2026 CMA Awards nominees on tour and how to get CMA Awards tickets

The 2026 CMA Awards ballot is packed with artists having huge years onstage, too.

Ella Langley leads all nominees with nine nominations, while Miranda Lambert, Kacey Musgraves, Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton, Stephen Wilson Jr., Luke Combs and Lainey Wilson are among the other artists carrying major CMA recognition into the fall.

And awards night is hardly the only place to see them. Several nominees still have concerts remaining in 2026, while others already have major 2027 shows on the calendar.

The 60th Annual CMA Awards take place Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026, at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The show airs live from 8 to 11 p.m. ET, and Lainey Wilson returns as host.

Here are some of the biggest 2026 CMA Awards nominees you can see live, where they are headed next and what fans can expect from their shows.

Which CMA Awards nominees are touring?

Some of country music's biggest CMA nominees are still on the road this fall, while several others already have 2027 plans worth knowing about.

Ella Langley

Ella Langley leads the entire 2026 CMA Awards field with nine nominations, including Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year and Album of the Year for Dandelion. “Be Her,” “Choosin’ Texas” and “I Can’t Love You Anymore” also contributed to her nomination haul.

That makes The Dandelion Tour especially well-timed. Fans are getting Langley on her first major arena headlining run while the album and songs behind her biggest CMA year are still at the center of the show.

The remaining schedule includes stops in Morrison, Tulsa, Lubbock, Los Angeles, Des Moines, Lincoln and Saint Paul, along with an Oct. 16 appearance at RedWest Festival in Salt Lake City. Highlights include Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Oct. 7 and back-to-back nights at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles on Oct. 13-14.

Kameron Marlowe appears across the remaining headline dates, with Gabriella Rose or Laci Kaye Booth joining on select shows.

Miranda Lambert

Miranda Lambert earned seven nominations across her work as an artist, songwriter and producer, including Female Vocalist of the Year and Album of the Year recognition as a producer on Langley’s Dandelion.

Rather than one traditional fall tour, Lambert’s remaining 2026 calendar is made up of several very different shows.

• The Truth in Nashville on Oct. 1, where she will perform with her full band and a 12-piece string orchestra

• Country Calling in Ocean City, Maryland, on Oct. 3

• Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth on Oct. 6

• Yaamava Theater in Highland, California, on Nov. 12

• Hondo Rodeo in Phoenix on Nov. 13

That range gives fans everything from a special strings-backed Nashville performance to a festival set and one of country music's best-known Texas honky-tonks.

Kacey Musgraves

Kacey Musgraves earned five nominations, including Album of the Year for Middle of Nowhere, Female Vocalist of the Year, Song and Music Video of the Year for “Dry Spell” and Musical Event of the Year for “Horses and Divorces” with Miranda Lambert.

Her Middle of Nowhere Tour runs through Oct. 27 and closes with two nights at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle. Remaining stops also include Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Austin, Dallas, Denver, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Oakland.

The opening lineup rotates throughout the run and includes Midland, Flatland Cavalry, Charles Wesley Godwin, William Beckmann, Carter Faith, Gabriella Rose, Estevie and The Brudi Brothers.

The tour puts Middle of Nowhere at the center of the night without turning the show into a one-album set. Musgraves also pulls from Golden Hour, Deeper Well, Star-Crossed and Same Trailer Different Park.

Chris Stapleton

Chris Stapleton is nominated for Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Musical Event of the Year for “A Song to Sing” with Miranda Lambert and Music Video of the Year for “White Horse.”

His long-running All-American Road Show has a handful of 2026 dates left:

• Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, Virginia, on Oct. 2

• Country Calling in Ocean City on Oct. 3

• Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln on Oct. 7

• Morton Amphitheater near Kansas City on Oct. 9-10

Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs join Stapleton in Bristow, while Carter Faith supports the Lincoln and Kansas City shows.

Stapleton has spent years building the Road Show around a set that can move from “Tennessee Whiskey” and “Starting Over” to heavier guitar moments and newer songs from Higher. If you have never seen him live, this is still much more of a full-band country-rock show than a straight run through the hits.

Stephen Wilson Jr.

Stephen Wilson Jr. earned four nominations, including New Artist of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year. “Gary” is also nominated for both Song of the Year and Music Video of the Year.

His Gary the Torch Tour continues deep into the fall. After a Sept. 29 show in Phoenix, Wilson Jr. heads overseas for dates in Belfast, Glasgow, London, Paris, Copenhagen and several other European cities before returning to the U.S. for shows in Birmingham, Pittsburgh, Atlanta and Nashville.

The live show makes sense of why Wilson Jr. can be difficult to squeeze into one country subgenre. Songs from søn of dad and newer material like “Gary” sit alongside flashes of indie rock, grunge and heavier guitar music, with Wilson Jr. often attacking songs more like a rock frontman than a traditional country singer.

Cody Johnson

Cody Johnson received four nominations, including Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Single of the Year and Music Video of the Year. “The Fall” accounts for both his Single and Music Video nominations.

His major 2026 North American run has largely wrapped, but there are still several chances to catch him before the year ends. Johnson plays a pair of charity events in Belton, Texas, in October before heading overseas for arena dates in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Parker McCollum joins the U.K. and Ireland run, with Emily Ann Roberts also appearing on most dates.

Johnson already has several 2027 festival appearances announced, including Hondo Rodeo Fest in Tampa on Feb. 26 and Buckeye Country Superfest at Ohio Stadium on July 10.

Luke Combs

Luke Combs returns to the Entertainer of the Year category alongside nominations for Male Vocalist of the Year and Album of the Year for The Way I Am.

