The 60th Annual Academy of Country Music awards, set to air on Thursday, May 8, 2025, from the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, will be hosted by one very familiar face as Reba McEntire returns as the ACM host for the 18th time.
Hosting the awards more than time any other artist, the 16-time ACM Award winner first hosted in 1986 and continued to return during the early 1990s through ’00s and on through her most recent time hosting in 2024.
This year, the ACMs will feature performances by Reba’s former co-hosts Alan Jackson and Blake Shelton, along with Chris Stapleton, Kelsea Ballerini, Lainey Wilson, and Miranda Lambert. “It’s gonna be an absolute can’t-miss show,” said McEntire, “and I can’t wait to be there with you.”
In celebration of McEntire’s 18th time hosting the ACM Awards, here’s a look back at her previous 17 times as host, and co-host, in photos.
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1986
In 1986, McEntire made her debut as a host at the 21st Annual ACM Awards, alongside co-hosts Mac Davis and John Schneider. That year, McEntire also won an ACM for Country Music Video fo the Year for “Whoever’s in New England.”
1988
Along with Hank Williams, Jr., McEntire hosted again in 1988 for the 23rd ACM Awards. She also picked up the ACM for Top Female Vocalist of the Year.
1993
After a six-year hiatus from hosting, Reba returned as an ACM co-host in 1993 with George Strait and Alabama singer Randy Owen. During the ceremony, McEntire also did double duty, performing her 1993 hit “It’s Your Call,” the title track of her 18th album, which went to No. 5 on the Country chart. Later that year, McEntire caused a stir for wearing her infamous red dress to another awards show, the CMAs, during her performance “Does He Love You?” The dress made a reappearance 25 years later when Reba wore it to host the ACM Awards.
1994
At the 29th Annual ACMs, Reba co-hosted with Alan Jackson. That year, McEntire also received the most nominations with 7, including Single Record of the Year, Top Vocal Duo of the Year, and Video of the Year for her duet with Linda Davis, “Does He Love You”; she won two for Entertainer of the Year and Top Female Vocalist.
2002
For the first time in eight years, Reba hosted the ACMs again in 2002. The ceremony also marked the first time McEntire hosted the ACM Awards on her own. Though she wasn’t nominated that year, Trisha Yearwood did present McEntire with the ACM Humanitarian Award. The awards ceremony would be the first of three consecutive ACMs Reba would host through 2004.
2003
Reba hosted solo for a second time in 2003 for the 38th annual ACM Awards on May 21, 2003, which was held at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. She also picked up an ACM Leading Lady Award.
2004
For her third consecutive spot as ACM host in 2004, McEntire also performed her cover of Mark Wills’ 2001 No. 1 hit “Somebody” from her 2003 album Room to Breathe.
2006
The 41st Academy of Country Music Awards, on May 23, 2006, were held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, where Reba made her eighth appearance as host. That night, Brad Paisley picked up the most nominations (five) and wins at three, including Album of the Year for Time Well Wasted and Vocal Event of the Year for his duet with Dolly Parton, “When I Get Where I’m Going.”
2007
At the 42nd ACM Awards, McEntire hosted and performed a duet with her then-future daughter-in-law, Kelly Clarkson. The duo sang Clarkson’s 2004 hit “Because of You.” The two were also nominated for Vocal Event of the Year for their duet but lost to Tracy Lawrence, Tim McGraw, and Kenny Chesney’s “Find Out Who Your Friends Are.”
2008
In 2008, McEntire was on hand to host the 43rd Annual installment of the ACMs. She also performed with Brooks & Dunn on their 2008 hit “Put a Girl in It.”
2009
Reba returned for a fourth consecutive year as host since 2006 in 2009 and was also nominated for Vocal Event of the Year for her duet with Brooks & Dunn, “Cowgirls Don’t Cry.”
2010
In 2010, Reba picked up another ACM nomination for Top Female Vocalist of the Year. In between hosting the 45th Annual ACM Awards, she was presented with an ACM Career Achievement Award and performed her 2009 No. 1 “I Keep on Loving You,” which was written by Ronnie Dunn and Terry McBride.
2011
The 2011 ACM Awards took a different turn for Reba. After hosting solo for five years straight, Blake Shelton came on board as a co-host for the 46th annual awards show.
2012
Shelton returned again the following year to co-host with McEntire and was also up for two awards that night, including Entertainer of the Year and Male Artist of the Year, the latter of which he won.
2018
In 2018, McEntire returned as host for the first time in six years, marking her 15th time as an ACM host. Returning to the ACM stage, Reba also made a big splash by wearing the same red dress that turned heads 25 years earlier.
“I didn’t win an award,” said McEntire of the first time she wore it at the CMAs in 1993, “but I did make the front page of the paper the next day.” When she hosted the 53rd annual ACM Awards on April 15, 2018, she pulled the dress out of the closet for the ceremony, held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“I was really wanting to wear this dress again one of these days,” said McEntire at the ACMs. “And 25 years later, here I am.”
That year, Reba was also nominated for Female Artist of the Year and performed with Kelly Clarkson again for a duet of her 1993 hit with Linda Davis, “Does He Love You.”
2019
As host, again, Reba performed her song “Freedom” from her 2019 album Stronger Than the Truth. That year, Dan + Shay and Chris Stapleton led the 54th Academy of Country Music Awards with six nominations each.
2024
In 2023, the ACM Awards moved to its new location at the Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas, with hosts Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks. A year later, Reba returned as host and performed her 2008 song “I Can’t.”
During the show, McEntire performed her then-new single, “I Can’t,” which she debuted while serving as a coach on The Voice, and paid tribute to Dickey Betts, who died in 2024, with a duet of the Allman Brothers Band’s “Ramblin’ Man” with Post Malone.
In January 2025, it was announced that Reba will return to host the 60th Annual ACMs in Texas on May 8. The awards show will mark Reba’s 18th time as host and the third consecutive year the ceremony was held in the Lone Star State.
Photo: Kevin Winter/ACMA2011/Getty Images for ACM
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