The Artist-Songwriter of the Year winner was announced during ACM Awards Week festivities prior to Thursday night’s live show.
The 60th Academy of Country Music Awards is underway at The Star in Frisco, Texas. Hosted by Reba McEntire, the event celebrates some of the year’s standout acts, performances, songs, and albums.
Among the awards presented is the trophy for Artist-Songwriter of the Year. This award recognizes an “individual known both as an artist and a songwriter, selected by a Professional Panel of judges whose members are composed of songwriters, publishers, producers, and performing rights organization (PRO) representatives,” according to the Academy of Country Music.
Ernest, Hardy, Lainey Wilson, Luke Combs, and Morgan Wallen are among this year’s Artist-Songwriter of the Year nominees.
About the nominees:
ERNEST is a four-time ACM Award nominee and recipient of 3 CMA Triple Play Awards for writing three No. 1 songs in a 12-month period. He has released three studio albums, but rose to fame as a songwriter. His songs have been recorded by Thomas Rhett (“Where We Started”), Jelly Roll (“Son Of A Sinner”), Morgan Wallen (“Wasted On You,” “Dangerous,” and more), Chris Lane (“Big, Big Plans”), and Kane Brown (“One Mississippi”). His 2025 ACM Artist-Songwriter of the Year Award nomination marks the first for Ernest.
HARDY has an impressive history with the ACM Awards. In 2020, he earned his first ACM Awards nominations: Songwriter of the Year and Song of the Year for Blake Shelton’s “God’s Country.” Between 2021 and 2022, HARDY earned three more nods, eventually earning his first trophy when he took home the Songwriter of the Year Award in 2022. The following year, he earned three more trophies. “Wait In The Truck,” his collaboration with Lainey Wilson, won for “Best Visual Media of the Year” and “Musical Event of the Year”. He was also named Artist-Songwriter of the Year in 2023.
Lainey Wilson is one of this year’s most-nominated artists at the ACM Awards with seven nods, including some of the event’s biggest awards: Entertainer of the Year, Female Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year. Wilson is the reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year and Female Artist of the Year. This year’s nomination for Artist-Songwriter of the Year marks the first time she’s been nominated in that category.
Luke Combs earned six nominations ahead of Thursday’s ACM Awards, including Entertainer of the Year and Male Artist of the Year nods. The “Fast Car” singer earned 17 No. 1 Country Airplay hits, including songs he recorded himself and others recorded by other artists. Combs-penned songs made popular by other artists include Carly Pearce and Lee Brice’s collaboration, “I Hope You’re Happy Now,” “Out In The Middle” by Zac Brown Band, and “Wrong Ones” as recorded by Tim McGraw and Post Malone.
Morgan Wallen has received 20 nominations from the Academy of Country Music over the course of his career. Three of those nods have been in the Artist-Songwriter of the Year category. Most of the songs written or co-written by Wallen he recorded himself, but a few have been recorded by other artists, including Jason Aldean (“You Make It Easy”), Keith Urban (“Brown Eyes Baby”), and Florida Georgia Line (“Like You Never Had It”).
Who was named this year’s Artist-Songwriter of the Year?
The award was presented on Wednesday (May 7) before the main ceremony. While they were backstage at rehearsals, Reba McEntire and Miranda Lambert surprised their “Trailblazer” collaborator Lainey Wilson with the news she had won!
The ACM uploaded a sweet video of Lambert and McEntire sharing the happy news with Wilson, who was in disbelief. “That means so much!” she exclaimed as she hugged her friends.
Imagine if @Reba and @mirandalambert surprised you with an ACM Award?! Just ask @laineywilson… 🏆
Lainey was surprised by her pals backstage during the 60th #ACMawards rehearsals with the news that she is the ACM Artist-Songwriter of the Year! #ACM60 pic.twitter.com/kbsXhMUy8T
— ACM Awards (@ACMawards) May 8, 2025
Lainey’s fiancé, Devlin “Duck” Hodges, will surely be thrilled for her, too. After her nominations were announced, Duck said her nod for Artist-Songwriter of the Year made him the happiest to see.
“But this one makes me the happiest,” he said. “She loves writing and is so d— good at it and finally good to see her get some recognition for being a bad— songwriter!!!!”
Congratulations to Lainey Wilson on being named the ACM’s Artist-Songwriter of the Year for 2025!