Another round down, another record number of votes. We’re through the Sweet Sixteen in our 2026 Whiskey Riff Madness tournament, and in each round so far we’ve set a record for most votes in a single round in the history of Whiskey Riff Madness. But despite nearly 20,000 ballots being case in the last round, we still had three matchups that were settled by less than 1,000 votes – and one that was settled by less than 200. In case you’re just getting caught up, this year we took 64 artists from every corner of country music, from mainstream to Texas country to red dirt to Appalachia and everything in between, and we’re letting you vote for your favorite. We based the seeding on monthly Spotify listeners, which resulted in some fan favorites being seeded towards the bottom of the bracket. As a result, it’s truly been anybody’s game throughout the tournament. We saw #16-seed Colby Acuff topple powerhouse #1-seed Chris Stapleton thanks to an absolutely masterful meme campaign, and in the Round of 32 two #1-seeds fell, with scrappy up-and-comer out of Texas, Hudson Westbrook, taking down Morgan Wallen while stadium headliner Zach Bryan fell to rising superstar Zach Top. So that brought us to the Sweet Sixteen, with Luke Combs as the only #1-seed left standing and some tough matchups between fan-favorite artists. There were only a couple of blowouts in this past round. Despite taking down the overall #1-seed in the bracket, #8-seed Hudson Westbrook was no match for #12-seed Cody Jinks, who raked in 75% of the vote. And Turnpike Troubadours continue to dominate their matchups, even against powerhouse Colter Wall, with Turnpike taking home 65% of the vote. We also saw our final #1-seed fall, as Sturgill Simpson sailed to victory over Luke Combs with 61% of the vote, which was the same margin of victory for #6-seed Whiskey Myers over powerhouse #2-seed Ella Langley. The second-highest vote getter of the round though, was none other than Mr. March himself, Colby Acuff, who showed no mercy in his meme war against the Red Clay Strays and managed to once again keep the Cinderella run alive with nearly 68% of the vote. If you didn’t believe in miracles before, it’s time to start. Country Music Madness just got a whole lot more interesting. Get your shirts NOW @ColbyAcuff @whiskeyriffshop https://t.co/Nlb3AfyZAC pic.twitter.com/rijXFZ60rM — Whiskey Riff (@WhiskeyRiff) March 25, 2026 Then there were the nail biters, with several matchups going back and forth the entire round. #3-seed Cody Johnson has been strong the entire tournament, and jumped out to an early lead over #7-seed Treaty Oak Revival. But the votes rained down like beer during “Boomtown” and by the time the voting ended, Treaty Oak came out on top with just 51% of the vote. Another matchup that was neck and neck the entire round was #15-seed Shane Smith & the Saints taking on #3-seed Tyler Childers. When I checked in yesterday afternoon it looked like Childers had it locked up, but a massive push by Shane Smith & the Saints last night sent them over the finish line, taking down Tyler Childers by less than 1,000 votes. The closest matchup came as #13-seed Charles Wesley Godwin remained within striking distance of #8-seed Zach Top the entire round. But at the end of the day it wasn’t quite enough, with Zach Top coming out ahead (I couldn’t make myself say “on top”) by just around 200 votes TOTAL – out of nearly 20,000 cast. And with that, the field is set for what’s sure to be a hardfought Elite Eight. Here’s the bracket so far: And here’s a closer look at each region. South East Midwest West Brutal matchups. Colby Acuff has looked unbeatable so far, but Whiskey Myers fans always show up big in our tournaments. And I’m sure there’s quite a bit of overlap in Sturgill Simpson fans and Turnpike Troubadours fans, so who will they pick? I guess we’ll find out. So with that said, voting is open NOW to send your favorite artists to the Final Four. You can vote at the link HERE or using the form below. We’re getting down to the wire so this will be a quick round: Voting in the Elite Eight ends TOMORROW, Tuesday, March 31 at 11:59 pm central time, and you can vote as many times as you’d like. So rally the fanbases for your favorite artists, because as we saw in the last round, every single vote counts. Loading…The post WHISKEY RIFF MADNESS 2026: Vote NOW To Send Your Favorite Artists To The Final Four first appeared on Whiskey Riff.