Lainey Wilson dominates 2025 CMA Awards in historic night for country music

Country music celebrated its biggest night Wednesday with the 59th Annual CMA Awards, a show packed with live performances and tributes. The evening's biggest winner was Lainey Wilson, who not only served as a presenter but also took home three of the most prestigious awards: album of the year, female vocalist of the year and entertainer of the year, cementing her status as a dominant figure in the genre.

The ceremony, which was broadcast live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena, brought together a constellation of performers who delivered memorable moments on stage, including Wilson, Keith Urban, Luke Combs and Cody Johnson. The latter took home the award for male vocalist of the year.

Among the first surprises of the day was the morning announcement on Good Morning America, where two early winners were revealed, one of them Post Malone, who won the award for music event of the year for his collaboration "Pour Me a Drink" alongside Blake Shelton.

Another of the night's big winners was the duo of Ella Langley and Riley Green, who swept key categories with their hit "You Look Like You Love Me", recognized as single of the year, music video of the year and song of the year.

Zach Top, one of the most prominent emerging voices on the circuit, took home the award for new artist of the year, while Paul Franklin was crowned musician of the year for his work on steel guitar.

The full gala will be available for streaming this Thursday via Hulu.