April 19, 2021, Issue 752
56th ACM Awards: Radio Reacts
With performances spread across multiple venues, and in-house viewers limited to socially distanced healthcare heroes looking on from the balcony, last night’s (4/18) 56th ACM Awards telecast was not the first of its kind. Therefore, radio pros nationwide were familiar with what to expect and still came away surprised and with a few questions. Here are some of their observations. Midwest Corporate Country Brand Strategist Tom Baldrica: The night was full of solid performances without a real clunker in the Tom Baldrica bunch. Some of my standouts were Eric Church, Keith Urban, Chris Stapleton with Miranda Lambert, and Carly Pearce with Lee Brice. “I Hope You’re Happy Now” winning Single of the Year in a loaded category was a real dark horse winner. I thought this was the best it’s been done in years, if not ever. The energy, production values and movement around the Lois “Double city all created a larger-than-life experience, and L” Lewis it looked and sounded like a million dollars! iHeartMedia KNIX/Phoenix MD/midday personality Lois “Double L” Lewis: Mickey Guyton was an incredible first-time host and a complete pro. She was perfectly poised with perfectly placed sass, which is a tricky thing to balance. Keith Urban is too much for me; I rewound that one. After [Chris] Stapleton and Miranda [Lambert] performed “Maggie’s Song,” Jesse Tack I never stopped crying. I loved that it benefitted MuttNation. But did Luke Combs really win zero awards? Wow. Thank you to the Academy for showcasing Country radio, and specifically the Personality of the Year winners. It was thrilling to be included right next to Kix Freakin’ Brooks. But, I missed the Station of the Year winners being recognized. Hubbard WUBE/Cincinnati afternoon personality Jesse Tack: The sheer number of performances (continued on page 14)
National Treasure: American Country Countdown’s Kix Brooks receives his first ACM National Personality of the Year award.
Seen & Heard
Inside the ACM virtual press room: There’s going to be some rough years. A lot of unemployment lines, but trust me on this one, every dream you have right now is going to come true.
—Leslie Jordan
on what he’d tell his younger self.
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