Robert takes on the ACM's

The nominees for the ACM awards came out last week. I'm not even sure if the Academy of Country Music even listens to country radio anymore. How else can you explain Faith Hill, Tim McGraw and Toby Keith not get any nods?

I think the Academy knows it's no longer reverent anymore, that's why they are letting fans vote for their biggest award. What's the point of assembling a group of people together with the sole purpose of giving away awards than let other people give away your biggest? Not only that, but they have awards already that are given away by fans. The CMT Flameworthy Awards are given away entirely by the fans, maybe the ACM's are attempting to keep up with the Flameworthy Award ratings.

Below are the nominations and my picks to win.

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

- Kenny Chesney

- Brad Paisley

- Rascal Flatts

- George Strait

- Keith Urban

Why do only males get nominated for this award nowadays? I've seen four of five of these acts and Martina McBride out performed all of them.

Who should win: Keith Urban

Who will win: Kenny's won three years in a row but he never won any ACM's until three years ago. Brad Paisley's been knocking on the door to superstardom for a few years now, much like where Kenny was three years ago. He should dethrone Kenny, but with the fans voting, it's hard to call.

TOP MALE VOCALIST

- Rodney Atkins

- Kenny Chesney

- Brad Paisley

- George Strait

- Keith Urban

Four of the five nominees are also up entertainer of the year. Most of the time the winner of this category also wins EOY. Toby and Tim should have gotten nods here over Rodney Atkins. This list reads like a who's who of male stars, would you argue Rodney Atkins is in the same league as Toby or Tim?

Who should win: Brad Paisley had a great year with Online, Letter to me and Ticks. With Brad, there's something for everyone. He can make you laugh, make you cry and remind you of the love of your life with just his guitar, which he played well enough this year to win a Grammy.

Who will win: Kenny. The ACM can't vote for him for EOY, expect them to use their vote here for Kenny.

TOP FEMALE VOCALIST

- Miranda Lambert

- Martina McBride

- LeAnn Rimes

- Taylor Swift

- Carrie Underwood

How do Miranda Lambert and Taylor Swift get nominations over Faith Hill and Sara Evens? I saw both Miranda and Taylor last year and they were good, but Faith has one of the best pure voices in the business and Sara Evens isn't far behind. And why the hell can't Jennifer Nettles get a nod here? She's every bit as good as the five listed.

Who should win: Martina McBride. I saw her in Boise last year and she was so good, the audience stopped the show for three or four minutes cheering as if she'd hit a grand slam in Yankee Stadium. Easily one of the best performances I've ever seen, which includes everyone on this list but LeAnn Rimes.

Who will win: Carrie Underwood. She's hot right now, she sells a lot of CDs and digital tunes. She's good for country music and country music will be good to her. Everything she does goes to the top of the charts. There isn't a reason to stop her now or vote against her. Martina's vocals are better, but Carrie has more star power, she gets the win.

TOP VOCAL GROUP

- Diamond Rio

- Eagles

- Emerson Drive

- Little Big Town

- Rascal Flatts

The Eagles are country now? Nobody benefited more than Rascal Flatts when Natalie Mains spoke her mind on that stage in England the night before the Iraq war started. Before that, they were also rans in a category dominated by the Chicks. Today, they are a shoe-in for the award. Little Big Town is good, but they just aren't ready to play in the same league as the Flatts yet.

Oh, and does anyone remember the last time Dimond Rio made an album?

Who should win: Rascal Flatts.

Who will win: I wouldn't be surprised to see the Eagles win here because the voters of these things are prone to doing things like that. However, it is interesting to note Rascal Flatts is the only act up for EOY that isn't a male vocalist. If another group wins this award, why weren't they good enough to be considered for EOY?

