Ella Langley, Tim McGraw & More Set for 2026 CMA Awards

The Country Music Association has revealed the first batch of performers for the 60th Annual CMA Awards.

Ella Langley, Tim McGraw, Kacey Musgraves, Miranda Lambert, Cody Johnson, The Red Clay Strays, Zach Top and Tucker Wetmore will all take the stage on country music’s biggest night.

The announcement was made Thursday, Nov. 5.

The awards show will take place Wednesday, Nov. 18 at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

The ceremony will air live on ABC and Disney+ at 8/7c.

It will be available to stream the next day on Hulu.

Lainey Wilson will return as host for the third consecutive year.

She first co-hosted in 2024 alongside Peyton Manning and Luke Bryan.

She hosted solo in 2025.

“I couldn’t be more excited to be hosting the CMA Awards again this year, especially with it being the 60th anniversary,” Wilson said in September when the news was unveiled.

“I’ve had so much fun hosting the last two years, and this one’s going to be extra special. Can’t wait to see y’all in November!”

A special tribute performance will honor the late Dolly Parton and her lasting impact on music and entertainment.

Parton, a country music icon, died earlier in 2026.

This year’s nominations were announced in September.

Ella Langley leads with nine nominations total.

She took home three CMA Awards last year.

Miranda Lambert trails closely behind with seven nominations.

Lambert holds the record for the most CMA Award nominations by a female artist, with 70 career nominations.

Kacey Musgraves and Ben West each have five nominations.

Cody Johnson landed four nods.

He is the reigning Male Vocalist of the Year.

Tim McGraw earned his 40th career CMA Award nomination this year, with a nod for Musical Event of the Year.

He will celebrate that milestone with a performance during the ceremony.

Taylor Swift, who was nominated for Single of the Year for her hit “I Knew It, I Knew You,” revealed she will attend the awards show for the first time in 10 years.

“LOOKS LIKE I HAVEN’T YEE’D MY LAST HAW THANK YOU CMA!!!! See you there Nov. 18 🤠,” Swift wrote on her Instagram Stories.

Swift, 36, has not attended the CMA Awards since 2016.

Ella Langley’s rise has been explosive over the past three years.

Her career took off with songs like “Country Boy’s Dream Girl,” “paint the town blue” and her breakout single with Koe Wetzel, “That’s Why We Fight.”

That song was released in April 2023.

In 2024, she had her first major hit with the Riley Green collaboration “you look like you love me.”

She also released “weren’t for the wind” and other hits.

Her megahit “Choosin’ Texas” became a phenomenon.

Since its release on October 17, 2025, it is now the longest-running #1 hit by a female artist this century.

It is the only country song by a woman to simultaneously top Billboard’s Hot 100, Hot Country and Country Airplay charts.

Her sophomore album, Dandelion, debuted at #1 on the all-genre Billboard 200.

It sold 169,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week.

Langley became just the second woman in history to hold the #1 album and song in the U.S. simultaneously with a country song and album.

In September 2026, she made U.S. history by capturing the longest-running #1 hit in U.S. history with 23 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100.

That passed Mariah Carey’s long-standing record of 22 weeks.

“Choosin’ Texas” is now the first song in history to remain at #1 on the Hot 100 for over half a calendar year — 26 weeks.

It dominated the chart throughout 2026.

Only nine other songs topped the chart so far this year, including Swift’s “Patient Zero” and “I Knew It, I Knew You,” Drake’s “Janice STFU” and Bad Bunny’s “DtMF.”

During a recent interview on SiriusXM The Highway, Langley was asked what she would tell her 2023 self when she first released “That’s Why We Fight” with Koe Wetzel.

She said there is “absolutely nothing” she would tell her younger self.

She said that if she knew everything that came with the success, she “would combust.”

The CMA has confirmed that additional performers and presenters will be announced in the weeks ahead.