Kelsea Ballerini Addresses CMA Awards Snub: ‘Something Beautiful Will Come From Disappointment’
Kelsea Ballerini has been here before. After being boxed out of the CMA Female Vocalist of the Year category for the first time, the singer took to Twitter to let fans know that yes, she's bummed. But she also expects something positive to come from the disappointment.
The 2020 CMA Awards nominations were revealed on Tuesday morning (Sept. 1). Ballerini has been a CMA Female Vocalist of the Year nominee in each of the last five years, every year she's been eligible since debuting with "Love Me Like You Mean It" in mid-2014.
The same is true for the ACM Awards, with one exception — she was not a nominee for the 2018 ACM Awards, broadcast in April 2019. Something good came from that experience, she recalls.
"Last time this happened," the "Hole in the Bottle" singer begins on Twitter, "I wrote homecoming queen the next day about the feeling." "Homecoming Queen" was the Top 20 lead single from her most recent album, Kelsea.
Several artists responded to Ballerini with words of encouragement. Most notable is Kane Brown, who has an undesirable streak of no CMA nominations, despite four radio airplay No. 1 hits and status as a true country headliner.
The "Cool Again" singer told Ballerini to "Hold your head up" before sharing his own response to the snubbing:
Kelleigh Bannen and Ballerini's husband Morgan Evans are two more who showed support in her mentions. She is not country music's only artist hurting after nomination day — while Miranda Lambert and Luke Combs lead the way in terms of total nominations, three country superstars tallied a total of zero nods. See our full list of CMA snubs and stunners — from least to most surprising — below.
The 2020 CMA Awards air at 8PM ET on ABC on Nov. 11.
Remember: The best way to watch the 2020 CMAs is on TV, with ToC on your phone!
9 CMA Nominations Stunners, From Least to Most Surprising:
Here Are the Country Artists With the Most 2020 Nominations: