The nominees for the 2020 Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) Awards are in! With the pandemic, we weren’t sure we were going to get this announcement this year. So this came as a welcome surprise.
Tenille Townes leads the pack with 6 nominations including Female Artist Of The Year, Songwriter Of The Year, TD Entertainer Of The Year, and 3 others.
Dean Brody and Brett Kissel have both received 5 nominations each … and James Barker Band, The Reklaws, and Dallas Smith Each have 4.
Every year, the CCMA Awards are a chance to celebrate Canadian country music. This year’s awards are going to be a little different than what we’re used to. The awards will be filmed in two locations … Burl’s Creek Event Grounds in Ontario and in Nashville. The awards are going to honour and showcase the biggest names in Canadian country music.
The awards will be filmed throughout August in both locations and will air on September 29th, 2020 at 9pm on Global.
See below for the full list of nominees to the 2020 CCMA Awards.
TD ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Dean Brody
- Brett Kissel
- The Reklaws
- Dallas Smith
- Tenille Townes
ALBUM OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Black Sheep – Dean Brody
- Love, Heartbreak, & Everything In Between – Tenille Arts
- Now Or Never – Brett Kissel
- Singles Only – James Barker Band
- Wild As Me – Meghan Patrick
FANS’ CHOICE AWARD
- Dean Brody
- Jade Eagleson
- Hunter Brothers
- James Barker Band
- Brett Kissel
- MacKenzie Porter
- The Reklaws
- Dallas Smith
- Tebey
- Tenille Townes
FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Lindsay Ell
- Jess Moskaluke
- Meghan Patrick
- MacKenzie Porter
- Tenille Townes
GROUP OR DUO OF THE YEAR AWARD
- High Valley
- Hunter Brothers
- James Barker Band
- The Reklaws
- The Washboard Union
INTERACTIVE ARTIST OR GROUP OF THE YEAR
- Dan Davidson
- Lindsay Ell
- Aaron Goodvin
- Nice Horse
- Tenille Townes
MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Dean Brody
- Jade Eagleson
- Brett Kissel
- Dallas Smith
- Tebey
RISING STAR AWARD
- Tenille Arts
- Matt Lang
- Tyler Joe Miller
- Emily Reid
- Sons Of Daughters
ROOTS ALBUM OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Everbound – The Washboard Union
- Fingers Crossed – JJ Shiplett
- Kalsey Kulyk – Kalsey Kulyk
- Love Wins – Kelly Prescott
- The Other Way – Donovan Woods
SINGLE OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Count The Ways – Jade Eagleson
- Drop – Dallas Smith
- Keep It Simple – James Barker Band
- Single Man – High Valley
- Whiskey In A Teacup – Dean Brody
SONGWRITER(S) OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Skip Black, Aaron Goodvin, Matt Nolen
- Song: Good Ol’ Bad Days (Performed By: Aaron Goodvin)
- Brad Rempel, Ben Stennis, Jenna Walker, Stuart Walker
- Song: I Do Too (Performed By: The Reklaws)
- Tina Parol, Gordie Sampson, Tenille Townes
- Song: Jersey On The Wall (I’m Just Asking) (Performed By: Tenille Townes)
- Jeff Coplan, Tim Hicks, Bruce Wallace
- Song: No Truck Song (Performed By: Tim Hicks)
- MacKenzie Porter, Jordan Sapp, Parker Welling
- Song: These Days (Performed By: MacKenzie Porter)
VIDEO OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Country Thunder – The Washboard Union
- Drink About Me – Brett Kissel
- Jersey On The Wall (I’m Just Asking) – Tenille Townes
- No Truck Song – Tim Hicks
- Silver Lining – Hunter Brothers
BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Kirby Barber
- Lisa Dodd
- Curtis Ebner
- Doug Elash
- Matt Genereux
- Justin Kudding
*Please note, there are more than 5 nominees in this category*
DRUMMER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Matthew Atkins
- Ben Bradley
- Spencer Cheyne
- Flavio Cirillo
- Rob Wells
- Greg Williamson
*Please note, there are more than 5 nominees in this category*
FIDDLE PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Linsey Beckett
- Tyler Beckett
- Denis Dufresne
- Matt Piche
- Mike Sanyshyn
- Tyler Vollrath
*Please note, there are more than 5 nominees in this category*
GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD PRESENTED BY PRS GUITARS
- Paul Chapman
- Ryan Davidson
- Matt McKay
- Chad Murphy
- Darren Savard
KEYBOARD PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Mike Little
- Brendan Waters
- Scott Wilkinson
SPECIALTY INSTRUMENT PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Mitch Jay
- Connor Riddell
- Tyler Vollrath
STEEL GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Chris Altmann
- Doug Johnson
- Mitch Jay
MUSIC DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR (LARGE MARKET)
- Steph Hansen – CISN-FM/CKRY-FM – Edmonton, AB/Calgary, AB
- Jaxon Hawks – CJJR-FM – Vancouver, BC
- A.J. Keller – CFCW – Edmonton, AB
- Amanda Kingsland – CKBY-FM – Ottawa, ON
- Peter Walker – CJKX-FM/CHKX-FM – Oshawa, ON/Hamilton, ON
MUSIC DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR (MEDIUM / SMALL MARKET)
- Shilo Bellis – CJXL-FM – Moncton, NB
- Paul Ferguson – CHCQ-FM – Belleville, ON
- Cal Gratton – CJVR-FM – Melfort, SK
- Luca James – CKGY-FM – Red Deer, AB
- Peter Morena – CKYY-FM – St. Catharines, ON
COUNTRY PERSONALITY(IES) OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Wendy Boomer – CKBY-FM
- Shannon Ella – Pure Country
- Paul McGuire – Stingray
- Randy Owen – CJDL-FM
- Sarah Scott – CFXO-FM
RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (LARGE MARKET)
- CFCW – Edmonton, AB
- CJKX-FM – Oshawa, ON
- CKBY-FM – Ottawa, ON
- CKKL-FM – Ottawa, ON
- CKRY-FM – Calgary, AB
RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (MEDIUM / SMALL MARKET)
- CFXO-FM – High River, AB
- CHCQ-FM – Belleville, ON
- CICX-FM – Orillia, ON
- CJXL-FX – Moncton, NB
- CKGY-FM – Red Deer, AB
BOOKING AGENCY OF THE YEAR AWARD
- The Feldman Agency
- Invictus Entertainment Group
- Paquin Artist Agency
- Sakamoto Agency
- United Talent Agency
COUNTRY CLUB OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Cook County Saloon – Edmonton, AB
- Cowboys Roadhouse – Winnipeg, MB
- King Eddy – Calgary, AB
- Ranchman’s Cookhouse And Dancehall – Calgary, AB
- Rock ‘N’ Horse Saloon – Toronto, ON
COUNTRY FESTIVAL, FAIR OR EXHIBITION OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Boots And Hearts Music Festival – Oro-Medonte, ON
- Calgary Stampede – Calgary, AB
- Cavendish Beach Music Festival – Cavendish, PE
- Centerfield Music Festival – St. Paul, AB
- Diesel Bird Digital Music Festival – Online
COUNTRY MUSIC PROGRAM OR SPECIAL OF THE YEAR AWARD
- A Kissel Country Christmas – BAK 2 BAK Entertainment Inc./Stingray
- Canada Together: In Concert – Corus Entertainment
- Casey Clarke Country Countdown – Casey Clarke Productions
- Girl Power Hour – Rogers Media
- The Paul McGuire Show – Stingray
MANAGEMENT COMPANY OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Big Loud Management
- Invictus Entertainment Group
- MDM Artist Management Services
- RGK Entertainment Group
- Starseed Entertainment
MUSIC PUBLISHING COMPANY OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Anthem Entertainment
- Big Loud Publishing
- Sony / ATV Music Publishing
- Universal Music Publishing Group
- Warner Chappell Music Canada
RECORD COMPANY OF THE YEAR AWARD
- MDM Recordings Inc.
- Open Road Recordings
- Sony Music Entertainment (Canada) Inc.
