Month: April 2023

Backstage at the 2023 CMT Music Awards in Austin, the theme seemed to be both gratitude and disbelief. 

Newcomer Megan Moroney was so overcome she struggled to remember what month it is, after winning Breakthrough Female Video of the Year for her current hit, “Tennessee Orange.” Lainey Wilson was similarly perplexed, after taking home trophies for Collaborative Video of the Year for “wait in the truck” with HARDY, and simultaneously winning Female Video for “Heart Like a Truck,” the very day it climbed to #1 on the country chart. 

Jelly Roll was the night’s big winner, declaring he was ready to do some serious partying after grabbing three trophies for his breakthrough hit, “Son of a Sinner.”

Host Kane Brown and wife Katelyn took home the night’s biggest honor, Video of the Year, for their chart-topping first duet, “Thank God.” The superstar said he felt like he was getting to live his own career again, as he gets to share in his significant other’s first success as a recording artist. 

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The CMT Music Awards, which is country music’s only entirely fan-voted awards show, aired live Sunday night from Austin, Texas, hosted for the third time by Kelsea Ballerini and Kane Brown.

Ballerini opened the show with an emotional tribute to the victims of the Nashville shooting, which occurred on March 27.

“Tonight’s broadcast is dedicated to the ever growing list of families, friends, survivors, witnesses, and first responders whose lives continue to forever be changed by gun violence,” she said during the speech.

The CMT’s then kicked off with back-to-back performances, starting with Blake Shelton and his hit “No Body,” followed by Tyler Hubbard‘s “Dancin’ in the County,” and Gary Clark Jr., who channeled Stevie Ray Vaughan in a tribute to the legendary Texas six-string player.

Jelly Roll, a first time CMT nominee and winner of all three awards he was nominated for including Male Video of the Year, also hit the stage to perform his song “Need a Favor” and delivered an inspiring message during his acceptance speech.

“I don’t know what you’re going through and I don’t know what you’ve been through but I know you can overcome it,” he said. “I promise you, you can.”

Ballerini made a statement of support for the LGBTQ+ community when she hit the stage with “If You Go Down (I'm Goin' Down Too),” bringing out some stars from the RuPaul’s Drag Race series.

Other performers of the night included Carly Pearce, Alanis Morissette, Lainey Wilson, Ingrid Andress, Carrie Underwood, Gwen Stefani, and Darius Rucker.

Shania Twain was honored with the CMT Equal Play Award, which recognizes an artist who is an advocate for elevating diverse and underrepresented voices in country music, and Kane Brown and his wife Katelyn took home Video of the Year for their song “Thank God.”

Closing out the star-studded night was a tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd with Billy Gibbons, Chuck Leavell, Cody Johnson, Paul Rodgers, Slash, and Warren Haynes. LeAnn Rimes and Wynonna Judd also joined in the tribute as honorary “Honkettes.”

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The 2023 CMT Music Awards, co-hosted by Kelsea Ballerini and Kane Brown, aired live from Austin, Texas on CBS Sunday night.

Here are the winners:

VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Kane Brown & Katelyn Brown, “Thank God”

FEMALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Lainey Wilson, “Heart Like a Truck”

MALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Jelly Roll, “Son Of A Sinner”

GROUP/DUO VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Zac Brown Band, “Out in the Middle”

BREAKTHROUGH FEMALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Megan Moroney, “Tennessee Orange”

BREAKTHROUGH MALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Jelly Roll, “Son of a Sinner”

COLLABORATIVE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson, “wait in the truck”

CMT PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
Cody Johnson, “Til You Can't” (from 2022 CMT MUSIC AWARDS)

CMT DIGITAL-FIRST PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
Jelly Roll, “Son of a Sinner” (from CMT All Access)

EQUAL PLAY AWARD
Shania Twain

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