The night of the CMA Awards is one of the biggest in Nashville, when the stars align and everybody who is anybody in the country music scene is on hand to perform, present, receive an award or just enjoy the show.
But it isn’t only Music City’s finest who show up: Sometimes, even the performance lineup interspersed with stars from across the genre spectrum — and, some years, the most unlikely celebrities are nominated for (and sometimes even win) the coveted awards.
From Snoop Dogg to Jason Alexander, Sissy Spacek to Olivia Newton-John, the CMA Awards have included a few surprising nominees and winners throughout the years. Click through the gallery below to learn about some of the most unexpected victors, and a few who came close, but didn’t quite win:
The 2020 CMA Awards are scheduled to take place on Nov. 11 and will air live from Nashville on ABC beginning at 8PM ET. Due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, however, the event will look a bit different than usual: It’s being hosted at Nashville’s Music City Center, not Bridgestone Arena as is customary, and there will be no live audience.
The Boot will be staying up late covering the most buzzed-about winners, fashion and moments at the 2020 CMA Awards. Readers can watch along with us by checking back to TheBoot.com for the latest CMAs headlines, liking The Boot on Facebook and following The Boot on Twitter.
WATCH: Test Your CMA Awards Knowledge