- Universal Music Canada
- Warner Music Canada
INDUSTRY PERSON OF THE YEAR PRESENTED BY MNP
- Steve Coady – Warner Music Canada – Vice President, Radio Promotion
- Warren Copnick – Sony Music Entertainment (Canada) Inc. – Director of National Promotion
- Mike Denney – MDM Recordings Inc – President
- Brianne Deslippe – Big Loud Records – Vice President of Promotion/General Manager Canada
- Anya Wilson – Anya Wilson Promotion – Radio Promoter
CREATIVE DIRECTOR(S) OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Design Team: Mitchell Nevins, Madeline Merlo, Photography: Emma-Lee
- Digital Single Packaging: Kiss Kiss, If You Never Broke My Heart, It Didn’t, Digital Singles, Newsletter Template, Zoom Digital Background Filter, Instagram Filter, Website (Artist: Madeline Merlo)
- Design Team: Bronwin Parks
- Single: Just Let Go (Artist: Gord Bamford), Album, Vinyl and Artist Merchandise: It Was A Song (Artists: Ryan Langlois) Singles: (Country Thunder, Country Thunder Acoustic, Dock Rock, Artist Branding (Artist: The Washboard Union)
- Design Team: Wes Mack, Kyle Bottoms
- Album: Soul (Artist: Wes Mack)
- Design Team: Nick Perreault, James Murdoch, Ben Shillabeer
- Album: Twenty Something, Single: Homesick For The Holidays, Social Graphics (Artist: The Dungarees)
- Design Team: Brett Kissel, Connor Schefler
- Album: Now Or Never (Artist: Brett Kissel)
RECORDING STUDIO OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Barrytone Studios – Miramichi, NB
- Bart McKay Productions – Saskatoon, SK
- MCC Recording Studio – Calgary, AB
- Noble Street Studios – Toronto, ON
- OCL Studios – Chestermere, AB
RECORD PRODUCER(S) OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Jeff Dalziel
- EP: Highway Mile (Artist: Aaron Allen), Single: Hot Mess (Artist: Nice Horse), Single: I Do (Artist: Dan Davidson)
- Jacob Durrett, Brett Kissel, Bart McKay
- Album: Now Or Never (Artist: Brett Kissel)
- Karen Kosowski
- Single: Country Thunder (Artist: The Washboard Union)
- Scott Moffatt
- Album: What You See Is What You Get (Artist: Luke Combs)
- Joey Moi, Dave Cohen
- Single: These Days (Artist: MacKenzie Porter)
RETAILER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Amazon Music
- Apple Music
- Spotify Canada Inc.
RON SAKAMOTO TALENT BUYER OR PROMOTER OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Paul Biro – Sakamoto Agency
- Jim Cressman – Invictus Entertainment Group
- Adam Oppenheim – Stampede Entertainment Inc.
VIDEO DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR AWARD
- Stephano Barberis
- Video: All The Time (Artist: David James), Video: As If We Won’t (Artist: JoJo Mason), Video: Better On You (Artist: JoJo Mason), Video: Country Girls (Artist: Jess Moskaluke), Video: Country Thunder (Artist: The Washboard Union), Video: Dear Me (Artist: Madeline Merlo), Video: Timeless (Artist: Dallas Smith)
- Emma Higgins
- Video: I Needed That (Artist: Andrew Hyatt), Video: She Drives Me Crazy (Artist: Brett Kissel), Video: Your Mama (Artist: High Valley)
- Ben Knechtel
- Video: Ain’t My Fault (Live @ MOD CLUB) (Artists: Jade Eagleson), Video: Bars & Churches (Artist: Aaron Goodvin), Video: Can’t Help Myself (Artist: Dean Brody x The Reklaws), Video: Count The Ways (Artist: Jade Eagleson), Video: Loved You Like That (Artist: Kris Barclay), Video: Old Country Soul (Artist: The Reklaws), Video: Still Gonna Be You (Artist: Jade Eagleson), Video: The Way You Roll (Artist: Chad Brownlee), Video: There’s A Drink For That (Artist: James Barker Band)
- Raphael Mazzucco
- Video: The Good Ones (Artists: Tebey and Marie-Mai)
- Travis Nesbitt
- Video: Bad Guy – Billie Eilish Bluegrass Cover (Artist: DD and the Butterlovers) , Video: Church (Artist: Dan Davidson), Video: Days Go By – Keith Urban Cover (Artist: Jess Moskaluke), Video: Good Life (Aritst: Nice Horse), Video: Halfway Home (Artist: Jess Moskaluke), Video: I Do (Artist: Dan Davidson), Video: If I Can’t Have You – Shawn Mendes Bluegrass Cover (Artist: DD and the Butterlovers), Video: If The World Was Ending – JP Saxe Cover (Artist: Ryan Lindsay), Video: Resistorz (Artist: Clayton Bellamy & The Congregation), Video: Say My Name – Destiny’s Child Cover (Artist: Jess Moskaluke), Video: Symphony Of Destruction – Megadeath Bluegrass Cover (Artist: DD and the Butterlovers), Video: They Don’t Make Em Like they Used To (Artist: The Dungarees), Video: This Love – Maroon 5 Cover (Artist: Jess Moskaluke), Video: Unkiss Her (Artist: Dan Davidson), Video: Way Back When (Artist: Ryan Lindsay), Video: Wild (Artist: Ryan Lindsay), Video: Wolves At The Door (Artist: Black Mountain Whiskey Rebellion)
In country music, the Front Porch has long been a place of reflection. A place where you can look at the life you have inside that front door. A place where time almost seems to stand still, where you can get away. It’s also a place where you can go to observe the world as it passes by you. To think about your place out there beyond the driveway.
