Entertainment Awards Shows and Events Dierks Bentley Jokes He's the 'Susan Lucci' of the CMA Awards: 'It Would Be Nice to Win' "It's a lot, and I'm super grateful for each one. I've never won that award, but I do get nominated a lot," the country star admits By Daniela Avila Daniela Avila Daniela Avila is an editorial assistant at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2021. Her work previously appeared on The Poly Post. People Editorial Guidelines Published on November 5, 2021 06:05PM EDT Dierks Bentley and Susan Lucci. Photo: Isaac Brekken/Getty Images; Bennett Raglin/Getty Images Will Dierks Bentley finally break the streak? In an interview on Audacy's Gunner and Cheyenne on Demand podcast on Friday, Bentley talked about his nominations in the upcoming CMA Awards show — and joked he's the "Susan Lucci of male vocalist nominations," considering he's earned nominations several times before, yet never won. "I've been nominated a few times; I think I've been nominated for male vocalist, honestly like maybe 12 times," Bentley, 45, said. "It's a lot, and I'm super grateful for each one. I've never won that award, but I do get nominated a lot. I'm like the Susan Lucci of male vocalist nominations (the actress was nominated for a Daytime Emmy 19 times before winning outstanding lead actress in 1999), but I'll take it." Dierks Bentley. Kevin Mazur/Getty Images Luke Bryan, Jennifer Hudson, Thomas Rhett Join Star-Studded CMA Awards Performance Line-Up He added, "It would be nice to win." The country music singer, who is nominated for the male vocalist and video of the year categories went on to kid that he's "a better singer than Chris Stapleton," who's known for his powerful pipes. "I've been telling people for years I'm a better singer than Chris Stapleton, and no one believes me. If I had this hardware that's backed by scientific data, people might actually start believing me when I say, 'Yo, I've been telling you I'm a much better singer than Chris Stapleton, and look I have this plastic trophy here to prove it,'" he joked. "It would really help put an end to the argument because I just don't understand how people don't understand that!" All jokes aside, the "Drunk on a Plane" singer said "it's hard to be in a category with him" but he's "super honored to be nominated." Aside from the nominations, Bentley will join a star-studded performance line-up at the award show that includes Luke Bryan, who is hosting the show, Thomas Rhett, Keith Urban, Gabby Barrett, Jennifer Hudson, and Zac Brown Band. Bentley will be joined by BRELAND and HARDY for a performance of "Beers on Me." More performances include: Jason Aldean and Carrie Underwood, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, Old Dominion, Chris Stapleton, Kane Brown and Chris Young, Blake Shelton, Eric Church, Brothers Osborne, Dan + Shay, Jimmie Allen, Mickey Guyton featuring Brittney Spencer and Madeline Edwards, and Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde. Dierks Bentley Wants to Buy Ya'll a Drink — but Until That Day Comes, He's Serving Up New Single 'Beers on Me' In July, Bentley spoke to PEOPLE in honor of the release of his single "Beers on Me," and said it was about "the importance of just letting go." "Whether it's a weekend at your local bar with your friends or getting in the car and going to a live show, you just got to find a way to let it all go for a little bit. Pick your moments when you want to fight the fight, but at the same time, pick your moments when you want to stay quiet for a little while," he said at the time. Meanwhile, the music video for the single was released last week. This year's CMA Awards will broadcast live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. Close