Cody Johnson named Entertainer of the Year at 2026 ACM awards

Cody Johnson has won the coveted title of Entertainer of the Year at the 2026 Academy of Country Music Awards.
Johnson also won Male Artist of the Year while Ella Langley took out the female counterpart.

The night arguably belonged to Langley, with Choosin’ Texas scooping up Song of the Year, and Single of the Year. She was also awarded Artist-Songwriter of the Year and performed her latest single, Be Her.

“If you’ve ever met me you know I am not at a loss for words often,” Langley said while holding her Song of the Year trophy.

“All I gotta say is, thank you God for putting me in a room with these three people here,” she gushed, pointing to her cowriters on stage.

Thanking her fans, she admitted, “I don’t know why you latched onto this song.

“I never would have imagined to even dream for it,” Langley said of the single’s runaway success.

The night was jammed with performances from the likes of reigning Entertainer of the Year Lainey Wilson, Miranda Lambert, Zach Top, Riley Green, Kacey Musgraves and Parker McCollum & Lee Ann Womack.

The annual awards are voted on by members of the Academy of Country Music (ACM). The Sunday night show at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas was hosted by three-time ACM Award winner Shania Twain for the first time.

Here’s a full list of the winners:

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR: Cody Johnson

FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Ella Langley

MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Cody Johnson

GROUP OF THE YEAR: The Red Clay Strays

DUO OF THE YEAR: Brooks & Dunn

NEW FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Avery Anna

NEW MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Tucker Wetmore

ALBUM OF THE YEAR: Parker McCollum – Parker McCollum

SONG OF THE YEAR: Choosin’ Texas – Ella Langley

SINGLE OF THE YEAR: Choosin’ Texas – Ella Langley

MUSIC EVENT OF THE YEAR: Don’t Mind If I Do – Riley Green feat. Ella Langley