Taylor Swift is taking the stage at the CMA Awards for the first time in 13 years, and she is doing it as a Toy Story 5 nominee. ABC and the Country Music Association announced Friday morning that Swift will perform at the 2026 CMA Awards on Wednesday, November 18, live on ABC and streaming on Disney+.
Swift is nominated for Single of the Year for “I Knew It, I Knew You,” her original song for Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story 5. It is her 26th career CMA nomination.
What She Might Sing
ABC and the CMA did not say what Swift will perform. The obvious guess is “I Knew It, I Knew You,” her nominated song. It was her first brand-new song in more than a decade marketed as a country single, and it went all the way to No. 1 at country radio.
Swift had already said she would attend the show after the nomination came in, but until Friday there was no word on whether she would do anything beyond sit in the audience.
A Long Time Coming
Her last performance on the CMA Awards was in 2013, when she received the Pinnacle Award and sang “Red” with Vince Gill and Alison Krauss. Her last time on the show at all was in 2016, when she surprised the crowd in the final minutes to present Entertainer of the Year to Garth Brooks.
This year also marks 20 years since her first appearance at the CMA Awards. She won the Horizon Award for best new artist in 2007, and two years later became the youngest artist ever to win the show’s top prize, Entertainer of the Year. After 1989, she moved her focus to pop, but she never cut ties with Nashville, and her return to the CMA stage comes on the back of a Pixar song.
Swift And Toy Story 5
Swift’s Toy Story 5 connection has even reached Disney’s parks. A Swift song turned up as a surprise on the Toy Story 5 soundtrack for Lilypad’s Jams, the retheme of Alien Swirling Saucers at Disney California Adventure.
A performance on ABC would put a Pixar song front and center on one of country music’s biggest nights, with Disney carrying the broadcast on both ABC and Disney+.
How To Watch
The 2026 CMA Awards air live Wednesday, November 18, on ABC, and stream on Disney+. Ella Langley is also among the night’s performers.
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