Avery Anna has been named the ACM’s New Female Artist of the Year, capping a fast climb that took her from a viral TikTok cover to one of country music’s biggest annual honors. The award was announced on April 26, 2026, and was later presented in person by Sam Barber during her performance at the Lone Star Smokeout festival in Arlington, Texas.

The 22-year-old singer was recognized after beating out MacKenzie Carpenter, Dasha, Caroline Jones and Emily Ann Roberts for the category. The 61st ACM Awards were held on May 17, 2026, but Anna’s win landed earlier, giving her a separate moment of recognition before the ceremony itself. She later said she could not fully process what was happening and was still struggling to believe she was there.

For Anna, the win came after years of momentum that started during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she was still a teenager and posted a cover of Christina Aguilera’s Say Something on TikTok. The video spread widely. Matt Thomas of Parmalee sent it to David Fanning, who signed Anna to a talent manager. She graduated from high school in May 2021, moved to Nashville soon after and signed a record deal with Warner Music Nashville in June 2022.

By the time the ACM vote was announced, Anna had already built a catalog that helped turn the online buzz into a career. She released her debut album, Breakup Over Breakfast, on July 19, 2024, followed by Let Go Letters on May 16, 2025. She also teamed with Barber on Indigo in 2024, a song that reached number 8 on Billboard’s US Country chart and number 40 on the Hot 100. The pair also worked together on Restless Mind and Fear in God.

Anna, born March 3, 2004, grew up in Flagstaff, Arizona, in a family that includes her mother, Tess Nelson Rhoton, her father, Brian Rhoton, one older sister, Taylor Rhoton Anderson, and two younger siblings, Clayton Rhoton and Paisley Rhoton. In comments about the ACMs, she said she was excited and nervous, that performing at the awards was beyond her wildest dreams, and that she felt embraced by country music even though she leans a little outside the genre at times.

The win matters because it confirms what her release schedule and streaming pull had already suggested: Anna is no longer just the singer behind a viral clip. She has moved from internet breakout to a career that country radio, award voters and live audiences now have to account for, and the next test is whether her audience keeps growing beyond the moment that first made her famous.