2021 ACM Awards to Take Place in Nashville in April

The ACM Awards will again take place in Nashville this year, with the annual show to be held on April 18. The 56th annual event will broadcast live from three of Nashville’s iconic music venues — the Grand Ole Opry House, the Ryman Auditorium and The Bluebird Cafe. Nominees, performers and more will be announced in the coming months.

“We’re thrilled to return to Music City’s most iconic venues as we come together on April 18th to celebrate the best in Country Music, back in our normal awards cycle,” Damon Whiteside, CEO of the Academy of Country Music, said in a statement. “A huge thank you to the city of Nashville, Grand Ole Opry House, Ryman Auditorium and Bluebird Cafe for welcoming us back to Nashville, where we can look out for the safety of our artists while shining a spotlight on this vibrant city after a tough 2020.”

The 2020 show was postponed from April to September due to the coronavirus pandemic and was also broadcast from the Opry, the Ryman and the Bluebird. The ACM Awards typically take place in Las Vegas but were moved to Music City and will now return for the second consecutive year.

To support the city of Nashville, ACM Lifting Lives, the charitable arm of the Academy of Country Music, will donate $25,000 to the Music City, Inc. foundation for their Nashville Christmas Day Explosion Relief Fund, with funds earmarked for local musicians out of work due to damage to venues. “ACM Lifting Lives is proud to support the city of Nashville, our home of the 56th ACM Awards, through a $25,000 donation to Music City, Inc foundation for the Nashville Christmas Day Explosion Relief Fund,” said Lyndsay Cruz, ACM Lifting Lives Executive Director. “The impact of the explosion was felt throughout the music community, and we hope this donation can help alleviate some of the burden on the community.”

The 2021 ACM Awards will air Sunday, April 18 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and will be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+, ViacomCBS’ upcoming global streaming service. All guidelines set forth by national, state and local health officials will be closely followed and implemented during the 2021 production along with additional safety measures to be instated by dick clark productions and the Academy of Country Music.