1996 in country music

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This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1996.

• June 28 — First annual Country Stampede Music Festival begins
• October 6 — Tim McGraw and Faith Hill are married, and quickly become country music's most visible couple. Their friendship grew into romance during their successful "Spontaneous Combustion" tour that year.

• April 2 -- Zach Bryan, nominated for Best Country Album at the 2024 Grammy Awards, was born in Okinawa, Japan.
• July 23 – Danielle Bradbery, winner of season four of NBC's The Voice.

• February 17 — Gus Hardin, 50, female singer best known for her Earl Thomas Conley duet "All Tangled Up in Love" (automobile accident)
• March 4 — Minnie Pearl, 83, legendary comedian known for her trademark greeting, "How-dee!" and her straw hat with price tag; a regular on Hee Haw (stroke).
• May 3 — Patsy Montana, 87, first female country singer to have a single sell one million copies ("I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart").
• June 16 — Anthony Armstrong Jones, 47, male singer best known for his Top Ten cover version of "Take a Letter Maria"
• August 22 – Oliver "Doolittle" Lynn, 69, husband of Loretta Lynn and key figure in many aspects of her career.
• December 10 — Faron Young, 64, Nicknamed "The Hillbilly Heartthrob", and "The Singing Sheriff" he had many hits including "Hello Walls" and "Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young" (suicide).

• Peter V. Kuykendall
• The Country Gentlemen
  • Charlie Waller
  • John Duffey
  • Eddie Adcock
  • Tom Gray

• Patsy Montana (1908–1996)
• Buck Owens (1929–2006)
• Ray Price (1926–2013)

• Myrna Lorrie
• Larry Delaney

• Best Female Country Vocal Performance — "Blue," LeAnn Rimes
• Best Male Country Vocal Performance — "World's Apart", Vince Gill
• Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal — "My Maria", Brooks & Dunn
• Best Country Collaboration with Vocals — "High Lonesome Sound", Vince Gill (featuring Alison Krauss)
• Best Country Instrumental Performance — "Jam Man", Chet Atkins
• Best Country Song — "Blue", Bill Mack (Performer: LeAnn Rimes)
• Best Country Album — The Road to Ensenada, Lyle Lovett (Producers: Billy Williams (singer) and Lyle Lovett)
• Best Bluegrass Album — True Life Blues: The Songs of Bill Monroe, Various Artists (Producer: Todd Phillips)

• Country Male Vocalist of the Year — Paul Brandt
• Country Female Vocalist of the Year — Shania Twain
• Country Group or Duo of the Year — The Rankin Family

• Entertainer of the Year — Brooks & Dunn
• Song of the Year — "Blue", Bill Mack
• Single of the Year — "Blue," LeAnn Rimes
• Album of the Year — Blue Clear Sky, George Strait
• Top Male Vocalist — George Strait
• Top Female Vocalist — Patty Loveless
• Top Vocal Duo — Brooks & Dunn
• Top Vocal Group — Sawyer Brown
• Top New Male Vocalist — Trace Adkins
• Top New Female Vocalist — LeAnn Rimes
• Top New Vocal Duo or Group — Ricochet
• Video of the Year — "I Think About You", Collin Raye (Director: Steven Goldmann)

(presented in Sydney on September 30, 1996)

• Best Country Album - Home Fires (The Dead Ringer Band)

• NCN Fans' Choice Award — Shania Twain
• Male Artist of the Year — Charlie Major
• Female Artist of the Year — Shania Twain
• Group or Duo of the Year — Prairie Oyster
• SOCAN Song of the Year — "My Heart Has a History," Paul Brandt, Mark D. Sanders
• Single of the Year — "Better Things to Do," Terri Clark
• Album of the Year — Terri Clark, Terri Clark
• Top Selling Album — Fresh Horses, Garth Brooks
• Video of the Year — "(If You're Not in It for Love) I'm Outta Here!," Shania Twain
• Vista Rising Star Award — Terri Clark
• Vocal Collaboration of the Year — Jim Witter and Cassandra Vasik

• Entertainer of the Year — Brooks & Dunn
• Song of the Year — "Go Rest High on That Mountain," Vince Gill
• Single of the Year — "Check Yes or No," George Strait
• Album of the Year — Blue Clear Sky, George Strait
• Male Vocalist of the Year — George Strait
• Female Vocalist of the Year — Patty Loveless
• Vocal Duo of the Year — Brooks & Dunn
• Vocal Group of the Year — The Mavericks
• Horizon Award — Bryan White
• Music Video of the Year — "My Wife Thinks You're Dead", Junior Brown (Director: Michael McNamara)
• Vocal Event of the Year — "I Will Always Love You", Dolly Parton and Vince Gill
• Musician of the Year — Mark O'Connor

• Canadian Country Artist of the Year — Shania Twain
• Best Country Album — The Woman in Me, Shania Twain
• Best Country Single — "Any Man of Mine", Shania Twain
• Top Male Vocalist — Charlie Major
• Top Female Vocalist — Shania Twain
• Top Group — Prairie Oyster
• Outstanding New Artist — Jason McCoy
• Top Country Composer(s) — Shania Twain

• Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs 1944–2005 – 6th Edition." 2005.

• Country Music Association
• Inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame

• Country Music Hall of Fame