The CMA Awards have had their share of controversies in their 60-year history, from Charlie Rich’s protest of John Denver’s Entertainer of the Year win in 1975 by lighting the envelope on fire, to the organization’s harsh edict attempting to ban journalists from asking questions about gun violence after the 2017 Route 91 shooting.
Now, ahead of its Nov. 18 telecast, the Country Music Association awards show is facing criticism from one of its own. Last week, Sammy Kershaw, the ’90s hitmaker known for songs like “She Don’t Know She’s Beautiful” and “Third Rate Romance,” and lifetime member of the CMA, stirred up some controversy — mostly benign, as these things go — when he took the organization to task for not allowing him and his wife access to the media red carpet before the show. (He can still attend the awards show as a paying guest, as are all non-nominated artists).
“I have to share my disappointment with the CMA as they denied my request to walk the red carpet for a few minutes at this year’s CMA Awards,” Kershaw wrote on social media, later claiming he had been “coached” by the CMA for months. “I believe there should be a space to recognize artists who have spent their lives contributing to the success of this organization.”
Outcry over Kershaw’s post quickly spread online. Riley Green, Carly Pearce, Jake Owen and others voiced their support for the 68-year-old, followed by Rodney Atkins, a 2000s radio star who claimed he, too, was denied a walk on the CMAs carpet. On Sunday, beloved singer Pam Tillis, the daughter of legend Mel Tillis, weighed in, asking that country music not “exclude” its historic artists. On Monday, some content creators suggested a boycott of the CMA Awards.
But in what many in country music are calling “the year of the woman,” with Ella Langley and Miranda Lambert making history and leading the nominations, it’s unfortunate to put so much emphasis in the week leading up to the CMAs on a few white men who have had plenty of time in the red carpet sun. It’s also telling that so many people in country — a genre whose artists generally tend to stay quiet on hot-button issues — chose this one to finally find their voice.
This year’s 2026 CMA Awards do not have a single Black artist nominated. There was little outrage over this. There was also no outcry when the association halted its conversations with the civil rights nonprofit Color of Change in 2021. We have yet to see such a vocal segment of the industry organize boycotts on behalf of nonwhite artists who are repeatedly shut out of competition, in part because the CMAs are so beholden to country radio, which barely plays black country artists.
Most mainstream actors also failed to raise a ruckus when Sturgill Simpson, on the heels of a Grammy win for A sailor’s guide to Earth, was snubbed by the CMA Awards. Nor did they vehemently suggest changing CMA guidelines that excluded big-name artists like Tyler Childers, Margo Price and others. And, of course, there was little talk of a boycott when women got only a fraction of the nominations for years. Yes, some called out gender inequality at the awards show, but nothing captivates the hive mind quite like a lack of respect for a white man.
Certainly, it is essential to remember those who helped make country music what it is today. Singers, songwriters, and artists, regardless of their level of success, are the building blocks of the genre, and Kershaw undeniably deserves recognition. That’s what AMC voters think: In 1993, he was nominated for the Horizon Award, today known as New Artist of the Year.
But according to the red carpet requirements for 2025 shared with rolling stoneit’s unclear if Kershaw even meets the CMA criteria for walking. According to the document, any artist wishing to appear must meet one of the following criteria: “They have already been named CMA Entertainer of the Year; they have had a Top 20 single on a Billboard Or Country Air traffic control Chart of country singles or songs over the past three years; they had a Top 10 album on the Billboard Ranking the best country albums over the past five years; they are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame; they are the reigning winners of the 2024 CMA Awards; they have participated in CMA Foundation or CMA industry relations/membership initiatives.
Kershaw has not commented on these specific requirements and it is possible that he participated in CMA Foundation initiatives. Should the CMA just let him go when the mat opens Wednesday early afternoon and call it a day? Certainly. Would his appearance then have generated media coverage comparable to that he obtained by publishing his exclusion on social networks? Certainly not.
Two things may be true: We should always honor the genre’s founding artists, on award stages and on the radio. But the focus should be primarily on the many artists vying for the awards, including women who made huge waves this year, and also on those who never got a real chance. This year alone, Carter Faith, Tucker Wetmore, Stephen Wilson Jr., Emily Ann Roberts and Avery Anna are all nominated for new artist. It includes Shaboozey, who, after giving the genre one of its biggest crossover hits in 2024, saw his name become a joke at the 58th annual CMAs. It also includes a laundry list of non-white artists who are never welcomed near the event.
Yet the last few days have been spent brandishing pitchforks and lighting torches on an issue that, at its core, is less about merit and more about logistics. It’s hard to say no, but sometimes it has to happen. And the storm over Kershaw’s grievances with the CMA lays bare the association’s loyalty to country radio: Consistently prioritizing radio airplay as a marker of competition for awards impacts many facets of the industry. If Kershaw were actively receiving radio hits right now, he would no doubt be welcomed onto their carpet with open arms.
On Monday, the organization released a statement of apology saying it was “deeply sorry that anyone felt excluded,” adding that it was “committed to continuing to listen and find ways to make all artists feel welcome and at home here.” The statement concluded by saying that the AMC was “in contact with the Sammy Kershaw team and looks forward to continuing this conversation.”
So it looks like the CMA is telegraphing that she’ll be going straight for Kershaw on the red carpet. But we should never have come to this. Instead of continuing to say it’s an “injustice” in country music — as one commenter gravely put it — why not take the high road, celebrate the new class or spotlight artists who never had the chance to perform? Because to us, injustice looks more like an all-white candidate pool than a few excluded men.
Gn entert
