BROOKS & DUNN, KENNY CHESNEY, GEORGE STRAIT, SUGARLAND AND REBA McENTIRE WITH SPECIAL GUEST KELLY CLARKSON ARE SET TO PERFORM ON THE "42ND ANNUAL ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS" TO BE BROADCAST LIVE FROM LAS VEGAS, MAY 15 ON THE CBS TELEVISION NETWORK

Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Sugarland and host Reba McEntire with special guest Kelly Clarkson are set to perform on the 42ND ANNUAL ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS, to be broadcast live from Las Vegas' MGM Grand, Tuesday, May 15 (8:00-11:00 PM, live ET/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network. The event honors country music's top talent as well as the industry's hottest emerging talent.

Brooks & Dunn are nominated for seven awards including Top Vocal Duo and Album of the year for Hillbilly Deluxe. They have previously won 21 Academy of Country Music Awards and are the 2007 recipients of the Academy of Country Music/The Home Depot Humanitarian Award.

Reigning and back-to-back Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year, Kenny Chesney, is slated to perform. Should he win Entertainer of the Year again, he will become only the fourth performer in the Academy's history to win the coveted title three or more times. One of the six elite ACM Triple Crown winners -- for Best New, Top and Entertainer -- Chesney's The Road and The Radio Tour in 2006 was North America's most attended concert tour in any genre. He is also nominated for Top Male Vocalist.

George Strait leads with eight nominations including Entertainer of the Year and Top Male Vocalist and is being recognized as an artist and producer for his album It Just Comes Natural. In his career, Strait has accepted 15 Academy of Country Music Awards, including Entertainer of the Year. In 2003, he was honored with a Career Achievement Award from the Academy for having more number one singles than any other country artist.

Sugarland is nominated for Top Vocal Duo, giving them six Academy of Country Music Award total nominations over the last two years. Jennifer Nettles was also nominated for Vocal Event last year with Bon Jovi. In addition, they took home Top New Duo or Vocal Group honors.

Host Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson will perform their song from McEntire's new album, Duets. McEntire has hosted the show for a record-breaking nine years and has previously won 11 Academy of Country Music Awards. Grammy-winning artist Kelly Clarkson performed for the first time on a country music award show last year with Rascal Flatts.

The Academy of Country Music, an artist and industry-driven organization, exists to produce a world-class network television awards show, and its associated events, to provide the financial resources to ensure the ongoing philanthropic work of its Charitable Fund. Academy of Country Music Charitable Fund promotes and supports music education and humanitarian programs that transform the human spirit. Through its charitable donations, the ACMCF works toward two main goals: encouraging Learning Through Music and Healing Through Music. The Academy, which is comprised of more than 4,500 professional members and more than 40,000 associate members, was established in 1964 and is headquartered in Encino, Calif.

The ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS is produced for television by dick clark productions. The show is executive produced by Allen Shapiro and R.A. Clark, and produced by Barry Adelman. The executive in charge of production is Bob Bardo, and the executive in charge is Fran LaMaina.

RATING: To Be Announced