Here are the Winners & Losersâoff of the top of my head sans any deep insightâfrom the 55th annual ACM Awards on Sept. 16. Of course, the Losers arenât really losers, so donât get your fringe twisted.
Winners â Riley Green & Tenille Townes

The New Female and New Male Artists of the Year delivered during their performances. Tenilleâs performance of âSomebodyâs Daughterâ was the bestâor at least, my favoriteâperformance of the night, while Rileyâs performance of âI Wish Grandpas Never Diedâ was the most-Shazamed song of the evening.
Winner â Mickey Guyton

Mickey delivered a stunning performance of âWhat Are You Going to Tell Her.â While casual country music fansâand non-fans who happened to be watching the showâprobably didnât know who she was, they do now. The tune was the second-most-Shazamed song of the evening.
Losers â Thomas Rhett & Carrie Underwood

The award is called Entertainer of the Year, not Entertainers of the Year. Thousands of votes . . . and it ends in a tie? Shenanigans! Shenanigans!! Shenanigans!!!
Winner â Carrie Underwood

Wait, how can Carrie be both a winner and a loser? Itâs my list. Anyone who pulls off a medley of songs by Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Barbara Mandrell, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire and Dolly Parton is a winner in my book.
Loser â Eric Church

Eric was nominated for Entertainer of the Year . . . an award he has never won. A very solid case can be made for why he should have won. Alas, he didnât even finish in the top two in the voting, which we know because there was a TIE.
Winner â Luke Combs

Of the four most-coveted awards (Male Artist, Female Artist, Album and Entertainer of the Year), Luke won two: Album of the Year and Male Artist of the Year. Thatâs a winner!
Winner â Trisha Yearwood

Trishaâs rendition of âIâll Carry You Homeâ during the In Memoriam was beautiful. If sheâs not careful, sheâll be beckoned to sing it at every awards show for the rest of her life, much like Vince Gill singing âGo Rest High On That Mountainâ at seemingly every funeral. It must be mentally/spiritually exhausting for Vince.
Losers â Dierks Bentley and Kacey Musgraves Viewers

Both Dierks and Kacey were nominated for major awardsâMale Vocalist and Female Vocalist/Single of the Year, respectivelyâbut neither performed. Of course, Dierks has been nominated for the award six times without winning, so he has legitimate beef, but Kacey was the reigning Female Vocalist of the Year. I want Kacey and Dierks performing at every awards show in perpetuity. Period.
main photos by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com