The CMA (Country Music Association) Awards are coming soon – those are the ones that happen in Nashville every November, not to be confused with the ACM (Academy of Country Music) Awards, which happen in Las Vegas every April. Unless the ACM wants you to be confused, which it kind of seems like it does.

This week, the ACM announced seven new awards recognizing the best artists and music of the past decade, which it technically started when Jason Aldean was named Artist of the Decade earlier this year. But now, two months before the CMAs, the ACM has named Miranda Lambert’s “The House That Built Me” the first ever recipient of the ACM Song of the Decade award, which also honors songwriters Tom Douglas and Alan Shamblin. Miranda was given her award in a surprise backstage ceremony at one of her shows recently. 

The other six awards – Album, Artist-Songwriter, Breakout Artist, Single, Songwriter, and Music Event of the Decade – will be announced in the coming weeks. That is, the weeks leading up to the CMA Awards. 

Yeah, it seems like weird timing, and I can see it definitely adding to the confusion for people who already can’t keep them straight. But let’s not let that confusion bury the honor for Miranda Lambert and the “House That Built Me” songwriters, because that’s huge and well-deserved. 

And if it’s been a while since you’ve heard the song, let’s fix that. Listen to it on Country Hits or watch here: