Taylor Swift reigns at Country Music Awards.

It’s official, and she has the lovely statuary to prove it: Taylor Swift, country music songstress supreme and general teen heart-throb is country music’s “Entertainer of the Year.”  Beating-out superstars Blake Shelton and Jason Aldean, Ms. Swift collected her award at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena Wednesday night, where she also performed her latest release, “Ours,” sure to add to her long-running string of mega-hits not only on the country charts but also on the adult contemporary listings.

Swift shared big honors with other hard-working, big-voiced, and big-haired country crooners.  Miranda Lambert, queen of last fall’s Academy of Country Music honors, earned Female Vocalist of the Year, edging Sara Evans, Martina McBride, and Carrie Underwood for the prize.

For the fourth year in a row, Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley hosted the awards, toting up healthy television ratings and keeping the auditorium audience happily entertained.  Also performing at the forty-fifth annual gala and general tribute to fiddles and steel guitars, Scotty McCreery debuted his new single; and Lionel Richie, once a soul star and always Nicole Richie’s father, delivered a selection from his new country album “Tuskegee.”  The ceremony also paid homage to Glen Campbell, once a member of the Beach Boys and honored member of the Country Music Hall of Fame.  Campbell revealed earlier this year that he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, a degenerative brain disease for which there is little mitigation and no cure.

The Band Perry dazzles in debut.

Newcomers The Band Perry, brothers Neil and Reid teaming with sister Kimberly, scored both Single and Song of the Year honors with their crossover hit “If I Die Young.”  The song topped the country charts over a year ago; this week it held top position on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary rankings.  “It just proved to be a song that had really long legs,” Kimberly told reporters backstage at the CMA’s. “We knew when it just lived in an acoustic and vocal that it was a special song that connected with so many people. So whether there were fiddles or an electric guitar on that bridge, it was something that meant something to folks and we were so honored to be part of that.”