NASHVILLE, TN. (Top40 Charts/ Webster PR) - The Academy of Country
Music and Great American Country (GAC) announced today that for the second year, the three newcomer categories for the ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS - Top New Solo Vocalist, Top New Vocal Duo and Top New Vocal Group -will be opened up to interactive fan voting through VoteACM.com. As previously announced, the Top New Solo Vocalist category will take the place of the Top New Male Vocalist and Top New Female Vocalist categories.
Following is the list of final nominees in the Top New categories that the Academy announced today:
Top New Solo vocalist
Luke Bryan
Jamey Johnson
Chris Young
Top New vocal duo
Bomshel
Joey + Rory
Steel Magnolia
Top New Vocal Group
Eli Young Band
Gloriana
The Lost Trailers
Professional members of the Academy of Country Music select the final nominees in the Top New Solo Vocalist, Top New Vocal Duo and Top New Vocal Group categories. Professional member votes will be combined with fan votes to obtain the winners of the Top New categories of the ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS.
Fan voting for these three categories will begin at VoteACM.com on Friday, February 26, and will close on Friday, March 12. The winner in each category will be announced in mid-March and will move on to compete for Top New Artist. Voting for the Top New Artist category will begin at VoteACM.com on Thursday, April 1, and will close on April 18, with the winner being announced live during the 45th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards broadcast on the CBS Television Network.
As part of this partnership, GAC will air several stand-alone specials, including a show featuring all the nominees from each of the three categories, as well as a show featuring the three winners who will compete for overall Top New Artist.
'GAC provides many new country music artists their first television exposure, and this special programming gives fans the opportunity to get to know the ACM new artist nominees even better,' said Sarah Trahern, Senior Vice President of Programming for GAC.
'The Academy's partnership with GAC last year brought a lot of new faces to the forefront of country fans minds, and we hope to build on that success, exposing a brand new slate of newcomers to GAC viewers,' said Bob Romeo, Executive Director of the Academy of Country Music.
The first GAC special, hosted by reigning ACM Top New Male Vocalist Jake Owen, will feature the nine nominees, three from each newcomer category, and will premiere Thursday, February 25 at 10:00 PM ET. This special will re-air through March 12, when voting closes.
On March 23, GAC will tape a second special wherein the winner in each category will be named and presented with the award for Top New Solo Vocalist, Top New Vocal Duo, and Top New Vocal Group. Each winning act will perform on this special, which will air multiple times before the Academy of Country Music Awards. The premiere airdate of the special is Thursday, April 1 at 10:00 PM ET.
The winner of the new Top New Artist category will be awarded on the 45th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards broadcast LIVE from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Sunday, April 18, 2010 at 8:00 PM live ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network.
The complete list of nominees for the Academy of Country Music Awards will be announced in February.
