Luke Bryan spoke out against “click bait headlines” after he addressed Beyoncé’s omission from the nominations list at the upcoming 58th CMA Awards, through she released her historic COWBOY CARTER record earlier this year.
Bryan shared a statement on his social media pages after playing the final night of his tour on Sunday evening (October 6). He explained that he’d commented on Beyoncé’s absence of nominations during an interview while speaking about his new album, Mind Of A Country Boy. That interview led to media coverage and comments online that Bryan said “create a false narrative.”
“I am posting tonight based on the ridiculous nature of the headlines I have read the last couple days… I feel in my heart I could not let media create a false narrative,” Bryan said. He called out “click bait headlines,” and assured that his intentions “were not negative. I respect Beyonce and I love how loyal her fans are. I spend a lot of time supporting other artists. I want everyone to win. Love y’all.”
Beyoncé was one example of a major artist who did not appear on the list of nominees, though many of the genre’s biggest artists did. Luke Combs, Jelly Roll, Chris Stapleton, Morgan Wallen and Lainey Wilson are up for Entertainer of the Year, for example. See the full list of nominees here.
Bryan is returning to host the CMA Awards again. He’s teaming up with returning host Peyton Manning, plus newcomer and reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year Wilson. Bryan previously said that “hosting the CMA Awards is such an honor and it’s crazy when I realize this is my 4th year back. Peyton and I have really worked to build off each other and now adding Lainey to the mix will just bring another fun element to the night. Celebrating Country Music never gets old to me.”
Performers and presenters have yet to be announced. The 58th CMA Awards will take place at Bridgestone Arena in Downtown Nashville, Tennessee. The show is set for Wednesday, November 20. It will air live at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on ABC, and will be available the following day on Hulu.