The highly anticipated annual celebration of country music, hosted by Kelsea Ballerini, unfolded live on CBS from the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, while also streaming on Paramount+.
Kelsea Ballerini
This year’s nominations saw prominent names like Ballerini, Cody Johnson, Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson, and Megan Moroney leading the pack with three nods each. Notable first-time nominees included Amber Riley, Ashley Cooke, Bret Michaels, Chayce Beckham, Hozier, Koe Wetzel, Stephen Wilson Jr., Tyler Childers, Warren Zeiders, and Zach Bryan.
A star-studded lineup of performers graced the stage, featuring Jason Aldean, Dasha, Ballerini, Johnson, Wilson, Jelly Roll, Moroney, Bailey Zimmerman, Keith Urban, Little Big Town + Sugarland, NEEDTOBREATHE + Jordan Davis, Sam Hunt, Old Dominion featuring Moroney, and Parker McCollum featuring Brittney Spencer.
In a poignant tribute, Wilson joined forces with Brooks & Dunn and Sammy Hagar to honor the late Toby Keith, who passed away from stomach cancer earlier this year at the age of 62. Trisha Yearwood captivated the audience with her performance of “Put It in a Song” and received the inaugural June Carter Cash Humanitarian Award, as exclusively revealed by PEOPLE last month.
For Ballerini, who has previously co-hosted the CMT Music Awards three times, this year marked her debut as the sole emcee. Reflecting on the experience, she shared, “It’s definitely new grounds for me… I just want to be fun, honor the night and help people have a good time.”.
