As the ICMC closed its 42nd year at Belmont University, two of country music’s premier writing honors — the Belmont University Curb Music Industry Award for Country Music Book of the Year and the Chet Flippo Award for Excellence in Country Music Journalism — were presented.
The International Country Music Conference (ICMC) wrapped its 42nd annual gathering this past weekend at Belmont University, bringing scholars, journalists, authors, and music enthusiasts from around the globe to Nashville for three days of presentations, dialogue, and recognition of outstanding contributions to country music scholarship and journalism.
The conference, held Thursday, May 28 through Saturday, May 30, 2026, concluded with the presentation of its two premier honors: the Belmont University Curb Music Industry Award for Country Music Book of the Year, presented to HOWDY! The Minnie Pearl Story by Mary Ellen Pethel and Dr. Don Cusic, and the Chet Flippo Award for Excellence in Country Music Journalism, presented to David B. Ramsey for “Ain’t It a Cold, Cold World?: The Collected Stories of Blaze Foley.” The conference also presented a special Lifetime Achievement Award to ICMC co-founder James Akenson and Mickie Akenson for their decades of dedication to the ICMC.
A Global Gathering of Country Music Scholars
True to its name, the ICMC drew participants from Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Scotland, Sweden, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Japan, Norway, the United Kingdom, and across the United States. With all presentations held in a single room, the conference has built a reputation as a welcoming community for first-time participants and seasoned scholars alike.
This year’s program explored country music in all its variants — Americana, alt-country, bluegrass, Cajun, country rock, crossover, honky tonk, the Nashville Sound, new traditionalist, old-time country, and western swing — alongside the historical and cultural roots they share.
Conference Highlights
The 2026 program opened with Lisa Sorrell of Sorrell Custom Boots leading a conversation on “Boot History and the Boots in the Room,” drawing on her recent exhibit at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum. The Thursday evening keynote, “From Census to Solution: How Data Is Driving Policy Changes to Make Music City More Music Friendly,” was delivered by Jamie Kent, exploring how findings from the 2024 Greater Nashville Music Census are reshaping the city’s support for musicians and venues.
Across the weekend, presentations spanned an unusually wide range of subjects and perspectives, including:
- Dr. Beth Fowler (Wayne State University) on Frances Williams Preston and second-wave feminism in the country music industry
- Dr. Kate Ngai (Glasgow Caledonian University) on Rissi Palmer, Color Me Country Radio, and artist-led archives
- Dr. Phoebe E. Hughes (Binghamton University) on female revenge narratives in contemporary murder ballads
- Dr. Brooks Blevins (Missouri State University) on the rediscovered Al Gannaway color films of 1950s Grand Ole Opry performers
- Ben Atkinson (University of Leuven) on the transnational trajectory of country music in the United Kingdom
- Scott B. Bomar (Fourth and State) on Buck Owens’s evolving relationship with rock & roll
- Sandra Cox Birchfield on revisiting the 1975 Charlie Rich / John Denver CMA Awards incident
- Chris Richardson (Zero to 180) on the intersection of American country music and Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae, and dancehall
Friday morning’s Charles K. Wolfe Memorial Panel offered an oral history of the conference itself, with founder James Akenson, Mickie Akenson, and co-chair Don Cusic reflecting on more than four decades of ICMC history and inviting attendees to share their own memories.
The conference also held a special Friday evening event at historic RCA Studio B, where singer-songwriters Heather Mae and Crys Matthews led “Joyful Protest,” a panel and performance exploring music as a vehicle for resistance, community, and change.
About the International Country Music Conference
Founded in 1983, the International Country Music Conference is the leading academic forum dedicated to the scholarly study of country music in all its forms. Now in its 42nd year, the ICMC continues its mission of fostering rigorous, wide-ranging, and inclusive scholarship on one of America’s most enduring and influential musical traditions.
For more information, visit internationalcountrymusic.org.