INITIAL CMA AWARDS PERFORMERS SET

Garth Brooks, Eric Church, Alan Jackson, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Chris Stapleton and Thomas Rhett are among the first round of performers announced for the 51st Annual CMA Awards that will be held 11/8 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville and air on ABC.

Co-host Carrie Underwood is also slated to schedule as are 16-time CMA Awards winner Alan Jackson, Brothers Osborne, Luke Bryan, Little Big Town, Old Dominion and Jon Pardi. Brad Paisley is joining Underwood as co-host for the 10th consecutive year.

Reigning Entertainer of the Year Brooks— the most awarded artist in the category—returns with his 12th nomination for CMA Entertainer of the Year. Bryan, two-time winner of Entertainer of the Year (2014, 2015), is up for the award for the fifth time. Three-time CMA Awards winner Church is also up for the award.

Rhett, who won for the first time last year, received first time nominations in three categories—Musical Event and Music Video for “Craving You,” featuring Maren Morris, and Male Vocalist. Lambert has five nominations this year; Little Big Town has four; and first-time nominee Pardi has two nominations.

On Sunday, Jackson will be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He’ll be making his 24th CMA Awards performance since debuting in 1990 with “Chasin’ That Neon Rainbow.”