Hillary Lindsey attends the 53rd Academy of Country Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena on April 15, 2018 in Las Vegas.
Emma Mcintyre/ACMA2018/Getty Images for ACMSongwriter Hillary Lindsey and producer Jay Joyce will each receive top awards at the 14th annual ACM Honors at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on Aug. 25.
Lindsey will receive the Academy of Country Music’s songwriter of the year award for the second year in a row. Lindsey, whose past hits include "Jesus, Take the Wheel," "Girl Crush" and "Always Remember Us This Way," is the first songwriter to win this accolade two years running since Dallas Davidson, who took the award in 2011 and 2012. Shane McAnally has also won it twice (in 2013 and 2018) but not consecutively.
Jay Joyce will receive producer of the year for a record-extending fifth time. Joyce produced two of the albums nominated for album of the year at the 56th annual ACM Awards: Brothers Osborne's Skeletons and Ashley McBryde's Never Will. Joyce also produced one of the single of the year nominees: Miranda Lambert's "Bluebird."
Other honorees at the ACM Honors are Ken Burns’ Country Music, RAC Clark, Luke Combs, Ross Copperman, Dan + Shay, Joe Galante, Toby Keith, Lady A, Loretta Lynn, Gretchen Peters, Curly Putman and Rascal Flatts.
The evening is dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the 55th and 56th ACM Awards. Studio recording awards and industry award winners from the 55th ACM Awards weren’t properly recognized last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
ACM special awards are voted on by the ACM board of directors. The show is executive produced by Damon Whiteside, CEO of the ACM, and written and produced by Lisa Lee.
Three of the awards will be presented posthumously: the ACM poet's award to songwriter Curly Putman, guitar player of the year to J.T. Corenflos and the 2019 producer of the year award to busbee.
ACM professional members can purchase tickets in a special pre-sale by visiting ticketmaster.com. The pre-sale code will be emailed to all professional members prior to the on-sale date. (Sign-up here for ACM emails.)
Tickets will go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. CT Friday at Ticketmaster. Prices range from $85 to $142.
A limited number (80) of VIP package tickets will be available starting Friday at 10 a.m. CT. VIP seating includes parking, VIP artist pit seating location, VIP pre-party reception with complimentary beverages and light hors d'oeuvres and an official commemorative ACM Honors Hatch Print. Tickets for VIP are priced at $1,000 at Ticketmaster.
ACM Party for a Cause (benefiting ACM Lifting Lives) will return in August, marking the first time ACM Party for a Cause will be in Nashville.
Here’s a complete list of special award honorees:
ACM Cliffie Stone icon award: veteran label executive Joe Galante and Rascal Flatts. This award is presented to a country music artist, duo/group or industry leader who has advanced the popularity of the genre through their contributions in multiple facets of the industry such as songwriting, recording, production, touring, film, television, literary works, philanthropic contributions and other goodwill efforts.
ACM Gary Haber lifting lives award: Lady A and songwriter/producer Ross Copperman. This award is presented to a country music artist, duo/group or industry professional who is devoted to improving lives through the power of music, has a generosity of spirit, and is committed to serving others. Voted on by the ACM Lifting Lives board of directors.
ACM Gene Weed milestone award: Luke Combs. This award is presented to a country music artist, duo/group or industry leader for a specific, unprecedented or outstanding achievement in the field of country music during the preceding calendar year.
ACM Jim Reeves international award: Dan + Shay. This award is presented to an artist or industry leader for outstanding contributions to the acceptance of country music throughout the world.
ACM Mae Boren Axton service award: RAC Clark. This award is presented to an outstanding country music artist, duo/group or industry leader in recognition of years of dedication and service to the Academy of Country Music. Clark, president of Lion’s Heart Entertainment, has produced the ACM Awards since 1999. Clark is the eldest child of legendary host and producer Dick Clark.
ACM Merle Haggard spirit award: Toby Keith. This award is presented to a singer-songwriter who is continuing the legacy of country legend Merle Haggard by following his or her own path, crafting great songs and epitomizing Haggard’s spirit through genuine performances and great storytelling.
ACM poet’s award: Loretta Lynn, Gretchen Peters and songwriter Curly Putman (posthumously). This award is presented to a country music songwriter for outstanding and longstanding musical and/or lyrical contributions throughout their career, with special consideration given to a song or songs’ impact on the culture of country music.
Tex Ritter film award: Ken Burns’ Country Music. This award recognizes an outstanding television movie, series or feature film released during the preceding calendar year which prominently features country music. Country Music, which premiered on PBS in 2019, was directed and produced by Ken Burns, written and produced by Dayton Duncan and produced by Julie Dunfey.
ACM songwriter of the year award: Hillary Lindsey. This award is presented to an individual known predominately as a songwriter, selected by a professional panel of judges composed of songwriters, publishers, producers, and performing rights organization representatives.
56th ACM Awards (2020 studio recording award winners):
Bass player of the year: Tony Lucido
Drummer of the year: Aaron Sterling
Guitar player of the year: J.T. Corenflos (awarded posthumously)
Piano/keyboards player of the year: Dave Cohen
Specialty instrument(s) player of the year: Ilya Toshinskiy
Steel guitar player of the year: Dan Dugmore & Mike Johnson (a tie)
Audio engineer of the year: F. Reid Shippen
Producer of the year: Jay Joyce
55th ACM Awards (2019 industry award winners):
Casino of the year – theater: The Joint: Tulsa – Tulsa, Okla.
