REBA MCENTIRE RETURNS TO HOST THE "54th ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDSTM" LIVE FROM THE MGM GARDEN ARENA IN LAS VEGAS, SUNDAY, APRIL 7 ON CBS

ACM(R) Nominees to Be Revealed by Reba Live on "CBS This Morning" Wednesday, Feb. 20, Followed by the Announcement of Additional Nominees on ET Online

Iconic entertainer and 16-time ACM Award(R) winner Reba McEntire will return to host the 54TH ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS(TM), broadcasting live from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Sunday, April 7 (live 8:00-11:00 PM, ET/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network. This year's show will mark Reba's 16th time as host.

Reba will appear live on CBS THIS MORNING Wednesday, Feb. 20 to reveal the nominees for the 54TH ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS. Additional nominees will be announced live on ET Online. The full list of nominations will be released immediately following on ACMcountry.com.

The 54TH ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS will feature exciting performances, unprecedented collaborations, surprising moments and more to be announced in the coming months. CBS' 2018 broadcast of the 53RD ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS reached over 12 million viewers, drawing the largest audience in three years, since the 2015 show. Reba's highly anticipated next album, Stronger than the Truth, will be released just prior to the 54TH ACM AWARDS on Friday, April 5 on Big Machine Records.

Tickets for the ceremony are available for purchase now at www.axs.com. The media credential application to cover the Awards in Las Vegas is available at www.ACMcountry.com/press. For more information on the ACM Awards and all ACM events, including ACM Party for a Cause(R), visit ACMcountry.com. You can also like Academy of Country Music on Facebook or follow on Twitter and Instagram for more immediate updates.

Multi-media entertainment mogul Reba McEntire has become a household name through a successful career that spans across music, television, film, theater and retail. The Country Music Hall of Fame and Hollywood Bowl member has won 16 ACM Awards, 15 American Music Awards, 9 People's Choice Awards, 6 CMA Awards, 3 GRAMMY(R) Awards and a GMA Dove Award. The Grand Ole Opry member has also received the Andrea Bocelli Foundation Humanitarian Award, Leadership Music Dale Franklin Award, the Music Biz Chairman's Award, the National Artistic Achievement Award from U.S. Congress and membership into the Horatio Alger Association, in addition to other philanthropic and leadership honors. In 2018 the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame presented Reba with the inaugural Career Maker Award, for her significant influence on the songwriting careers of Nashville songwriters. She also joined an elite group of creators as one of the 2018 Kennedy Center Honors recipients for her lifetime artistic achievements, alongside Cher, Philip Glass, Wayne Shorter and the creators of "Hamilton" - writer and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda, director Thomas Kail, choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler and music director Alex Lacamoire.

In 2017 she marked her 13th summit as Sing It Now: Songs of Faith & Hope topped both the Billboard Country and Christian/Gospel charts, bolstering Reba's successful record of 35 #1 singles and over 56 million albums sold worldwide. The double-disc collection earned Reba her first GMA Dove Award for Bluegrass/Country/Roots Album of the Year and third GRAMMY(R) Award for Best Roots Gospel Album. She will release a new album, Stronger Than The Truth, on April 5 via Big Machine Records.

The Oklahoma native is an acclaimed actress with 11 movie credits to her name, a lead role on Broadway in Irving Berlin's "Annie Get Your Gun" and a starring role in the six-season television sitcom "Reba." In 2005 she partnered with Dillard's to launch her own lifestyle brand, and most recently launched the REBA by Justin(TM) western footwear collection at select retailers nationwide. She was named the first female and musician to portray KFC's iconic founder Colonel Harland Sanders in the brand's celebrity colonel campaign. Throughout 2019, she will bring that same bubbly energy and penchant for excellence to Las Vegas as part of the longest-running Country residency in the Colosseum's history, alongside her superstar pals for Reba, Brooks & Dunn: Together in Vegas at Caesars.

About the Academy of Country Music Awards

The 54TH ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS(TM) is dedicated to honoring and showcasing the biggest names and emerging talent in the country music industry. The show is produced for television by dick clark productions. R.A. Clark, Reba McEntire, Barry Adelman and Marc Bracco are executive producers. Pete Fisher is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music.

RATING: To Be Announced