Country music lovers, it’s almost time to honor the art of the genre with the first-ever People’s Choice Country Awards. This inaugural ceremony is being presented as “an award show for the people and by the people.”
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As announced earlier this month by NBC, the ceremony will take place on Thursday, September 28 at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Performing at the event are mainstays and heavy hitters of country music like Jelly Roll, Kelsea Ballerini, Blake Shelton, Kane Brown, and more. Little Big Town have taken up hosting duties for the show.
Find out more about this brand-new awards show below.
What Are the People’s Choice Country Awards?
According to info about the show, the People’s Choice Country Awards expands on the long-running People’s Choice Awards to celebrate the country music industry specifically. The two-hour broadcast will, according to a press release, “lean into the rich connection between country music and the Opry through chart-topping musical performances, genre-bending collaborations, legendary tributes and surprise moments that regularly happen from the iconic venue.”
The awards ceremony will recognize the biggest and best country music has to offer, chosen by the fans across various categories. Several honorary awards will also be given, as outlined by NBC.
How to Watch the 2023 People’s Choice Country Awards
The two-hour, star-studded event will air September 28 at 8 p.m. EST on NBC and will also be available to stream on Peacock simultaneously. As stated above, all the action goes down on the historic stage at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry.
Who is Performing?
In addition to Jelly Roll, Kelsea Ballerini, Blake Shelton, and Kane Brown — who are set to take the stage during the ceremony — expect performances from Carly Pearce, Dan + Shay, Wynonna Judd, HARDY, Toby Keith, along with hosts of the event, Little Big Town. Judd will receive the Country Champion Award, and Shelton is due to present Keith with the Country Music Icon Award.
Who is Nominated?
Lainey Wilson, Morgan Wallen, and Luke Combs are the most nominated artists of the night. Wallen racked up 11 noms. The top award of the night is People’s Artist of 2023. Nominees for that honor include Wallen, Wilson, Combs, Old Dominion, Blake Shelton.
Some of the other awards for the night are the Group Duo of 2023, the New Artist of 2023, and the Album of 2023. Those categories are full of well-known and celebrated big-name nominees in the country sphere. Competing for New Artist are breakout stars like Bailey Zimmerman, Corey Kent, ERNEST, Megan Moroney, Ingrid Andress, Jelly Roll, Priscilla Block, and Zach Bryan.
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