Townes, Smith big winners at CCMAs

Tenille Townes — with a nod toward Paul Brandt — turned the Canadian Country Music Awards into her very own Alberta Bound homecoming party Sunday night.

On a night when the CCMA celebrated the finest country talent that Canada has produced in the world’s only saddle-shaped hockey arena, it was Grande Prairie’s Townes who shone brightest, winning for Female Artist of the Year and Single of the Year, for her song Somebody’s Daughter.

Somebody’s Daughter also won two other CCMA’s Saturday, one for songwriting and one for video of the year, giving Townes an armful of hardware to tote home to Nashville.

Not bad for someone whose first gig was singing the national anthem at the Grande Prairie Storm Junior A hockey team’s games.

“I’m so proud to be a Grande Prairie, Alberta, girl,” she said after being named Female Entertainer of the Year. “This has been a year of dreams. I grew up listening to Carolyn Dawn Johnson, Terri Clark, Pam Tillis and Shania Twain, so this (award) is for all those little girls out there — don’t give up on your dreams.”

That theme of the rising fortunes of female performers was summed up by Pam Tillis herself, who maybe helped pave the way for the current generation of female country artists such as Townes, Lindsey Ell, Meghan Patrick and others, including Nice Horse, who were all nominated for various awards Sunday night.

“The face of country music is changing, and it’s got a lot more lipstick,” she said.

The awards were co-hosted by Billy Ray Cyrus and Dallas Smith, another big winner, taking home the first-ever CCMA Entertainer of the Year and the MNP Male Artist of the Year awards.

The only problem for Smith was that between co-hosting and hanging with Cyrus, he barely had time to absorb that he’d won the biggest award of the evening.

“I cared less about the awards tonight than ever!” he said, before adding, “personally and professionally, it was a lot of fun.”

Cyrus, who is back on the charts with the summer’s No. 1 song, Old Town Road, had a special soft spot for Calgary, dating back to his first gig at the Silver Dollar Bowling Alley.

“It was right there that I got my very first gold record,” Cyrus said.

“Thank you, Canada, thank you, Calgary. It’s an honour to be back here.”

There were performances by a glittering array of country artists, including Cyrus, Smith (singing Drop, his eighth No. 1 song), Meghan Patrick and Mitchell Tenpenny, High Valley, the Hunter Brothers, Lindsay Ell, Tennille Townes, the Reklaws and others.

Paul Brandt sang Alberta Bound and everyone in the Saddledome sang along. He was named Humanitarian of the Year on Saturday for the Not in My City project, which fights against sex trafficking of children.

Terri Clark appeared, to announce that the 2020 nominee to the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame was Charlie Major.

Afterwards, in the media room, Major was asked what he would do next.

“I’m going for a drink,” he said.

The Reklaws took home the award for album of the year, while The Washboard Union won Group or Duo of the year for the second straight year.