The 60th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards was a bit of a mixed bag for me. On the positive side, Cody Johnson's performance of "The Fall" was absolutely fantastic, and I'm thrilled that he took home an award. Riley Green and Ella Langley also deserved their wins, and it's great to see talented artists getting recognized.
However, I was disappointed to see that some country music singers didn't receive the recognition they deserved. Brantley Gilbert, who last won at the BMI Country Awards in 2017, Justin Moore, who only won the New Artist of the Year award in 2014, and Jason Aldean, who last won at the ACM Awards in 2019, all came up empty-handed this year. It's surprising to see artists of their caliber not being recognized.
I was also looking forward to seeing Parker McCollum perform, but unfortunately, he didn't make it onto the show (even though he announced one of the nominees). Additionally, I think Zach Top (though he did win New Male Artist of the Year) was overlooked for some of the awards, and it would have been great to see him recognized.
But what really took me out of the show was the ending performance by the Backstreet Boys. While they're a great band in their own right, they have no business performing at a country music awards show-especially when they're not even a country band. This kind of decision not only feels completely out of place, but it also risks alienating the very audience the show is meant to serve. Country fans tune in to celebrate country music, not to watch pop groups that have zero connection to the genre. It almost comes off as tone-deaf to what country music stands for, and worse, it could easily offend longtime country fans who know the truth: the Backstreet Boys are not part of this genre and never have been.
This is exactly the kind of move that leads to declining viewership for televised award shows. It reeks of desperation-like the producers and networks are scrambling for mainstream appeal at the expense of authenticity. Throwing in pop or non-country acts to chase ratings does more harm than good. I can guarantee this isn't what country music fans asked for when they turned on their TV.
Now, to be fair, their performance of "Life is a Highway"-from the Cars movie-was a nostalgic moment, and I did enjoy it on a personal level because I grew up watching that movie. But even with that connection, it just didn't belong on this stage.
Overall, I'd say this year's ACM Awards were slightly better than last year's, but there's still a lot of room for improvement. With a bit more focus on the country music genre and the artists who make it great, this show could be truly special. As it stands, it's just an average awards show. Because of the Backstreet Boys performance, my rating has dropped from a 6/10 to a 4/10.
