Jason Aldean Reacts to 2016 CMA Awards Snub

Jason Aldean is one of the biggest superstars in country music at the moment, but you wouldn't know it by looking at the list of 2016 CMA Awards nominees. In an interview to promote his upcoming album They Don't Know, Aldean commented on being snubbed, which he says is part of a pattern in which the CMA has consistently overlooked his music.

Aldean is the reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year, and he's just been awarded the ACM's Triple Crown award, which honors artists who have won the ACM awards for New Male/Female/Duo/Group of the Year, Male/Female/Duo/Group of the Year and Entertainer of the Year. He's also one of a handful of acts across all genres capable of playing stadiums, but he says he wasn't surprised when his name wasn't among the nominees the CMA announced on Wednesday (Aug. 31).

"I've learned not to assume anything at this point," Aldean told a group of reporters in Nashville on Thursday (Sept. 1). "It's one of those things that, obviously when you see that stuff, it's disappointing, but at the same time, the day before that we're celebrating the Triple Crown, and we won the Entertainer of the Year. So I don't understand the way the voting goes any more than anybody else does."

"Things are gonna happen if they're gonna happen," he adds. "There's nothing I can go do that's gonna magically get us nominated next year, or the year after that. At this point I feel like I've gone out and done everything I can do to put ourselves in a position to be there, and people either vote for you or they don't. I don't know why it's so different from ACMs to CMAs, it just seems to be that way. It's not just this year; it seems to be that way a lot over the years."

Aldean cites other top-selling and top-drawing touring acts, including Blake Shelton and Kenny Chesney, who were also shut out of the CMAs this year. "I don't think there's any rhyme or reason to it," he reflects. "It's just, somebody's gonna get left out, and it seems to be us."

The singer says he wouldn't be interested in a nomination that he didn't feel he had a shot at winning.

"If we can't get enough votes to be nominated, we sure aren't gonna get enough votes to win, so what's the point?" he asks rhetorically. "Honestly, I'm not a, 'It's good to be here' guy. I'm just competitive. I wanna win. If we can barely squeak in enough votes for a nomination, I'd just as soon, if we ain't gonna win, I'd as soon not be there anyway."

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