Lauren Alaina, Jon Pardi to Co-Host 2018 ACM Honors
Lauren Alaina and Jon Pardi have been tapped to host the 12th annual Academy of Country Music Honors on Aug. 22, which will take place at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn. The ACM Honors ceremony is dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the 53rd ACM Awards, which took place on April 15, 2018.
It is the first year hosting the ceremony both for Pardi and Alaina, who is the reigning ACM New Female Vocalist of the Year. Pardi was the ACM New Male Vocalist of the Year in 2016, and was nominated in 2018 for Album of the Year, for his latest project, California Sunrise.
ACM Honors honorees this year include Dierks Bentley, who will receive the ACM Merle Haggard Spirit Award, an award that recognizes an artist who "follows his / her own path, crafting great songs and epitomizes Merle's spirit through genuine performances and great storytelling." Sam Hunt will be recognized for his record-breaking "Body Like a Back Road" with the ACM Gene Weed Milestone Award; Alan Jackson will receive the ACM Cliffie Stone Icon Award, for artists who "advance the popularity of the genre through their contributions in multiple facets of the industry;" and Darius Rucker will be recognized for his philanthropic efforts with the ACM Gary Haber Lifting Lives Award. The evening will also honor winners of the Industry and Studio Recording Awards, along with Songwriter of the Year Award winner Rhett Akins.
Tickets for the ACM Honors ceremony will go on sale to the general public online and the Ryman box office at 10AM CT on June 15.