Chad Brownlee, High Valley, Madeline Merlo and International Guest Brett Young to Perform on the 2017 CCMA Awards Show

#CCMAawards

(Saskatoon, SK) August 22, 2017 – The Canadian Country Music Association® (CCMA®) announced that Chad Brownlee, High Valley, Madeline Merlo and international guest Brett Young will all perform on the 2017 CCMA Awards Show. Taking place at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on Sunday, September 10, the show will broadcast on CBC at 8 p.m. (8:30 p.m. NT) that night. These acts join a line-up of star power already announced for the show, including Gord Bamford joined by Jim Cuddy, Dean Brody, Tim Hicks, James Barker Band, Brett Kissel, Meghan Patrick, Jess Moskaluke, Dallas Smith, The Washboard Union and international guest, Blake Shelton.

Critically acclaimed award-winning singer, songwriter, philanthropist, country music artist and British Columbia native Chad Brownlee earned two 2017 Canadian Country Music Association Award nominations for Male Artist of the Year and the Apple Music Fans’ Choice Award. With over a billion radio impressions to date, Brownlee is celebrating back-to-back Top 10 hits from his 2017 JUNO Award nominated album Hearts On Fire, including the GOLD-certified “I Hate You For It” and newest single “Out Of The Blue”. With an infectious live show, Brownlee joined forces with Tim Hicks earlier this year, for eight highly praised co-headlining dates across Western Canada.

Two-time CCMA Group or Duo of the Year winners, High Valley are riding high on the success of their major label debut album Dear Life. Released in the fall of 2016, the album has spawned the hits “Every Week’s Got A Friday” and the No. 1 smash “I Be U Be”. In the past year, High Valley have been named artist to watch by Rolling Stone Country, Taste of Country, Spotify, Pandora and CMT. In addition to numerous appearances on the Grand Ole Opry stage, the band has toured throughout North America and Europe this year including opening for Tim McGraw and Faith Hill on their SOUL2SOUL World Tour. Their devoted fan base has devoured more than 60 million song streams and the group has made multiple appearances on national TV in Canada and the U.S., including The Today Show.

Hailing from Maple Ridge, B.C., Madeline Merlo was predicted to be one of 2016’s biggest stars by Spotify Canada, as a member of their Spotlight program. After winning the CCMA Rising Star Award in 2015 and the BCCMA Female Artist of the Year Award two years in a row, Merlo has landed three Top 15 singles on Canadian country radio with her hits “Whatcha Wanna Do About It”, which cracked Top 10 and “War Paint”, which was the No. 1 most added country song in Canada in its debut week. Most recently, Merlo garnered a Top 20 radio hit with her fun summertime song, “Motel Flamingo”.

Named as the only country act on Shazam’s “Emerging Artists of 2017,” Brett Young has captured the hearts of fans everywhere. The ACM Awards’ New Male Vocalist of the Year nominee, released his self-titled, debut album earlier this year, hitting #1 on the Canadian Country Albums chart. Brett penned 11 of the 12 tracks, including his current single “Like I Loved You” and back-to-back No. 1 hits – GOLD-certified “Sleep Without You” and the three week No. 1 hit “In Case You Didn’t Know”. The latter set a new record for most spins in a week on the Mediabase Canadian Country Radio Chart and solidified Brett as the first country artist to hit the PLATINUM-certification sales mark with a song released in 2017. Nominated for a Teen Choice Award for Choice Country Song, “In Case You Didn’t Know” was also previously up for Breakthrough Video of the Year at the 2017 CMT Music Awards and remains in VEVO’s Top 10 Videos of 2017 (so far) with more than 100 million views. In addition to his own headlining dates, the California native is currently on the road with Lady Antebellum’s YOU LOOK GOOD World Tour after joining Luke Bryan and Thomas Rhett on dates earlier this year.

The 2017 CCMA Awards Show will see eight CCMA Awards presented, including the Apple Music Fans’ Choice Award. This prestigious award, voted on by country music fans, is once again stacked with powerhouse male artists: Gord Bamford, Dean Brody, Chad Brownlee, High Valley and Dallas Smith. This year, there are three ways for fans to engage with their favourite Canadian country music act and vote:

Visit fanvote.ccma.org and click on their favourite act,
Visit applemusic.com/CCMAawards and listen to their favourite act,
Take to social media and hashtag their choice for the Apple Music Fans’ Choice Award.

For full details on how to take advantage of these opportunities to vote for the 2017 Apple Music Fans’ Choice Award, CLICK HERE.

And, thanks to a new partnership with SiriusXM, the CCMA is pleased to announce that this year’s SiriusXM Rising Star Award winner will receive a $10,000 bursary as part of SiriusXM’s continued efforts to support Canadian artists.

Leading up to the awards, CBC Music will offer exclusive CCMA Awards content, including artist interviews; plus, on September 10, fans can watch the stars walk the John Deere Green Carpet via CBCMusic.ca/CCMAAwards and CBC Music’s Facebook and YouTube pages. Predict who will win big this year by casting a ballot in the CBC Music’s online CCMA Awards pool HERE.

Tickets for the 2017 CCMA Awards Show are still available. Tickets can be purchased online HERE, by calling 1-800-970-7328, or by visiting the SaskTel Centre Box Office (3515 Thatcher Ave., Saskatoon, SK).

For more information on the 2017 CCMA Awards Show or PotashCorp Country Music Week, visit ccma.org.

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About the Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA)
Established in 1976, the CCMA is a membership-based, not-for-profit organization committed to the promotion and recognition of Canadian country music. Built upon the foundation to educate, elevate and celebrate Canadian talent, the CCMA progressively heralds the spirit, community and creativity that country music fosters through year-round initiatives, culminating every fall with Country Music Week and the Canadian Country Music Association Awards. Sponsors of PotashCorp Country Music Week and the 2017 CCMA Awards Show include FACTOR, Canada’s Private Radio Broadcasters and the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage’s “Canada Music Fund”, Radio Starmaker Fund, the Province of Saskatchewan, the City of Saskatoon, Tourism Saskatchewan and Tourism Saskatoon. Produced with the participation of the Bell Fund.

About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. We are Canada’s trusted source of news, information and Canadian entertainment. Deeply rooted in communities all across the country, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages. We also provide international news and information from a uniquely Canadian perspective. In 2017, CBC/Radio-Canada will be at the heart of the celebrations and conversations with special 2017-themed multiplatform programming and events across Canada.

Media Contacts for Information and Artist Interviews
Jess Seguire | jess@penelopepr.com | 613-921-2314
Tiffany Astle | tiffany@penelopepr.com | 416-554-7329