With many previous years, the country genre has been a male-dominated field (2014 list). The likes of Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood, and newcomer Brandy Clark should hopefully add diversity to this year’s upcoming list of country winners.

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Best Country Solo Performance (Category 26)
Eric Church – “Give Me Back My Hometown”
Hunter Hayes – “Invisible”
Miranda Lambert – “Automatic”
Carrie Underwood – “Something In The Water”
Keith Urban – “Cop Car”

Who Should Win: Hunter Hayes – “Invisible”

Who Will Win: Miranda Lambert – “Automatic”

Hunter’s debut album impressed me like no other debut artist could, but the nostalgic nature of Miranda’s “Automatic” is truly a stellar moment in the world of country music.

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Best Country Duo/Group Performance (Category 27)
The Band Perry – “Gentle On My Mind”
Miranda Lambert (with Carrie Underwood) – “Somethin’ Bad”
Little Big Town – “Day Drinking”
Tim Mcgraw (feat. Faith Hill) – “Meanwhile Back At Mama’s”
Keith Urban (feat. Eric Church) – “Raise ‘Em Up”

Who Should Win: The Band Perry – “Gentle On My Mind”

Who Will Win: Little Big Town – “Day Drinking”

This will mark Little Big Town’s fifth nomination in this category, which is typically enough to secure a win. However, The Band Perry has consistently delivered since their “If I Die Young” days, so they could be a dark horse contender amongst the group categories.

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Best Country Song – Songwriter’s Award (Category 28)
Kenny Chesney – “American Kids”
Songwriters: Rodney Clawson, Luke Laird, and Shane Mcanally
Miranda Lambert – “Automatic”
Songwriters: Nicolle Galyon, Natalie Hemby, and Miranda Lambert
Eric Church – “Give Me Back My Hometown”
Songwriters: Eric Church and Luke Laird
Glen Campbell – “I’m Not Gonna Miss You”
Songwriters: Glen Campbell and Julian Raymond
Tim Mcgraw (feat. Faith Hill) – “Meanwhile Back At Mama’s”
Songwriters: Tom Douglas, Jaren Johnston, and Jeffrey Steele

Who Should Win: Eric Church – “Give Me Back My Hometown”

Who Will Win: Kenny Chesney – “American Kids”

While country is notable for its storytelling through songwriting, the five songs in the country songwriter’s award are frankly the best of the best. This is Kenny’s first solo nomination and Eric’s first nomination (in general), so either of these two could become victorious.

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Best Country Album (Category 29)
Dierks Bentley – ‘Riser’
Eric Church – ‘The Outsiders’
Brandy Clark – ’12 Stories’
Miranda Lambert – ‘Platinum’
Lee Ann Womack – ‘The Way I’m Livin’’

Who Should Win: Brandy Clark – ’12 Stories’

Who Will Win: Miranda Lambert – ‘Platinum’

I really enjoyed Brandy’s ’12 Stories’ – almost as much as I enjoyed Kacey Musgraves’ debut just last year. But given the successful track record from Miranda’s ‘Platinum’ singles, it’s highly unlikely that she’ll lose this one.