The first Arkansas Country Music Awards are set for this summer on the campus of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
The June 4 event at the University Theatre will be hosted by Arkansas natives Collin Raye and Charles Haymes, according to a news release.
Public nominations are in progress for the awards, and up to 15 performances are set at the “red carpet event” that will focus on well-known and new talent, organizers said.
Haymes, a longtime country music journalist, said the Arkansas Country Music Awards are “way overdue.”
“So many independent and undiscovered talents grace stages all over Arkansas every weekend, chasing a dream and doing what they love,” he said.
Raye — known for the songs “Love, Me,” “Anyone Else” and “Little Rock" — noted that the event will be “spotlighting the wealth of talent” in Arkansas.
Performers for the event will be selected from a final nominee list, which will be announced in March. Voting will begin March 17.
Limited ticket sales will begin this month at the Arkansas County Music Awards website.