Taylor Swift is returning to the CMA Awards stage Nov. 18 for the first time in 13 years.
Good Morning America, which airs on the same network broadcasting the CMA Awards, made the announcement on Nov. 13. Timing the news on Friday the 13th was fitting for a singer who considers 13 her lucky number.
The appearance comes less than a month after Swift reflected on her Nashville beginnings during her Oct. 26 induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. The 36-year-old recalled the Music Row writing sessions that shaped her career and celebrated the 20th anniversary of her self-titled debut album.
"You know, I've been very fortunate. I've gotten to genre hop and travel the world and write with so many different people and in so many different ways,"
Swift said during her acceptance speech. "And the only reason that I've been able to have that kind of dexterity in my creative process is because of the fundamentals and the foundation that I learned here in Nashville."
Swift earned a single of the year nomination for "I Knew It, I Knew You," her song from Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 5." The track, written and produced with Jack Antonoff, reached No. 1 on country radio in September, nearly 12 years after Swift made her definitive move from country to pop with "1989."
The nomination was her first at the CMAs in four years. She is competing against Ella Langley's "Be Her" and "Choosin' Texas," Lainey Wilson's "Somewhere Over Laredo" and Cody Johnson's "The Fall."
Taylor Swift's history at the CMA Awards
Swift has delivered eight musical performances across seven CMA Awards ceremonies. She has also earned 12 CMA honors: nine competitive awards, two International Artist Achievement Awards and the prestigious Pinnacle Award.
Her history with the show began in 2006, when she walked the red carpet just months after releasing her debut single, "Tim McGraw." A year later, the 17-year-old performed "Our Song" and won the Horizon Award, now called new artist of the year.
"This is definitely the highlight of my senior year!" she exclaimed in her acceptance speech.
Swift brought "Love Story" to the CMA stage in 2008, then swept all four categories in which she was nominated in 2009: entertainer of the year, female vocalist of the year, album of the year for "Fearless" and music video of the year for "Love Story." At 19, she became the youngest recipient of the night's top prize. She also bookended her breakthrough night with two contrasting performances, opening the broadcast with the fiery "Forever & Always" and returning later for an acoustic rendition of "Fifteen."
She followed with a piano-led "Back to December" in 2010, a solo acoustic performance of "Ours" in 2011 and "Begin Again" on a Paris-inspired set in 2012. Her 2011 appearance also brought a second entertainer of the year win.
In 2013, Swift became only the second recipient of the Pinnacle Award, following Garth Brooks. The special honor recognized her success in bringing country music to audiences worldwide. That night, she joined Alison Krauss and Vince Gill for a stripped-down performance of "Red"— her last CMA Awards musical performance before her 2026 return. She also won musical event and music video of the year for "Highway Don't Care," her collaboration with Tim McGraw and Keith Urban.
Swift returned in 2016 to present entertainer of the year to Brooks. A year later, she won song of the year as the sole writer of Little Big Town's "Better Man." Although she was absent, the group accepted on her behalf, with Karen Fairchild thanking her "for this beautiful song and for loving songs and loving Nashville."
Her most recent nomination before 2026 came in 2022, when the Blake Lively-directed video for "I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)," featuring Chris Stapleton, earned a music video of the year nod.
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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Taylor Swift to perform at CMA Awards for first time in 13 years
