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Ella Langley took Song of the Year at the 61st ACM Awards as Lainey Wilson opened the Las Vegas ceremony with a fiery ‘Can’t Sit Still’ performance and Shania Twain made her long-awaited hosting debut.
Ella Langley is having a night at the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards. The 27-year-old country artist claimed Song of the Year at the ceremony, held Sunday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and streaming live on Prime Video. She had already picked up New Female Artist of the Year before the main show began, making her among the evening’s early standout winners in a competitive field that included Megan Moroney, who led all nominees with nine nods heading into the night.
Langley entered Sunday as one of the most buzzed-about names in country music, her rise over the past year earning her seven nominations at this year’s show and a level of industry attention that only a handful of artists generate before their third record. The Song of the Year win confirms what the nomination count suggested: the country establishment is fully paying attention.
The show opened with Lainey Wilson, who delivered an explosive performance of “Can’t Sit Still” that set the tone for the evening before a single award had been handed out. Wilson, who came into the night as one of the leading Entertainer of the Year contenders alongside Jelly Roll, has made a habit of turning awards show performances into statements, and Sunday’s opener was consistent with that approach.
Shania Twain hosted for the first time, taking over from Reba McEntire and bringing her own version of country royalty to a show that has long used its host slot to signal something about where the format sees itself. Twain’s presence, combined with a lineup dominated by women nominees for the second consecutive year, gave the 61st ceremony a particular resonance in a genre that spent years actively resisting that shift.
The ACMs also moved venues for the first time in three years, returning to Las Vegas after three editions at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas. The MGM Grand Garden Arena gave the broadcast a different visual energy, with the Las Vegas backdrop carrying its own weight for a genre that has built a significant presence in the city over the past decade.
Miranda Lambert, the most decorated artist in ACM Awards history, came into the night with eight nominations. Ella Langley and Lainey Wilson each had seven. The full winner list was still being announced as the broadcast continued, with the Entertainer of the Year prize among the evening’s remaining top honors.