Casino of the year – arena: MGM Grand Garden Arena – Las Vegas, Nev.
Fair/rodeo of the year: Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo – Houston, TX.
Festival of the year: Tortuga Music Festival – Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Club of the year: Joe’s Live – Rosemont, Ill.
Theater of the year: The Beacon Theatre – New York, N.Y.
Outdoor venue of the year: Red Rocks Amphitheatre – Morrison, Colo.
Arena of the year: Madison Square Garden – New York, N.Y.
Don Romeo talent buyer of the year: Gil Cunningham – Neste Live!
Promoter of the year: Brian O’Connell – Live Nation
55th ACM Awards (2019 studio recording award winners):
Bass player of the year: Jimmie Lee Sloas
Drummer of the year: Miles McPherson
Guitar player of the year: Rob McNelley
Piano/keyboards player of the year: Gordon Mote
Specialty instrument(s) player of the year: Jenee Fleenor
Steel guitar player of the year: Paul Franklin
Audio engineer of the year: Justin Niebank
Producer of the year: busbee (awarded posthumously)
NEWS
Placebo have kicked off their 30th anniversary tour by dusting off some tracks for the first time in over 20 years, and also playing new single ‘Helen Keller’ live for the first time.
The new dates come as the band are celebrating the 30 years since they dropped their 1996 debut album. To mark the occasion, they have announced a huge UK and European arena tour, where they have vowed to predominantly play material from their first album and their sophomore record ‘Without You I’m Nothing’.
At the opening night at Krakatoa in Mérignac, France, Brian Molko and co. delivered a stacked 19-song set, which began with ‘Pure Morning’, and immediately went into the first rendition of ‘Come Home’ in 20 years.
Another rarity came straight after, with the first live performance of ‘You Don’t Care About Us’ since 2001, as well as ‘Without You I’m Nothing’ and ‘Allergic (To Thoughts Of Mother Earth)’ which were played for the first time since 2018 and 2014 respectively.
‘Drowning by Numbers’, ‘Bruise Pristine’ and ‘My Sweet Prince’ were all introduced into the setlist for the first time since 2001, ‘Brick Shithouse’ was aired out for the first time since 2003, ‘Scared Of Girls’ was played for the first time since 2010, and both ‘Lady Of The Flowers’ and ‘36 Degrees’ were broken out for the first time in nine years.
The rest of the set was made up of ‘Teenage Angst’, ‘Bionic’, ‘I Know’ and ‘Every You Every Me’, and the band wrapped up the performance with two covers: Depeche Mode’s ‘I Feel You’, and Kate Bush’s ‘Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)’.
It wasn’t until a later show at the Super Bock Arena in Porto, Portugal, that Placebo broke out their new song ‘Helen Keller’ for the first time – playing it 13 songs into the setlist.
Check out more footage from the tour so far below, as well as the setlist from night one.
‘Pure Morning’
‘Come Home’ (First time since 2006)
‘You Don’t Care About Us'(First Time Since 2001)
‘Teenage Angst’
‘Bionic’
‘Without You I’m Nothing” (First Time Since 2018)
‘Allergic (to Thoughts of Mother Earth)” (First Time Since 2014)
‘Drowning by Numbers” (First Time Since 2001)
’36 Degrees” (Alternate Version – First Time Since 2017)
‘I Know’
‘Brick Shithouse’ (First Time Since 2003)
‘Scared of Girls’ (First Time Since 2010)
‘Bruise Pristine” (First Time Since 2001)
‘My Sweet Prince’ (First Time Since 2001)
‘Lady of the Flowers’ (First time since 2017)
‘Nancy Boy’
‘Every You Every Me’
‘I Feel You’ (Depeche Mode cover, live debut)
‘Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)’ (Kate Bush cover)
Placebo dropped the single ‘Helen Keller’ on September 28, and it sees them reach back to ‘H.K. Farewell’, a hidden instrumental from the era of their self-titled 1996 debut. In the track, they retain the eerie keyboard melody from the original, and push it to new dimensions with a heavier, more anguished feeling.
The title refers to the American author, who was also a disability rights advocate and political activist, who became deafblind as a young child and went on to become an internationally renowned writer and campaigner.
As well as the tour, Placebo also celebrated the 30th anniversary of their debut by releasing a reimagined version of the record. For the LP, Molko and Stefan Olsdal returned to the original master tapes and reworked all 10 songs from the 1996 record – describing it as a “director’s cut” that helped them inject the original songs with three decades more experience.
The ongoing tour will reach the UK and Ireland in late November and early December, where they will play Nottingham, Glasgow, Dublin, Manchester, London and Cardiff. See all the dates here and find any remaining tickets here.
Dates will head to Latin America in 2027, beginning in São Paulo on February 20 and running through Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru and Colombia before wrapping up with shows in Guadalajara and Monterrey in March.
Placebo dropped their last album of new material in 2022, with ‘Never Let Me Go’. That record was given a four-star review by NME, which described it as “a renaissance rock record with an experimental edge”, adding that it found Placebo “inspired and ready for a new era”.
