The nominees for the 2016 Billboard Music Awards were announced on April 11th with Sam Hunt leading the fray with 4 nominees (Top Country Artist, Top Country Album and two for Top Country Song).
Other notable nominations are:
Chris Stapleton looks to continue his reign and add the BBMAs to his recent collection of awards (CMA, ACM, Grammys) as he is nominated for Top Country Artist and Top Country Album for Traveller. Chris Young scored his first ever BBMA nominee with “I’m Comin’ Over” for Top Country Song. Joey + Rory received a nomination for Top Christian Album for Hymns That Are Important To Us.
All nominees for Country and Christian categories are listed below:
Top Country Artist:
Zac Brown Band
Luke Bryan
Sam Hunt
Chris Stapleton
Carrie Underwood
Top Country Album:
Chris Stapleton, Traveller
Luke Bryan, Kill The Lights
Sam Hunt, Montevallo
Zac Brown Band, Jekyll + Hyde
Carrie Underwood, Storyteller
Top Country Song:
Sam Hunt, “Break Up In A Small Town”
Sam Hunt, “Take Your Time”
Little Big Town, “Girl Crush”
Thomas Rhett, “Die A Happy Man”
Chris Young, “I’m Comin’ Over”
Top Christian Artist:
Casting Crowns
Lauren Daigle
Hillsong United
MercyMe
Chris Tomlin
Top Christian Album:
Lauren Daigle, How Can It Be
Hillsong UNITED, Empires
Joey + Rory, Hymns That Are Important To Us
TobyMac, This Is Not A Test
Chris Tomlin, Adore: Christmas Songs of Worship
Top Christian Song:
Hillsong UNITED, “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)”
Hillsong UNITED, “Touch The Sky”
MercyMe, “Flawless”
NEEDTOBREATHE Featuring Gavin DeGraw, “Brother”
Chris Tomlin, “Good Good Father”
The Billboard Music Awards will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on May 22 and will broadcast on ABC at 8pm EST.
From Billboard: Billboard Music Awards finalists are based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital songs sales, radio airplay, streaming, touring and social interactions on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Spotify and other popular online destinations for music. These measurements are tracked year-round by Billboard and its data partners, including Nielsen Music and Next Big Sound. The awards are based on the reporting period of tracking dates March 23, 2015 through March 17, 2016 and Billboard chart dates April 11, 2015 through April 2, 2016. Since 1940, the Billboard charts have been the go-to guide for ranking the popularity of songs and albums, and are the ultimate measure of a musician’s success.