the final ballot once approved by the ACM Board of Directors. The winner shall be determined by a vote of ACM members classified in the following categories: Artist/Musician/Producer/Engineer, Songwriter, Music Publisher/PRO and Record Company.
The factors to be considered include but are not limited to: a commercially-released song crediting the songwriter that achieved its highest position in the Top 50 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs or Mediabase Country charts during the eligibility period. If the single was released prior to the eligibility period but achieved its highest charted position during the current eligibility period, it is eligible, unless it appeared on a final ACM ballot.
ACM Artist-Songwriter of the Year: This award is presented to an individual known both as an artist and a songwriter who was the predominate recording artist on at least one song that charted in the top 20 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs or Mediabase Country charts during the eligibility period. Nominees will be selected by a professional panel of judges whose members are approved by the ACM Officers and composed of songwriters, publishers, producers, and performing rights organization (PRO) representatives. The panel will submit five (5) nominees, which will be placed on the final ballot once approved by the Board. The winner shall be determined by a vote of ACM members classified in the following categories: Artist/Musician/Producer/Engineer, Songwriter, Music Publisher/PRO, and Record Company.
The factors to be considered include but are not limited to: a commercially released song crediting the songwriter that achieved its highest position in the Top 50 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs or Mediabase Country charts during the eligibility period. If the single was released prior to the eligibility period but achieved its highest charted position during the current eligibility period, it is eligible, unless it appeared on a final ACM ballot.
- ACM Album of the Year Updates – amount of original, previously-unreleased content increased from 51% to 75%. Release window updated to better accommodate gradual release schedules.
Album of the Year: An album is defined as a unified, released body of work with a minimum of either seven (7) full-length musical works and/or thirty (30) minutes in length. The nominees shall be determined by a nomination ballot(s) and are subject to the approval of the Board. The winner shall be determined by a vote of the ACM professional membership.
An album is considered released on the first available date that the material can be possessed by a consumer via a purchase in its entirety and/or streamed legally in its entirety by a royalty-generating service. If the album was released during the two (2) prior eligibility periods but achieved its highest charting position on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart during the eligibility period, it is eligible unless it has appeared on a final ACM ballot in this category.
To be eligible, a minimum of 75% of the standard edition of the album must contain recordings that have not been previously released by the artist on a prior album. “Best Of," “Greatest Hits,” and re-recordings of previously released albums are ineligible.
Only the standard edition of an album may be submitted for eligibility, as determined by the record company. Once an album is nominated in the final round, it may not be nominated in alternate configurations for future voting.
- ACM National Personality of the Year – updated to require that show submissions are distributed across all U.S. continental time zones.
National Weekly On-Air Personality of the Year [Award to On-Air Personality(s)]: This award is presented to an outstanding national Country Music on-air (terrestrial, satellite or internet) radio personality who best represents the Country Music genre on a reoccurring radio show that is hosted on a weekly basis. Entrants must have a minimum of 40 shows in a calendar year, and will be selected by a professional panel of judges approved by the ACM Officers.
The professional panel shall evaluate submissions from the current eligibility period based on the personality’s body of work, as represented in an aircheck (maximum length of five (5) minutes), and an essay (maximum length of 500 words) defining the personality’s unique brand, demonstrating impact on audience and exemplifying artist discovery.
Entrants must demonstrate they air in a minimum of ten markets, across all four time zones across the continental United States, with a minimum of 32 shows airing during the submission period. Principal personalities must be together for eight (8) consecutive months and still be working at the submitting station by the submission deadline. The prior year winner is ineligible for a consecutive nomination in this category.
National Daily On-Air Personality of the Year [Award to On-Air Personality(s)]: This award is presented to an outstanding national Country Music on-air (terrestrial, satellite or internet) radio personality who best represents the Country Music genre on a daily radio show. Entrants must broadcast a minimum of 200 shows in a calendar year and will be selected by a professional panel of judges approved by the ACM Officers.
The professional panel shall evaluate submissions from the current eligibility period based on the personality’s body of work, as represented in an aircheck (maximum length of five (5) minutes), and an essay (maximum length of 500 words) defining the personality’s unique brand, demonstrating impact on audience, and exemplifying artist discovery.
Entrants must demonstrate they air in a minimum of ten markets, across all four time zones across the continental United States, with a minimum of 32 shows airing during the submission period. Principal personalities must be together for eight (8) consecutive months and still be working at the submitting station by the submission deadline. The prior year’s winner is ineligible for a consecutive nomination in this category.
- ACM Video of the Year reconfigured into ACM Visual Media of the Year to accommodate more sources of visual content.
ACM Visual Media of the Year: This award is presented to the producer, director, and artist for an outstanding piece of visual media released by the artist during the eligibility period, supporting a song or single. Emphasis shall be placed on creativity, production, visual appeal, and impact on consumers and the Country Music industry across one or more platforms. Other factors to be considered include, but are not limited to, success at radio of any recording for which the content was made, and volume of consumption on any digital platform where the content is released. The content piece must contain 51% of the full original master. Only one submission per song will be allowed. The nominees shall be determined by a nomination ballot(s) and are subject to the approval of the Board. The winner shall be determined by a vote of the ACM professional membership. If the content piece was released prior to the previous eligibility period but achieved its biggest impact during the current eligibility period, it is eligible unless it has appeared on a final ACM ballot in this category.
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 the Academy of Country Music:
Founded in Southern California in 1964 as a regional trade organization, the ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC (ACM) has grown in the almost-60 years since into a leading association for the Country Music industry. Today, the Academy boasts more than 4,600 professional members nationwide and serves as a powerhouse advocate for Country fans, artists, and all facets of the business, as well as a supporter of philanthropic work through charitable arm ACM LIFTING LIVES, which harnesses the power of the Country Music community to help improve lives through the power of music and provide aid in times of need, with a focus on health initiatives. 2022 continues to be a landmark year for the Academy, with the relocation of the organization’s headquarters to Nashville after decades in Los Angeles; ACM Honors, dubbed the “Country Music industry’s favorite night,” returning to broadcast TV and airing for the first time on FOX; and, in a historic partnership with Amazon, its iconic Academy of Country Music Awards streamed live on Prime Video in 235 territories all over the globe, the first time a major awards show has streamed exclusively. For more information, log onto ACMcountry.com or ACMLiftingLives.org.
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