Cody Johnson has officially climbed into country’s biggest spotlight, and he did it the hard way.

The Texas cowboy just earned his first-ever CMA Entertainer of the Year nomination, along with Male Vocalist, Musical Event, and Music Video of the Year, giving him four nods at the 2025 CMA awards. For an artist who spent nearly two decades grinding his way through honky-tonks and festivals before Nashville even glanced his direction, this feels less like a surprise and more like overdue recognition.

The path here has been anything but easy. Johnson’s breakout stretch began with “Dirt Cheap,” a song about a farmer refusing to sell his land, that cut deep into the core of country storytelling. It became his fourth number one single, racked up more than 215 million streams, and landed Platinum certification. Critics called it a masterclass in authenticity, and it picked up Song of the Year honors at the People’s Choice Country Awards. Songs like that are why Johnson is where he is today. He did not bend to trends, he doubled down on truth.

And then came the duet that lit the fire brighter. “I’m Gonna Love You” with Carrie Underwood hit number one at country radio in March, giving Johnson his fourth chart-topper and Underwood her twenty-ninth. The collaboration not only dominated playlists but also gave the CMAs one of their most talked-about moments last year when Carrie walked out unannounced to join Johnson on stage. Their chemistry was undeniable, and it made the song a heavy favorite in Musical Event and Music Video this year.

While other artists experimented with pop-country polish, Johnson doubled down with Leather and its expanded Leather Deluxe Edition. That 25-song project leaned on fiddles, banjos, and straight-shooting ballads, and critics praised it as proof that traditional country still moves the needle. He even took it global, selling out arenas in Australia and New Zealand and stealing the show at London’s C2C Festival, while still making time to play heartfelt tributes to service members at his U.S. stops. He is not just a Texas story anymore. He is a country story that has gone worldwide.

What makes this Entertainer nomination so sweet is that Johnson has been told for years that he was not Nashville’s type. Executives once said the cowboy hat would not work and that being too Texas was a liability. Now, that same cowboy hat is standing in the Entertainer of the Year lineup alongside Luke Combs, Chris Stapleton, Morgan Wallen, and Lainey Wilson. Johnson did not change for Nashville, Nashville finally had to catch up to him.

And the fans? They have been there since the beginning, watching him climb from regional rodeo crowds to sold-out amphitheaters. His shows are not just concerts, they are experiences where patriotic tributes sit next to heartbreak ballads and boot-stomping anthems. That kind of connection is exactly what the Entertainer title is supposed to reward.

Cody Johnson’s 2025 CMA nominations are not just about one year of success. They are about proving that hard work, authenticity, and tradition still matter in a genre that sometimes forgets its backbone. He did not take shortcuts, he did not chase trends, and he did not compromise.

When the CMA Awards light up Bridgestone Arena on November 19, Cody Johnson will walk in wearing the same hat Nashville once said would hold him back. Now it might just crown him Entertainer of the Year. And that is country justice.