Mickey Guyton will make history Sunday as the first Black woman to host the American Country Music (ACM) awards, reported CBS This Morning.
The show promises to be the most diverse ACM awards in 56 years, with Guyton co-hosting alongside Keith Urban. Four other Black artists have received nominations this year, the most in ACM history. Guyton is the first Black female and the second-ever Black host of the awards show. The late Charlie Pride was the first Black ACM host 35 years ago.
Guyton was chosen by Urban, specifically, after the two performed a duet at last year’s show. The crooner told CBS, “I got along so great with her. So I called her up and asked her if she’d come and host with me. So I’m glad we’re getting to do it together.”
Elated over the news that she was selected as a host, Guyton told Gayle King in an interview for CBS This Morning that she wanted to “dance” when she learned the news.
“You know, I wanted to do the praise dance and the hallelujahs and all of that. I still can’t believe it,” she said.
The “Black Like Me” singer is not only hosting; she is also nominated for New Female Artist of the Year.
This isn’t the first time Guyton is making history in country music. Earlier this year, she was the first Black female soloist to be nominated in a country music category.
Guyton’s road to pursuing her dreams in country music was wrought with challenges that come with being a Black woman in a white male-dominated space. This included being called racial slurs at her own record signings and shows.
“I dealt with a lot of difficult things being on the road and trying to figure out myself in country music, you know?” Guyton told King. “I did get called the N-word at a show. And that was devastating to me.”
Despite the challenges she’d had to overcome, Guyton feels the ACM and country music is making a huge leap into the future by recognizing that representation matters.
She told The Tennessean, “As the world moves forward, I’m seeing so many people from all nationalities wanting to sing country music. Me standing on that stage with Keith Urban is going to show all of these other people that they can do it, too. And it’s just so cool.”