TOP VOCAL DUO

- Big & Rich

- Brooks & Dunn

- Halfway To Hazard

- Montgomery Gentry

- Sugarland

This used to be only pure give me on the ballot. Every year you could pencil in Brooks and Dunn into this slot and move on to the next category. Jennifer Nettles and her song writing, back up singing guitar player make voters think twice this year. This category is so week, Halfway to Hazard is up. Who the hell are they? No, seriously? Why is this the first I've heard of them? The Warner Brothers came up with a few songs a few years ago and spent five years on this list just to round it out. This award would be way more competitive if they changed it to duo and group and included: Rascal Flatts, Sugarland, Montgomery Gentry, Emerson Drive and Brooks and Dunn.

Who should win: Sugarland based solely on Stay. How many stars have the guts to let their voice carry a song? Most of today's songs have a 100 things going on in them and sometimes it seams vocals are thrown in only as an afterthought. Nettles put her voice on the line, her heart on her sleeve and nailed it big with a song she wrote herself. Nicely done, she should be awarded well.

Who will win: Brooks & Dunn is the safest pick here and probably the smartest but the creative force that is Sugarland is just too good to be ignored by the voters, tradition be dammed.

TOP NEW MALE VOCALIST

- Luke Bryan

- Jack Ingram

- Jake Owen

I hate these awards, they seem to always go to people who should have won them three years ago. That's why I'm picking Jack Ingram.

TOP NEW FEMALE VOCALIST

- Sarah Buxton

- Kellie Pickler

- Taylor Swift

I really wish Kellie Pickler would just disappear off the face of this world and I've never wished that on anyone before. I just don't like her. For those of you who don't know, Sarah Buxton is best known for writing Keith Urban's "Stupid Boys," not her singing but I suppose someone had to round off this category. Taylor Swift should have won this award last year and is the closest thing to a sure pick there is at the ACM's this year.

TOP NEW DUO OR VOCAL GROUP

- Carolina Rain

- Lady Antebellum

- The Wreckers

If I wasn't so lazy, I could think really hard and tell you what song or songs Carolina Rain released this year. I could also Google Lady Antebellum because while their name sounds familiar, I can't tell you why. But I'm lazy and it proves my point that this category is week. I'm going to pick the Wreckers and wonder why they too weren't nominated for this award last year.

They could have gotten rid of three categories here and just given away one award with best new vocalist/duo/group but I'm sure it would have pissed of the record label execs who want to put those "Best New Female/Male/Duo" stickers on CD labels. But wouldn't one award between Taylor, Jack and the Wreckers make this more than a yarn fest?

ALBUM OF THE YEAR [Award to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company] - 5th Gear - Brad Paisley (Arista Nashville)

Produced by Chris DuBois, Frank Rogers

- Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - Miranda Lambert (Columbia)

Produced by Frank Liddell, Mike Wrucke

- Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates - Kenny Chesney (BNA)

Produced by Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney

- If You're Going Through Hell - Rodney Atkins (Curb)

Produced by Rodney Atkins, Ted Hewitt

- Taylor Swift -Taylor Swift (Big Machine)

Produced by Scott Borchetta, Nathan Chapman

6 Produced by Robert Ellis Orrall

Who should win: Kenny's CD rocked and was what he does best: picks great songs and sing them, screw writing them.

Who will win: However, Brad writes most of his songs and performs crazy hard guitar pieces on them and like I said before, gives everyone a little bit of everyone.

SINGLE RECORD OF THE YEAR [Award to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company]

- Don't Blink

Kenny Chesney, Produced by Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney

BNA

- Famous In A Small Town

Miranda Lambert, Produced by Frank Liddell, Mike Wrucke

Columbia

- Lost In This Moment

Big & Rich, Produced by Big Kenny, John Rich Warner Bros/WRN

- Stay

Sugarland, Produced by Kristian Bush, Byron Gallimore, Jennifer Nettles

Mercury

- Watching Airplanes

Gary Allan, Produced by Gary Allan , Mark Wright

MCA Nashville

Don't blink went to number one in record time and I'm a huge fan of Gary Allan's Watching Airplanes. However, since this award goes to the artist and producers, Lost in this moment and Stay should get more consideration for this award. Stay for it's simplicity and Lost for it's complexity without overdoing it.

