In case you missed it...
While most of Nashville was headed to Texas for last night's ACM Awards, a bomb dropped on Music Row: Jimmie Allen was accused of - and sued over - charges of assault and sexual abuse by a woman, identified only as "Jane Doe," who used to be the day-today manager for the country star. According to the woman, while she was employed by the singer's management company as Allen's day-to-day manager, Allen allegedly raped her and repeatedly subjected her to sexual abuse and harassment over a period of 18 months. The singer denied all charges and gave a statement:
- "It is deeply troubling and hurtful that someone I counted as one of my closest friends, colleagues and confidants would make allegations that have no truth to them whatsoever,” Allen says. "I acknowledge that we had a sexual relationship — one that lasted for nearly two years. During that time, she never once accused me of any wrongdoing, and she spoke of our relationship and friendship as being something she wanted to continue indefinitely. Only after things ended between us, did she hire a lawyer to reach out and ask for money, which leads me to question her motives. The simple fact is, her accusations are not only false, but also extremely damaging. I’ve worked incredibly hard to build my career, and I intend to mount a vigorous defense to her claims and take all other legal action necessary to protect my reputation."
- The woman's lawyers responded, saying "The only ask we made of Allen and his legal counsel was to meet to discuss Allen’s behavior and resolution of our client’s claims. At no time did our client make a monetary demand. The response was a hard no, and colored with threats that his team would take steps to publicly tarnish my client. My client had no choice but to be proactive in protecting herself by filing the complaint."
- The timing of the lawsuit is compelling; just two weeks ago the singer and his pregnant wife announced they were separating.
- Immediately after the news broke, Allen's label, BBR Music Group, suspended the artist indefinitely. "In light of today’s allegations against Jimmie Allen, BBR Music Group has decided to suspend all activity with him, effective immediately," said a statement from the label.
- Some other immediate fallout: Allen disappeared from the website for June’s CMA Fest in Nashville - the Country Music Association confirmed that the org had removed Allen from the main stage lineup set for Nissan Stadium. And Allen has also been dropped as the commencement speaker for today's Delaware State University's 2023 graduation.
The story is rapidly developing so there should be more from both sides in the coming days and weeks.
The 58th Annual Academy Of Country Music Awards is in the books. Last night's awards show - hosted by country legends Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton - showcased the very best of country music - and a little pop, as well. We have the complete rundown of the two-hour event. First, your winners in each category (in bold) (along with fellow nominees):
Entertainer of the Year
- Jason Aldean
- Luke Combs
- Miranda Lambert
- Chris Stapleton
- Carrie Underwood
- Kane Brown
- Morgan Wallen
Female Artist of the Year
- Miranda Lambert
- Ashley McBryde
- Lainey Wilson
- Carly Pearce
- Kelsea Ballerini
Male Artist of the Year
- Luke Combs
- Chris Stapleton
- Kane Brown
- Jordan Davis
- Morgan Wallen
Album of the Year
- Ashley McBryde - "Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville"
- Lainey Wilson - "Bell Bottom Country"
- Luke Combs - "Growin' Up"
- Miranda Lambert - "Palomino"
- Jon Pardi - "Mr. Saturday Night"
Single of the Year
- “Heart Like a Truck” – Lainey Wilson
- “Never Wanted to be That Girl” – Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde
- “She Had Me at Heads Carolina” – Cole Swindell
- “Thank God” – Kane Brown and Katelyn Brown
- “Til You Can’t” – Cody Johnson
Song of the Year
- “Sand In My Boots” – Morgan Wallen
- “She Had Me at Heads Carolina” – Cole Swindell
- “‘Til You Can’t” – Cody Johnson
- “Wait in the Truck” – Hardy feat. Lainey Wilson
- “You Should Probably Leave” – Chris Stapleton
Duo of the Year
- Brooks and Dunn
- Brothers Osborne
- Dan + Shay
- Maddie & Tae
- The War & Treaty
Group of the Year
- Lady A
- Little Big Town
- Midland
- Old Dominion
- Zac Brown Band
New Male Artist of the Year
- Zach Bryan
- Jackson Dean
- Ernest
- Dylan Scott
- Nate Smith
- Bailey Zimmerman
New Female Artist of the Year
- Priscilla Block
- Megan Moroney
- Caitlyn Smith
- Morgan Wade
- Hailey Whitters
Visual Media of the Year
- “Heartfirst” – Kelsea Ballerini
- “She Had Me at Heads Carolina” – Cole Swindell
- “Thank God” – Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown
- ‘Til You Can’t – Cody Johnson
- “Wait in the Truck” – Hardy feat. Lainey Wilson
- “What He Didn’t Do” – Carly Pearce
Music Event of the Year
- “At the End of a Bar” – Chris Young with Mitchell Tenpenny
- “She Had Me at Heads Carolina [Remix]” – Cole Swindell & Jo Dee Messina
- “Thank God” – Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown
- “Thinking ‘Bout You” – Dustin Lynch feat. MacKenzie Porter
- “Wait in the Truck” – Hardy feat. Lainey Wilson
Songwriter of the Year
- Nicolle Galyon
- Ashley Gorley
- Chase McGill
- Josh Osborne
- Hunter Phelps
Artist-Songwriter of the Year
- Luke Combs
- Ernest
- Hardy
- Miranda Lambert
- Morgan Wallen
As far as performances go:
- Keith Urban kicked off the festivities with "Texas Time"
- Cole Swindell and Jo Dee Messina performed "She Had Me At 'Heads Carolina'"
- Kane Brown did his "Bury Me In Georgia"
- Carly Pearce and Trisha Yearwood did a medley of Trisha's hits
- Hardy sang "Truck Bed"
- Bailey Zimmerman did "Rock In A Hard Place"
- After a video call-in from the legend himself, Cody Johnson rocked Willie Nelson's "Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys"
- Miranda Lambert sang "Carousel"
- Hailey Whitters performed "Everything She Ain't"
- Luke Combs sang "Love You Anyway," followed by pop star Ed Sheeran performing his new single, "Life Goes On," perfectly complemented on the second verse by a returning Luke Combs
- War and Treaty sang a Memphis-style tune ("Blank Page") face to face
- Jason Aldean did his new single, "Tough Crowd"
- Ashley McBride, Caylee Hammack, Pillbox Patti, Brandy Carlile and John Osborne performed "Bonfire At Tina's"
- Jelly Roll further cemented his standing in country music, bringing Lainey Wilson up to sing his song, "Save Me"
- ...after which Lainey did her song "Grease"
- Jordan Davis sang his new single "Next Thing You Know"
- ...and Dolly closed out the show with her new single "World On Fire."
The show came in at an efficient (just over) two hours from start to finish; Garth and Dolly played well off each other and most importantly, in an era when pop and rock stars seems to show up with increasing regularity on country awards shows - this one was mostly country.
Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks may seem like a dream pair to host the ACM Awards (which they did last night) - but they might have proven to be a nightmare for the director of their ACM promo. The two legends were being filmed recording some promo spots for television and, with two personalities as big as they are, when things went awry they were hilarious. Need proof? Check out the blooper reel Garth posted to his Instagram and see these two cut-ups in action.