His next major run begins in 2027, when the My Kinda Saturday Night Tour returns for 12 stadium shows.

The run begins April 3 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, before visiting Minneapolis, Detroit, Philadelphia, Foxborough, Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Edmonton, Vancouver, Boise, Denver and San Diego.

Treaty Oak Revival, Avery Anna, Shenandoah and Wyatt McCubbin are scheduled across the run.

The shows use an in-the-round setup, putting Combs and the band in the middle of the stadium rather than on a traditional end-stage. For a catalog built around giant choruses and crowd sing-alongs, that should fit the show pretty naturally.

Lainey Wilson

Lainey Wilson is nominated for Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year and Single of the Year for “Somewhere Over Laredo.” She will have a particularly busy awards night because she is also returning as host.

Her remaining 2026 schedule is short but notable, with Country Calling in Ocean City on Oct. 2 and Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, on Oct. 10.

After that, her official calendar jumps ahead to May 2027, when Wilson joins Harry Styles for four shows at Rogers Stadium in Toronto on May 7, 8, 14 and 15.

So while there is not a long Wilson headlining run left this fall, fans still have a festival, an arena show and four massive Toronto dates already on the board.

Riley Green

Riley Green shares a Musical Event of the Year nomination with Carly Pearce for “If I Don’t Leave I’m Gonna Stay.”

Fans already have a big 2027 run to look forward to. Green recently announced the That’s Just Me Tour, a 29-date trek built around his new album of the same name. The tour begins April 1 in Spokane and runs through July 31 in Milwaukee, with stops in Seattle, Calgary, Fort Worth, Dallas, Toronto, the Boston area and plenty more along the way.

Muscadine Bloodline, Randy Houser, Jake Worthington and Hannah McFarland will rotate as special guests depending on the date.

The new tour should also give Green plenty of room to mix songs from That’s Just Me with crowd favorites like “There Was This Girl,” “I Wish Grandpas Never Died,” “Worst Way” and “Don’t Mind If I Do,” making 2027 the next major chance to see one of this year’s CMA nominees on a full headlining run.

Brooks & Dunn

Brooks & Dunn are once again nominated for Vocal Duo of the Year. The Country Music Hall of Famers will also receive the 2026 CMA Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award.

Their Neon Moon Tour continues into October with shows in Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois, Louisiana and Texas.

Support varies by date, with David Lee Murphy or Tucker Wetmore serving as direct support and Willow Avalon, Kaitlin Butts, Caylee Hammack and Angie K appearing on select dates.

And this is one nominee where you can have a pretty good idea what the loudest moments will be before walking in. “Neon Moon,” “Boot Scootin’ Boogie,” “Red Dirt Road,” “My Maria,” “Brand New Man” and “Hard Workin’ Man” give Brooks & Dunn decades of crowd favorites to pull from.

Carly Pearce

Carly Pearce shares her Musical Event of the Year nomination with Riley Green for “If I Don’t Leave I’m Gonna Stay.”

Her remaining schedule offers a very different scale from the stadium and arena shows elsewhere on this list. Upcoming dates include two shows at The Opera House in Toronto, The Sinclair in Cambridge and two nights at Gramercy Theatre in New York.

That makes Pearce one of the better opportunities on the CMA ballot to see an established country artist in a smaller room, where songs and vocals have more room to take over the night.

Tim McGraw

Tim McGraw appears on one of the year's most stacked collaborations. HARDY's “McArthur,” featuring McGraw, Eric Church and Morgan Wallen, is nominated for Musical Event of the Year.

McGraw's fall calendar includes a run of shows at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on Oct. 23-24 and Nov. 4, 6 and 7. He is also scheduled to play Hondo Rodeo in Phoenix on Nov. 13.

The Vegas run gives fans a chance to see one of country's longest-running arena headliners without waiting for another full national tour, with a catalog that now stretches more than three decades.

Can fans attend the 2026 CMA Awards?

Yes! The CMA Awards are not limited to nominees and members of the country music industry. Fans can buy tickets to watch the show live from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Wednesday, Nov. 18.

Doors open by 5:30 p.m. CT, and fans must be seated by 6:45 p.m. CT ahead of the live broadcast at 7 p.m. CT.

That means fans inside Bridgestone get to see the awards, performances and other moments unfold live rather than watching from home.

How to get tickets to see CMA nominees on SeatGeek

You do not have to wait until awards night to see many of this year's nominees onstage.

1. Find the artist you want to see. Search SeatGeek for the nominee and open their event page to see upcoming concerts.

2. Choose your city and date. Several artists have multiple stops remaining, so compare the shows that work best for your schedule.

3. Explore the interactive seat map. Compare sections, rows and prices instead of judging a ticket only by its listed price.

4. Check the view. When available, View From Seat can give you a better idea of the sightline from different parts of the venue.

5. Compare listings with Deal Score. Deal Score weighs factors including price and seat location to help you compare the relative value of available tickets.

6. Review the full price. SeatGeek displays all-in prices so you can see the cost of a ticket with mandatory fees included before checkout.

7. Complete your purchase. Every ticket bought on SeatGeek is backed by the Buyer Guarantee, giving you added protection if there is an issue with your order.

From Ella Langley's breakout year and Kacey Musgraves' Middle of Nowhere run to Chris Stapleton's Road Show and Luke Combs' next round of stadiums, this year's CMA ballot doubles as a pretty loaded country concert calendar.

The trophies will be handed out in November. The chance to hear a lot of the music behind them live is already here.