Academy of Country Music Adds Seven New Awards

Pictured (L-R): Chuck Aly, ACM Vice President and Special Awards Committee Co-Chair; RAC Clark, Interim ACM Executive Director; Allen Shamblin, Songwriter; Miranda Lambert; Tom Douglas, Songwriter; Lori Badgett, ACM President; Ed Warm, ACM Chairman. Photo Credit: Getty Images/John Shearer/Courtesy of the Academy of Country Music

The Academy of Country Music has revealed seven all-new ACM Decade Award categories, to be presented only every 10 years.

The new Song of the Decade honor was awarded in a surprise backstage presentation recently to Miranda Lambert and songwriters Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin, for “The House That Built Me.”

The ACM Song of the Decade Award recognizes a song that has impacted country music over the decade. The factors considered include but are not limited to, success at radio, commercial media, sales and streaming, creative integrity, artistic merit and ACM Award recognition. Lambert is the most-awarded artist in Academy history, with a total of 34 wins. In 2010, the hit song “The House That Built Me” won in three separate ACM categories, including Single Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Video of the Year.

Other newly-minted accolades include ACM Album of the Decade, ACM Artist-Songwriter of the Decade, ACM Breakout Artist of the Decade, ACM Single of the Decade, ACM Songwriter of the Decade and ACM Music Event of the Decade. Winners in these categories will be announced in coming weeks.

The ACM Decade Awards were ratified by the ACM Board of Directors and the ACM Special Awards Committee co-chaired by Chuck Aly and Kelly Rich, following an examination of the most influential projects over the past decade of country music.

“The Special Awards committee convened multiple times, put aside their professional interests and were diligent in considering the fullness of country music in arriving at these honors. This is not, however, the Academy of Country Music deciding who or what should be honored. This is simply our recognition of self-evident truth. ‘The House That Built Me’ is the Song of the Decade in country music. It is a monument unto itself,” said Aly, Academy of Country Music Vice President and ACM Special Awards Committee Co-Chairman.

As previously announced during the 54^th Academy of Country Music Awards, the ACM Dick Clark Artist of the Decade Award was presented to Jason Aldean. He joins only five other honorees that have received the Artist of the Decade Award, which include Marty Robbins in 1969, Loretta Lynn in 1979, Alabama in 1988, Garth Brooks in 1998 and George Strait in 2008. This Award was renamed the ACM Dick Clark Artist of the Decade Award after Clark passed away in 2012, in recognition of his many years as the ACM Awards producer and early host.

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Jessica Nicholson

Jessica Nicholson serves as the Managing Editor for MusicRow magazine. Her previous music journalism experience includes work with Country Weekly magazine and Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) magazine. She holds a BBA degree in Music Business and Marketing from Belmont University. She welcomes your feedback at jnicholson@musicrow.com.

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