Rhett, Ballerini in the spotlight at 2016 CMA Awards
Kim Chaudoin | 615.966.6494 |
Lipscomb University was well represented at the 2016 Country Music Association Awards held at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 2.
Alums Thomas Rhett and Kelsea Ballerini were nominated for some of the evening’s top awards and both performed during the 50th annual CMA Awards show.
Rhett won his first CMA Award in the Best Single of the Year for his hit “Die A Happy Man.” It was also up for Song of the Year. Earlier this year, the song won Single of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards. He wrote the song for his wife, Lauren.
Ballerini was nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year along with Miranda Lambert, Maren Morris, Kacey Musgraves and winner Carrie Underwood. She was also nominated for New Artist of the Year along with Brothers Osborn, Old Dominion, Cole Swindell and winner Maren Morris. Both performed during the show. She was nominated in both categories in last year’s competition as well.
At the Academy of Country Music Awards in April, Ballerini was New Female Vocalist of the Year.
Thomas Rhett (Akins) attended Lipscomb University from 2008-2011 and studied organizational communication. A native of Valdosta, Georgia, Rhett was also a member of Tau Phi social club and often performed in Tau Phi’s Cowboy Show while he was a student on campus.
Rhett has also had a great deal of success this year with the release of his second album, Tangled Up, which features his recent hit-single “Die A Happy Man,” a song that tied Taylor Swift’s record of holding the No. 1 spot on the Billboard U.S. Country Airplay chart for six weeks in a row.
A native of Knoxville, Tennessee, Ballerini came to Lipscomb University in 2011 where she studied communications, was a Quest Team leader for Lipscomb’s freshman orientation program, served as a hostess in Singarama and participated in several musical events on campus, including the Tau Phi Cowboy Show.
Ballerini’s hit song “Love Me Like You Mean It” was a platinum-selling No. 1 break out hit, making her the first solo female country artist to score a number one hit with her debut single since Carrie Underwood with “Jesus, Take the Wheel” in 2006, and only the 11th in history to achieve that feat.
Dustin Lynch, a 2007 Lipscomb graduate and biology major, was also on hand at the CMA Awards on Wednesday. A singer/songwriter with Broken Bow Records, Lynch was a member of the men’s golf team and often performed in the Tau Phi Cowboy Show as well as other events on Lipscomb’s campus. His hit songs include “Cowboys and Angels” and “Where It’s At.” Lynch was nominated for the 2012 ACM Single of the Year, Music Video of the Year and New Artist of the Year for 
his single “Cowboys and Angels.” He was also nominated for 2013 Country Music Television Breakthrough Video of the Year and the 2014 ACM Top New Artist of the Year Award.
Lipscomb University's College of Entertainment & the Arts recently launched a contemporary music program led by music producer and songwriter Charlie Peacock, artist-in-residence at the college. The Bachelor of Music degree in Contemporary Music will train students in all aspects of contemporary and creative music making. Students will be trained as singer/songwriters, producers and composers as well as prepared for other careers in the music industry. The program focuses on training independent, entrepreneurial artists. Students also train in a dual-degree setting where they will choose an additional field that will better prepare them for their careers. Singer/songwriter and music production programs are offered. To learn more click here.