CRS Revises New Faces Eligibility & Selection Criteria For 2026 Show

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The Country Radio Broadcasters (CRB)/Country Radio Seminar (CRS) Board of Directors has made two revisions to the eligibility and selection criteria for its annual New Faces of Country Show.

The first amendment now recognizes the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart as a qualifying measure for eligibility, now joining the Mediabase Country chart. This marks the first time digital sales and streaming data will be a determining factor.

Additionally, the second update allocates record labels and artist representatives with the authority to determine artist eligibility and manage the submission process. Representatives will now confirm that artists meet the minimum criteria, submit their names for ballot inclusion and verify artist availability and willingness to perform if selected. This change aims to provide an increased level of industry involvement and accountability, assuring the artists selected reflect both the current and future landscape of country music.

“The revised New Faces Show chart criteria more broadly reflects how our music is being exposed and consumed in 2024, and how its performance is measured,” says RJ Curtis, CRB Executive Director. “While radio airplay continues to be the critically important calculation for artist success, digital sales and streaming data are also important, accurate factors in identifying the rising New Faces and voices in country music.”

This new criteria is in effect for the Nov. 1, 2024–Oct. 27, 2025 qualification period, first impacting the New Faces lineup for CRS 2026.

The ballot will consist of all qualifying artists submitted by their representatives, listed in alphabetical order. Ballots will be reported to and approved by the CRB Executive Committee before final selections are made.

For more information, click here.

Madison Hahnen
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