Application Deadline Extended for 2024 Awards

FORT WORTH, TX - The application deadline for the 2024 Academy of Western Artists awards has been extended to Feb. 28, 2025 to provide additional time for members to join and apply. Professional members who join before the application deadline are eligible to apply for one or more of the seventy awards in seven categories (Western/Cowboy Music & Poetry, Western Swing Music, Western Country Music, Western Art, Western Media, Western Culture Industry, and Chuckwagon). There is no application fee for an award. Descriptions of each award and what is required to enter are on the awards page.

All applications are submitted online, through the professional member's online account page. Supporting materials in digital form are uploaded through a special link subsequently provided to the applicant. For general information and more details, see the awards policies. The Academy reserves the right to withhold an award in any category where the quality or number of entries does not meet the Academy's standards.

The awards process involves multiple steps (Application > Nomination > Voting > Judging). Other dates have also been extended. The nomination period (a second step in the awards process) will run from March 1 to April 30. Each Academy member (professional, associate, and fan) can nominate one of the award applicants in each category, after reviewing the relevant information provided by the applicant. Voting will take place from May 1 to June 30, and five finalists for each award will be announced on July 1. Winners will be announced at one of three awards ceremonies to be held later in the year.