JASON ALDEAN, BRAD PAISLEY, BLAKE SHELTON, TAYLOR SWIFT AND KEITH URBAN TO PERFORM ON "THE 45th ANNUAL CMA AWARDS"

The Five Nominees for CMA Entertainer of the Year Are First Confirmed Performers on "Country Music's Biggest Night"

The star-packed lineup for "The 45th Annual CMA Awards" launches with today's announcement that all five nominees for Entertainer of the Year, Jason Aldean, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton, Taylor Swift and Keith Urban, are the first group of performers confirmed for "Country Music's Biggest Night(TM)." With five nominations each this year, Aldean, Paisley, Shelton and Swift are also the top CMA-nominated artists. "The 45th Annual CMA Awards," hosted by Paisley and Carrie Underwood, will broadcast from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9 (8:00-11:00 PM/ET) on the ABC Television Network.

Aldean received first-time nominations in five categories in 2011, including Entertainer; Male Vocalist; Album for "My Kinda Party," and Single and Musical Event of the Year for "Don't You Wanna Stay" with Kelly Clarkson.

CMA's reigning Entertainer of the Year, Paisley received five nominations in 2011 for Entertainer; Male Vocalist; Album for "This is Country Music," and Musical Event and Music Video of the Year for "Old Alabama," featuring Alabama. Paisley remains in the No. 3 spot for the most career nominations in CMA Awards history. He has been nominated every year since 2000 and has amassed an incredible 57 career nominations to date. Only George Strait (81) and Alan Jackson (80) have more. Paisley has won 14 CMA Awards to date, including three consecutive Male Vocalist awards (2007-2009) and Album of the Year (in 2006 for "Time Well Wasted"). He is No. 5 for the most career wins in CMA Awards history, behind only George Strait (22), Brooks & Dunn (19), Vince Gill (18) and Alan Jackson (16).

CMA's current Male Vocalist of the Year, Shelton also received five nominations this year, including Entertainer; Male Vocalist; Album for "All About Tonight," and Single, and Music Video of the Year for "Honey Bee." These are Shelton's first nominations in the Entertainer and Album categories. Shelton has won two CMA Awards thus far in his career. In addition to Male Vocalist, he also won Musical Event of the Year in 2010 for his performance of "Hillbilly Bone" with Trace Adkins.

Swift also received five nominations, including Entertainer; Female Vocalist; Album for "Speak Now"; Music Video for "Mean"; and Song of the Year for writing "Mean." She received five nominations, but can receive an additional trophy as co-producer of her album. Swift won the Horizon Award in 2007 and, two years later, was named Entertainer of the Year (2009).

Urban received two nominations this year, including Entertainer and Male Vocalist. He won Entertainer in 2005 and was named Male Vocalist for three consecutive years (2004-2006). Urban is currently touring North America in support of his album "Get Closer."

Tickets for "The 45th Annual CMA Awards" go on sale to the public on Saturday, September 24 (please visit www.ticketmaster.com or call 1-800-745-3000).

"The 45th Annual CMA Awards" is a production of the Country Music Association. Robert Deaton is the executive producer, Paul Miller is the director and David Wild is the writer. The special will be shot in high definition and broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound.

For more information on the "CMA Awards," visit http://abc.go.com/shows/cma-awards.