Blake Shelton will make his first appearance at the CMT Music Awards in five years when the show airs live on April 2 from Austin, Texas. Shelton, who won “Video of the Year” honors in 2018 for “I’ll Name the Dogs,” will perform his newest single, “No Body,” live on-stage.
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Hometown hero Cody Johnson from Sebastopol, Texas, will try to follow-up on last year’s powerhouse breakthrough performance at the awards show. In 2022, he walked away tied for most wins of the night, and dazzled audiences with his hit single “‘Til You Can’t.” The song is nominated for “CMT Performance of the Year.” This year, he returns to Austin’s Moody Center nominated for three more buckles, including the coveted “Video of the Year” for his newest single, “Human.”
Lainey Wilson, however, leads all artists with four 2023 nominations. In 2022, the Yellowstone star collab’d with Cole Swindell for a rain-soaked rendition of “Never Say Never.” This year, she hopes her new single, “Heart Like a Truck,” which she’ll perform live, nets her that coveted first belt buckle of her already-impressive career.
Other superstar artists performing at this year’s CMT Music Awards include Keith Urban, Carly Pearce, and co-hosts Kane Brown and Kelsea Ballerini.
Urban is vying for his 4th “Video of the Year” win. He is also nominated for his memorable show opening performance at the 2022 CMT Music Awards for “Wild Hearts.” Urban, the second-most nominated artist in CMT history (including 9 wins), will grace the stage for a “high-energy, can’t miss performance,” according to CMT.
The 2023 CMT Music Awards begins at 8 p.m. central time on CBS
Following last year’s memorable performance of “Diamondback,” the 2018 “Breakthrough Video of the Year” winner Carly Pearce will perform again this year. The 10x nominee is also up for “Female Video of the Year” and “CMT Performance of the Year.”
Kelsea Ballerini, who didn’t think just hosting the event would keep her busy enough, will also perform at this year’s ceremony. Fresh off a successful SNL appearance, too, Ballerini could win both “Female Video of the Year” and “Video of the Year” at this year’s show.
The event also promises a 25-time CMT Music Awards winner Carrie Underwood appearance; plus co-host Kane Brown taking the stage with his wife, Berklee College of Music-trained vocalist Katelyn, to perform their popular duet duet, “Thank God.” Brown also collected three nominations, himself, tied with Jelly Roll and the aforementioned Johnson for third-most of the evening.
Country music fans can vote for their favorites across 9 categories by visiting vote.cmt.com through March 27th. Voting for the highly-coveted “Video of the Year” category remains active even after the show begins. The CMT Music Awards broadcasts live on CBS; streamers can also watch live and on-demand via Paramount+ from 8-11 p.m. central time.