The Country Music Association handed out its 60th Annual Awards nominations on Thursday, and rising star Ella Langley walked away with the biggest haul of the morning: nine nominations, including a shot at the night's top prize, Entertainer of the Year.

Langley's nominations span Entertainer of the Year, two slots in Single of the Year, Album of the Year, two nods for Song of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, Musical Event of the Year and Music Video of the Year, according to Yahoo Entertainment. Miranda Lambert trails with seven nominations, while Kacey Musgraves and Ben West each picked up five.

The marquee Entertainer of the Year category pits Langley against Luke Combs, Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton and reigning champ Lainey Wilson, who returns to host the ceremony for a third straight year.

Swift's Surprise Return

The biggest headline-grabber, though, wasn't a country artist at all. Taylor Swift scored her first CMA Award nomination in four years, landing a Single of the Year nod for "I Knew It, I Knew You," her contribution to the Toy Story 5 soundtrack, per American Songwriter. Swift was last nominated in 2022 for "I Bet You Think About Me" with Chris Stapleton, and has 28 career CMA nominations against 12 wins dating back to her country-music debut in 2006.

Swift confirmed she'd be attending the ceremony in person with a cheeky Instagram story, according to Whiskey Riff.

"Looks like I haven't yee'd my last haw. Thank you CMA! See you there Nov 18." — Taylor Swift, via Instagram

It would mark her first time back at the CMAs since 2016, when she made a surprise appearance to present an award to Garth Brooks.

Reaction across country music circles has focused on the genre-blurring nature of this year's ballot, with Swift's soundtrack cut sitting alongside Langley's chart-topping "Choosin' Texas" and Musgraves' latest run of nominations. Industry outlets have already started dissecting the snubs, including notable absences for Morgan Wallen and Riley Green from several top categories.

The 60th Annual CMA Awards will air live from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on November 18, broadcast on ABC and streaming on Disney+ at 8 p.m. ET, with CMA CEO Sarah Trahern promising the show will celebrate the organization's "milestone anniversary." Wilson's hosting stint and Langley's nine-nomination haul will make both women the ones to watch heading into the ceremony — with Swift's Nashville homecoming now the wild card everyone's talking about.