Beyoncé snubbed, Morgan Wallen leads

At the 2024 CMA Awards, Morgan Wallen and Post Malone were showered with numerous nominations, but Beyoncé was clearly turned down, despite having one of the most successful country albums of the year with Cowboy Carter and the greatest country songs with “Texas Hold 'Em”.

Wallen leads at the CMAs with seven nominations. He is followed by Chris Stapleton and Cody Johnson, who each received five nominations, while Malone and Lainey Wilson each received four nominations. Wilson, who won entertainer of the year last year, will defend her title against Wallen, Stapleton, Luke Combs and Jelly Roll at the Nov. 20 show, which will air live on ABC from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena.

Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter made history this year when he spent four weeks on the Billboard's Top Country Albums chart – making her the first black woman to do so. She was also the first black woman to top the Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart with “Texas Hold 'Em,” which held the top spot for a whopping 10 weeks. Both her single and album also topped Billboard's All-Genre Hot 100 and 200 Albums charts, while seven other Cowboy Carter Titles in the top 10 of the Billboard Country charts. The 27-track project, which featured Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Linda Martell, Miley Cyrus and Malone, sparked cultural discussions about black artists reclaiming the genres they founded, including country music.

Despite being completely shut out, Beyoncé qualified for CMA categories such as Single of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year and Musical Event of the Year. She even qualified for Entertainer of the Year, although that award is usually reserved for country artists who have built a strong presence in the genre over the years.

The CMAs are voted on by members of the Country Music Association, which includes artists, executives, songwriters, musicians, publicists, touring personnel and other industry professionals. Qualifying singles and albums must have been first released or reached their national peak during the eligibility period, which for this year's show ran from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024. The final round of voting will take place October 1-29.

The CMA's rejection comes eight years after controversy at the 2016 CMAs when Beyoncé surprised the audience with a performance of her country-tinged song “Daddy Lessons” alongside The Chicks. While some applauded the performance, there was backlash from members of the country music community, with some even calling for a boycott, while Queen Bey's performance was deleted from the CMA website. The singer appeared to be referencing the CMAs when she teased Cowboy Carter in March: “This album has been over five years in the making. It grew out of an experience I had years ago when I didn't feel welcome… and it was very clear that I wasn't. But because of that experience, I dug deeper into the history of country music and studied our rich music archive.”

Another artist who released their first country album this year was greeted with nominations, as was Beyoncé. Malone's four nominations for “I Had Some Help,” his No. 1 hit with Wallen, include Single of the Year, Song of the Year, Music Event of the Year and Music Video of the Year. Wallen's seven nominations include those four with Malone, plus a second nomination for Music Event of the Year for “Man Made A Bar” with Eric Church, Male Vocalist of the Year and Entertainer of the Year.

Beyoncé collaborator Shaboozey – who got a big boost in the music scene after appearing on two Cowboy Carter Tracks – received his first-ever CMA nominations. It competes for Best New Artist and Single of the Year with “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” which is currently spending its ninth week atop the Hot 100 chart and is the longest-running No. 1 song of the year. The track has been atop the country charts for 13 weeks and counting.

“A Bar Song (Tipsy)” and “I Need Some Help” compete with Stapleton's “White Horse,” Wilson's “Watermelon Moonshine” and Johnson's “Dirt Cheap” for single of the year. “I Need Some Help” and “White Horse” are also nominated for song of the year – an award for songwriters – alongside Parker McCollum's “Burn It Down” and two Johnson tracks, “Dirt Cheap” and “The Painter.” Johnson received only one nomination in this category because he co-wrote “Dirt Cheap” but did not write “The Painter.”

Candidates for album of the year are Kacey Musgraves' Deeper wellLuke Combs' Fathers & SonsJelly Rolls Whitsitt ChapelJohnson's leather and Stapleton's HigherStapleton shares the award with his wife Morgane, who co-produced her husband's album.