Nashville, U.S.A. — Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton continued their reigns as Country Music’s Female and Male Vocalists of the Year at “The 46th Annual CMA Awards,” with Shelton also securing his first victory in the coveted Entertainer of the Year category.

“The 46th Annual CMA Awards” was hosted for the fifth time by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood and broadcast live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on the ABC Television Network.

Lambert and Shelton made history by winning Female and Male Vocalist of the Year for the third consecutive year. Shelton and Lambert also won Song of the Year for “Over You.” Although three married couples have been previously nominated for CMA Song of the Year Awards honors – Ed and Patsy Brucefor “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys” in 1978, Sanger D. “Whitey” Shafer and Darlene Shafer for “Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind” in 1985, and “All My Ex’s Live in Texas,” written by Whitey Shafer and his fourth wife Lydia Shafer in 1987 – Lambert and Shelton are the first to take the prize.

First-time CMA Awards winners include Eric Church for Album of the Year Chief, Little Big Town for Vocal Group and Single of the Year (“Pontoon”), Hunter Hayes for New Artist of the Year, and Thompson Square for Vocal Duo of the Year. As producer of both Chief and “Pontoon,” Jay Joyce was awarded for Album and Single of the Year, also marking his debut as a CMA Award winner.

In presentations made before the broadcast, Mac McAnally earned his fifth Musician of the Year victory.

Earlier on Thursday, two CMA Awards were presented live on ABC’s “Good Morning America” from Times Square in New York. Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw won Musical Event of the Year for “Feel Like a Rock Star.” CMA Music Video of the Year honors went to Toby Keith and director Michael Salomon for “Red Solo Cup.”

In a special tribute to Country Music Hall of Fame member Willie Nelson, Lady Antebellum performed “You Were Always on My Mind” and “Crazy,” then Shelton, Keith Urban, and Nelson’s longtime harmonica player Mickey Raphael joined on “Whiskey River.” Faith Hill and McGraw followed in a duet appearance, singing “Good Hearted Woman.” Nelson joined them all, strapped on his trademark guitar “Trigger” and sang “On the Road Again.” Paisley then surprised Nelson with the first-ever CMA Lifetime Achievement Award, which will be renamed the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award.

Full 2012 CMA Awards details, including nominations and performers are available at CMAawards.com, which also includes CMA Awards history, a searchable database of past CMA Awards nominees and winners, host information, merchandise and much more. The CMA Awards Store has T-shirts, hoodies, hats, mugs, tote bags and more official merchandise for fans to purchase online. Fans can connect with CMA online at Facebook.com/CMA, Twitter.com/CountryMusic (#CMAawards),YouTube.com/CountryMusicAssoc, Pinterest.com/CMAworld, and by downloading the free CMA Awards app available for iPhone and Android.

The CMA Awards nominees and winners are determined by the 11,000 industry professional members of CMA, which was formed in 1958 as the first trade organization to promote an individual genre of music. The first “CMA Awards Banquet and Show” was held in 1967.

The following year, the CMA Awards was broadcast on NBC television for the first time – making it the longest-running annual music awards program on network television. The Awards aired on NBC through 1971 and on the CBS Television Network from 1972 through 2005. The CMA Awards moved to ABC in 2006, where it will remain through 2021.

“The 46th Annual CMA Awards” is a production of the Country Music Association. Robert Deaton is the Executive Producer, Paul Miller is the Director, and David Wild is the writer.

The Winners of “The 46th Annual CMA Awards” are:

• Entertainer of the Year - Blake Shelton
• Female Vocalist of the Year - Miranda Lambert
• Male Vocalist of the Year - Blake Shelton
• New Artist of the Year - Hunter Hayes
• Vocal Group of the Year - Little Big Town
• Vocal Duo of the Year - Thompson Square

Album of the Year (Award goes to Artist and Producer(s))
Chief
Eric Church
Produced by Jay Joyce
EMI Records Nashville

Single of the Year (Award goes to Artist and Producer(s))
“Pontoon”
Little Big Town
Produced by Jay Joyce
Capitol Records Nashville

Song of the Year (Award goes to Songwriter(s))
“Over You”
Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton

Musical Event of the Year (Award goes to each Artist)
“Feel Like a Rock Star”
Kenny Chesney (duet with Tim McGraw)
Blue Chair Records/Columbia Nashville

Music Video of the Year (Award goes to Artist and Director)
“Red Solo Cup”
Toby Keith
Directed by Michael Salomon

Musician of the Year - Mac McAnally – Guitar

Image Courtesy : S_bukley / Shutterstock.com

The article Shelton and Lambert Still Reigning at the CMA Awards appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Nashville, U.S.A. - Live Nation Entertainment and ACM Promoter of the Year Brian O’Connell are leading the charge for a new country festival where the music and atmosphere will rival the serene, natural beauty of the landscape. Watershed Music Festival will take place August 3, 4 and 5 at the iconic Gorge Amphitheatre and is set to feature a versatile lineup of artists, camping, late night sets, impromptu jam sessions, collaborations and more.

Located east of Seattle, the Gorge Amphitheatre provides a picturesque backdrop for the laid back, country vibe O’Connell has envisioned for this truly unmatched festival. Three-day festival passes go on sale May 5th at Ticketmaster.com and LiveNation.com.

“The Gorge provides a feeling that is impossible to recreate anywhere else,” said O’Connell.  ”It is truly a magical place and provides the perfect setting for a cool, eclectic country event.  We wanted to create something that didn’t exist, from the caliber of artists to the camping and the atmosphere.  I’m excited to be a part of it and see it all come together.”

“In the storied 25 year history of The Gorge, we’ve been fortunate to host many of the nation’s top country artists, but all have been single day concerts,” said Jeff Trisler, President of Live Nation Seattle. “For years, we’ve wanted to host a multiple day country festival that builds on the tremendous success for our annual Sasquatch Music Festival and Dave Matthews Band residency.  We believe this event will bring that same sort of excitement and energy to The Gorge for an entirely new group of music fans.”

Artists confirmed for the multi-day country fest include Dierks Bentley, Kix Brooks, Sara Evans, Brantley Gilbert, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, Thompson Square, Uncle Kracker, Dwight Yoakam, Tracy Lawrence, Reckless Kelly, The Lost Trailers, Steve Holy, Johnny Reid, Jon Pardi, Thomas Rhett, Morgan Frazier, DeeJay Silver and a local stage will feature regional acts each night. More artists are set to be announced in the coming weeks.

The Gorge Amphitheatre, located in George, Wash., is undoubtedly one of the most scenic concert venues in the world and offers sweeping views of the Columbia River Gorge. The area itself is a watershed for the Columbia River, thus inspiring the name of the event. The Watershed Music Festival will feature a limited capacity of 25,000 and will offer lawn terrace seating and premiere camping options.

The amphitheatre has been the home of many historic concerts from bands such as Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Van Halen, Rush, Radiohead, Tim McGraw, Aerosmith, Metallica, Rascal Flatts,John Mayer, The Police, Brad Paisley, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and the annual Sasquatch! Music Festival.

Three day festival passes will start at only $90 and go on sale May 5 at ticketmaster.com.

For more information, visit www.WatershedFest.com, twitter @watershedfest, Ticketmaster.com and LiveNation.com.

Image Courtesy of   Watershed Festival

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