Who should win: Stay

Who will win: As much as Stay should, Don't blink probably will.

SONG OF THE YEAR [Award to Composer(s)/Publisher(s)/Artist(s)]

- Don't Blink

Kenny Chesney

Writers: Casey Beathard, Chris Wallin

Publishers: Lavender Zoo Music (BMI), Mama's Dream Music (ASCAP), Sony/ATV Acuff Rose (BMI), WB Music Corp. (ASCAP)

- Lost In This Moment

Big & Rich

Writers: Keith Anderson, Rodney Clawson, John Rich

Publishers: EMI April Music, Inc. (ASCAP), Romeo Cowboy Music (ASCAP), WB Music Corp. (ASCAP), Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. (BMI), Writer's Extreme Music (BMI)

- Moments

Emerson Drive

Writers: Dave Berg, Annie Tate, Sam Tate

Publishers: Gravitron (SESAC), WB Music Corp. (ASCAP)

- Watching You

Rodney Atkins

Writers: Rodney Atkins, Steve Dean, Brian White

Publishers: Bethar Music (BMI), Mike Curb Music (BMI), Multisongs (SESAC), Songs From The White House (SESAC)

- Stay

Sugarland

Writer: Jennifer Nettles

Publishers: Jennifer Nettles Publishing (ASCAP)

Who should win: Country music is about relating to emotions for the most part. While Stay is a strong song, how many people can relate to being the other person, other than the other person? How many people can relate to getting older? Pretty much anyone that didn't die at birth. Don't blink should win here, though Letter to me could contend here, if nominated.

Who will win: Don't blink.

VIDEO OF THE YEAR [Award to Producer(s)/Director(s)/Artist(s)]

- Don't Blink - Kenny Chesney

Producer: Tacklebox Films

Director: Shaun Silva

- Lost In This Moment - Big & Rich

Producer: Big Kenny, Steve Lamar, Marc Oswald

Director: Robert Deaton and George Flanigen

- Online - Brad Paisley

Producer: Mark Kalbfeld and Peter Tilden

Director: Jason Alexander

- Stay - Sugarland

Producer: Kristian Bush, Byron Gallimore, Jennifer Nettles

Director: Shaun Silva

- Watching You - Rodney Atkins

Producer: Broken Poet Production

Director: Eric Welch

Who should win: The ingredients for making a great video are having a great song and a great concept. Brad Paisley's Online was a fun song and the video was even funnier with Jason Alexander, William Shaftner, Taylor Swift and Kellie Pickler.

Who will win: Online because you can't watch it and not smile as you watch Brad Paisley take country music someplace only he can and get away with it.

VOCAL EVENT OF THE YEAR [Award to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company]

- Because Of You - Reba McEntire Duet With Kelly Clarkson

Produced by Tony Brown, Reba McEntire

MCA Nashville

- Find Out Who Your Friends Are - Tracy Lawrence With Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney

Produced by Julian King, Tracy Lawrence

Rocky Comfort/CO5

- Shiftwork - Kenny Chesney Duet With George Strait

Produced by Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney

BNA

- Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore - Bon Jovi Featuring LeAnn Rimes

Produced by Dann Huff

Mecury

- What You Give Away - Vince Gill With Sheryl Crow

Produced by Vince Gill, John Hobbs, Justin Niebank

MCA Nashville

Turns out I was wrong, Tim did get a nod. Kenny Chesney as a 2/5 chance of winning this award.

Who should win: Find out who your friends are if you go off star power alone and forget the song didn't do nearly as well on the charts until Tim and Kenny sung mostly back up on the re-cut track. Because of you if you base your vote off the fact Reba and Kelly Clarkson sound great together.

Who will win: What you give away, Vince Gill and Sheryl Crow. The voters like Vince Gill.