ACM Industry And Studio Recording Award Nominees Announced

The Academy of Country Music has revealed the Industry Award and Studio Recording Award nominees for the 53^rd Academy Of Country Music Awards. The Industry Award, Studio Recording Award and the previously announced Special Award winners will be honored during the 12^th Annual ACM Honors, an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the 53^rd ACM Awards.

ACM Honors will take place on Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2018 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. The event is open to the public, and ticket on-sale information is forthcoming. The Academy of Country Music Industry Awards are voted on by all professional members of the Academy. The Studio Recording Awards are voted on by professional members of the Academy classified in the artist-entertainer/musician-bandleader-instrumentalist categories and the producer-engineer-studio manager sub-category.

For ticket information, visit ACMcountry.com to sign up for the ACM A-List, the Academy’s fan newsletter. Recipients will be given a pre-sale code for ACM Honors tickets this summer in advance of the general public on-sale date.

INDUSTRY AWARD NOMINEES:
NIGHTCLUB OF THE YEAR
Cotton Eyed ­Joe ­– Knoxville, TN
Dusty Armadillo – Rootstown, OH
Keg’s Canalside Events Center – Jordan, NY
Moonshine Flats – San Diego, CA
Stoney’s Rockin’ Country – Las Vegas, NV

CASINO OF THE YEAR – SMALL CAPACITY
Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort Event Center ­– Cherokee, NC
Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Tulsa, OK
The Show At Agua Caliente Casino – Rancho Mirage, CA
Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort – Mount Pleasant, MI
The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino – Las Vegas, NV

CASINO OF THE YEAR – MEDIUM CAPACITY
Casino Rama Entertainment Centre – Rama, ON
Choctaw Casino Resort (Grand Theater) – Durant, OK
MGM Grand Garden Arena – Las Vegas, NV
Mohegan Sun Arena – Uncasville, CT
WinStar Global Events Center – Thackerville, OK

VENUE OF THE YEAR – SMALL CAPACITY
Aura – Portland, ME
The Georgia Theater – Athens, GA
Iron City – Birmingham, AL
Penn’s Peak – Jim Thorpe, PA
Starland Ballroom – Sayreville, NJ

VENUE OF THE YEAR – MEDIUM CAPACITY
The Bank Of New Hampshire Pavilion – Gilford, NH
Denny Sanford Premier Center – Sioux Falls, SD
The Greek Theater – Los Angeles, CA
The Wharf Amphitheater – Orange Beach, AL
Whitewater On The Horseshoe – New Braunfels, TX

VENUE OF THE YEAR – LARGE CAPACITY
BOK Center – Tulsa, OK
The Budweiser Stage – Toronto, ON
The Forum – Inglewood, CA
Hollywood Casino Amphitheater – Tinley Park, IL
Shoreline Amphitheater – Mountain View, CA

FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR
Country Concert – Ft, Loramie, OH
Country Thunder – Florence, AZ
Faster Horses – Brooklyn, MI
WE Fest – Detroit Lakes, MN
Windy City Smoke Out – Chicago, IL

DON ROMEO TALENT BUYER OF THE YEAR
Billy Brill – Billy Alan Productions
Amy Bryan – REACH, LLC
Nina Rojas – Neste Marketing Events
R. J. Romeo – Romeo Entertainment Group
Billy Truitt – Peppermill Casino

PROMOTER OF THE YEAR
Allen Anders – AEG Live
Ben Farrell – Lon Varnell Enterprises
Charlie Goldstone – Frank Productions
Ali Harnell – AEG Presents
Brian O’Connell – Live Nation

STUDIO RECORDING AWARD NOMINEES:
BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Brian Allen
Joeie Canady
JT Cure
Tully Kennedy
Jimmie Lee Sloas

DRUMMER OF THE YEAR
Chad Cromwell
Fred Eltringham
Derek Mixon
Aaron Sterling
Jerry Roe
Lonnie Wilson

GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Dave Cobb
Rob McNelley
Adam Shoenfeld
Ilya Toshinskiy
Derek Wells

PIANO/KEYBOARDS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jim ‘Moose’ Brown
Charlie Judge
Gordon Mote
Matt Rollings
Michael Rojas

SPECIALTY INSTRUMENT(S) PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Carl Miner
Danny Rader
Mickey Raphael
Bryan Sutton
Derek Wells

STEEL GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Paul Franklin
Mike Johnson
Russ Pahl
Justin Schipper
Robbie Turner

AUDIO ENGINEER OF THE YEAR
Adam Ayan
Tony Castle
Peter Coleman
Jim Cooley
Justin Niebank
Vance Powell

PRODUCER OF THE YEAR
busbee
Buddy Cannon
Dave Cobb
Dann Huff
Michael Knox

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Lorie Hollabaugh

Hollabaugh, a staff writer at MusicRow magazine, has over 20 years of music business experience and has written for publications including American Profile, CMA Close Up, Nashville Arts And Entertainment, The Boot and Country Weekly. She has a Broadcast Journalism and Speech Communication degree from Texas Christian University, (go Horned Frogs), and welcomes your feedback or story ideas at lhollabaugh@musicrow.com.

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