I don’t know about that one, Luke…
With the 2024 ACM Awards airing this week on May 16, the buzz is the certainly in the air. Between first-time nominees Flatland Cavalry, Nate Smith and Tyler Childers getting nods, to fan favorites, Zach Bryan, Megan Moroney and Jelly Roll, receiving multiple nominations, there’s no denying that fans and fellow artists alike are pulling for their favorite performers.
In an interview with Evan Paul from Taste of Country, 3x ACM Award winner, Luke Combs, gave a surprising answer to who he thinks should win the coveted Entertainer of the Year award:
“I think Kane Brown. I think that he has never gotten the recognition that I think that he deserves. And I think that he works really hard, and I think that it’d be really cool to see him take it home.”
As a reminder, the Entertainer of the Year nominees include the following:
- Kane Brown
- Luke Combs
- Jelly Roll
- Cody Johnson
- Chris Stapleton
- Morgan Wallen
- Lainey Wilson
While I’m all for artists supporting artists and giving shoutouts to who they think deserve the spotlight, Combs saying Kane Brown should win the most prestigious award of the ceremony seems a bit outlandish. While Brown did have two #1 hits on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart in 2023, he simply does not have the same impact as fellow nominees such as Morgan Wallen, Chris Stapleton and Lainey Wilson.
Whether it’s Wallen taking home 11 Billboard Music Awards including all-genre awards such as Top Hot 100 Artist, Top Hot 100 Song (“Last Night”) and Top Hot 200 Album (“One Thing at a Time”) and selling out arenas nationwide, Lainey Wilson sweeping the ACM, CMA and Grammy Awards for Country Album of the Year with Bell Bottom Country or Jelly Roll continuing to make an impact both in the music industry and in Congress, Brown’s current impact on the country music industry simply does not compare to his fellow nominees.
I’m not trying to add on to the endless amount of hate that Brown has received over the past few years, but I think it’s pretty safe to say that he simply does not stack up to this year’s competition. It’s fairly well-known that Kane Brown has become a bit of a punching bag when it comes to mainstream pop country. Between his collaborations with Marshmello, Nelly and Khalid, his current sound that has been fairly far from traditional and his infamous story of getting lost on his 30 acre property, the “Homesick” singer has been the butt of many a joke regarding the current state of mainstream country.
While I’m not a betting man, I wouldn’t put any money on Brown taking home the award, especially when the competition is so staunch.