COUNTRY POWERHOUSES MARTINA MCBRIDE, JENNIFER NETTLES AND CAM TO KICK OFF THE "2016 AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS" WITH MCBRIDE'S TIMELESS FEMALE ANTHEM "THIS ONE'S FOR THE GIRLS"

Trio to Perform Together for the First Time on the 2nd Annual Country Music Awards Show Airing Live from Los Angeles Sunday, May 1, On FOX

LOS ANGELES (April 28, 2016) - Three of country music's leading ladies, Martina McBride, Jennifer Nettles and Cam, will kick off the 2016 AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS, airing live from the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., Sunday, May 1 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX. The trio will take the stage together for the first time and open the show with a performance of McBride's No. 1 hit anthem "This One's For the Girls."

"I always look forward to singing this song because it resonates with so many different people of all different ages," said Martina. "With Jennifer and Cam joining me for the first time, the song will be even more fun and I'm so happy we'll be performing this together."

The two-hour 2016 AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS broadcast features 14 performances including: Kelsea Ballerini, 2016 NASH Icon Award presented by Ford F-Series recipients Brooks & Dunn, Luke Bryan, Cam, Dan + Shay, Florida Georgia Line, Sam Hunt, Chris Janson, Martina McBride, Thomas Rhett, Cole Swindell, Carrie Underwood, and Toby Keith's tribute to Merle Haggard, with Haggard's longtime band the Strangers.

Presenters at the 2nd annual show include: pop music icon Paula Abdul, country newcomer Chase Bryant, Terry Crews (BROOKLYN NINE NINE), Cat Deeley (SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE), country singer/songwriter Sara Evans, AMERICAN IDOL winner Trent Harmon, current two-time finalist Jana Kramer, rising country star Chris Lane, country duo Maddie & Tae, Academy Award(R) winner Matthew McConaughey, country singer/songwriter Scotty McCreery, 2014 NASH Icon Award recipient Reba McEntire, country superstar Jennifer Nettles, current finalist Michael Ray, up-and-coming singer/songwriter Canaan Smith, actor Luke Wilson and country music legend and actor Dwight Yoakam.

Multiple Grammy(R) Award nominee and vocal powerhouse Martina McBride has sold over 18 million albums to date, including 20 Top 10 singles and six No. 1 hits. Recently, she released her new single, "Reckless," the title track from her 13th studio album due out April 29. She has earned more than 15 major music awards, including four wins for Female Vocalist of the Year from the Country Music Association and three Academy of Country Music Awards for Top Female Vocalist.

Country superstar Jennifer Nettles recently released her debut single on Big Machine Records "Unlove You," the lead track from her sophomore solo album PLAYING WITH FIRE due out May 13. She previously won five ASCAP awards for her songwriting abilities and received a Grammy Award, ACM Award and CMA Award for penning the emotionally charged, No. 1 platinum hit "Stay." Adding to her many accolades, Jennifer made her Broadway debut in February 2015 as Roxy Hart in the Tony Award-winning, record-breaking musical Chicago, and joined the cast of the Dolly Parton television biopic "Coat of Many Colors," on NBC in December. The lead vocalist for international duo Sugarland, Jennifer has become one of the most admired singer-songwriters in music today. Jennifer kicked off 2016 headlining CMT's Next Women of Country Tour having wrapped her headlining Playing With Fire Tour at the end of 2015. For tour dates and updates on Jennifer Nettles, visit JenniferNettles.com.

Shining newcomer Cam is a two-time 2016 ACCA finalist for Female Vocalist of the Year and Breakthrough Female Vocalist of the Year. Her No. 1 smash "Burning House" was certified Platinum by the RIAA and remains the only single by a country female to achieve more than 1 million downloads the past year. When Cam's debut album "Untamed" was released in December, it earned 2015's best first-week sales by a debut country artist. Other recent award nominations for the Arista Nashville/RCA Records songwriter-songwriter include the Grammys (Best Country Solo Performance for "Burning House" nomination) and the ACM Awards (most-nominated female with six nods).

The AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS is based on country music's longest-running radio countdown show (43 years), "American Country Countdown with Kix Brooks," and honors country music's biggest stars, based on album sales and radio airplay. Finalists and winners for all categories are based on radio airplay charts, sales and streaming data from April 1, 2015 to March 28, 2016 provided by BuzzAngle Music. Touring data is from Pollstar "The Concert Hotwire."

Tickets for the AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS at the "Fabulous" Forum are on sale now at www.ticketmaster.com.

The AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS is produced by dick clark productions. Allen Shapiro (CEO, dick clark productions), Mike Mahan (President, dick clark productions), Mark Bracco (Executive Vice President, Programming and Development, dick clark productions), Kix Brooks, Richard Godfrey and Tom Forrest are executive producers.