Chris Willman, senior music writer and chief music critic for Variety, was honored with the Country Music Association’s Media Achievement Award on Tuesday. Shaboozey and Stephen Wilson Jr., both nominees and performers for the CMA Awards, surprised Willman with his statuette during their interview in Variety’s CMA Awards Interview Lounge presented by Duke Cannon and Anzie Blue.
Willman is one of two recipients for this year’s CMA Media Achievement Award honors. A second will be announced in the coming weeks.
The CMA Media Achievement Award is voted on by publicist members of the CMA. Per the association, the honor was created to “recognize achievements of print and online journalists, columnists, authors, editors, television writers, producers, bookers and syndicated radio reporters in the media as they relate to country music.”
Willman has covered the music industry for over four decades, writing in Variety, as well as Entertainment Weekly, Billboard and the Los Angeles Times. He is the author of the book “Rednecks & Bluenecks: The Politics of Country Music.” He has won entertainment journalist of the year twice at the SoCal Journalism Awards (2020, 2024) and was named print journalist of the year at the 2024 National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards.
This year, Willman helped spearhead Variety’s inaugural Power of Women Nashville event and special issue, for which he wrote cover profiles on Sheryl Crow and Mickey Guyton.
The 59th annual CMA Awards will be hosted by Lainey Wilson. The ceremony will broadcast Wednesday at 8 p.m. from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.
Pictured above: Chris Willman is surprised with news of his 2025 CMA Media Achievement Award win by Shaboozey and Stephen Wilson Jr. during Variety’s CMA Awards Interview Lounge presented by Duke Cannon at Anzie Blue ahead of “The 59th Annual CMA Awards.”