As this year’s delayed awards season continues, CMT has announced the nominees for their awards and opened voting on said nominees.
The CMT Music Awards are country music’s only entirely fan-voted awards, and the 2021 awards will air Wednesday, June 9 at 8 p.m. ET on CMT with a five channel simulcast across MTV, MTV2, Logo, Paramount Network, and TV Land. Two of country music’s favorite stars, Kelsea Ballerini and Kane Brown, are set to host what is sure to be a fantastic show as it is truly an awards show all about fan choice. So, after checking out the full list of nominees below, make sure to head over to vote.cmt.com to help your favorite come out on top.
This year is special for the CMT Music Awards, as they feature 13 first-time nominees including Guyton, Dylan Scott, Hailey Whitters, HARDY, Lainey Wilson, Margo Price, Nathaniel Rateliff, Niko Moon, Noah Cyrus, Parmalee, Ryan Hurd, Tyler Hubbard and Willie Jones. Not only that, but the show also highlights some of this year’s special collaborations between country stars and those outside the genre, including talent like Elle King, Halsey, P!nk, John Legend and more. The two-and-a-half hour show will feature hosts Brown and Ballerini alongside a variety of yet-to-be-announced performers and presenters along with special presentations of nominated videos.
2021 CMT Music Award Nominees
Video of the Year*
Best video of the year; awarded to the artist (male, female, group/duo or collaboration).
Carrie Underwood with John Legend – “Hallelujah”
Dierks Bentley – “Gone”
Elle King and Miranda Lambert – “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)”
Ingrid Andress – “Lady Like”
Kane Brown – “Worldwide Beautiful”
Keith Urban with P!nk – “One Too Many”
Kelsea Ballerini – “hole in the bottle”
Kenny Chesney – “Knowing You”
Maren Morris – “Better Than We Found It”
Mickey Guyton – “Heaven Down Here”
Miranda Lambert – “Settling Down”
Ryan Hurd with Maren Morris – “Chasing After You”
Sam Hunt – “Breaking Up Was Easy In The 90’s”
Willie Jones – “American Dream”
Female Video of the Year
Best video by a female artist; awarded to the artist
Carly Pearce – “Next Girl”
Gabby Barrett – “The Good Ones”
Kelsea Ballerini – “hole in the bottle”
Maren Morris – “To Hell & Back”
Mickey Guyton – “Heaven Down Here”
Miranda Lambert – “Settling Down”
Male Video of the Year
Best video by a male artist; awarded to the artist
Chris Stapleton – “Starting Over”
Darius Rucker – “Beers and Sunshine”
Kane Brown – “Worship You”
Luke Bryan – “Down To One”
Luke Combs – “Lovin’ On You”
Thomas Rhett – “What’s Your Country Song”
Duo/Group Video of the Year
Best video by a duo or group; awarded to the artists
Brothers Osborne – “All Night”
Lady A – “Like A Lady”
Little Big Town – “Wine, Beer, Whiskey”
Old Dominion – “Never Be Sorry”
Parmalee and Blanco Brown – “Just The Way”
Runaway June – “We Were Rich”
Breakthrough Video of the Year
Best video from an artist’s major breakthrough album; awarded to the artist (male, female or group/duo)
Dylan Scott – “Nobody”
Hailey Whitters feat. Little Big Town – “Fillin’ My Cup”
HARDY – “Give Heaven Some Hell”
Lainey Wilson – “Things a Man Oughta Know”
Mickey Guyton – “Black Like Me”
Niko Moon – “GOOD TIME (Ride Along Video)”
Collaborative Video of the Year
Best video from a collaboration; awarded to the artists
Carrie Underwood with John Legend – “Hallelujah”
Chris Young and Kane Brown – “Famous Friends”
Elle King and Miranda Lambert – “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)”
Keith Urban with P!nk – “One Too Many”
Ryan Hurd with Maren Morris – “Chasing After You”
Tim McGraw and Tyler Hubbard – “Undivided”
CMT Performance of the Year
Musical performance on a television show, series or variety special on CMT; awarded to the artist (individual, group or duo)
From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Brooks & Dunn and Luke Combs “1, 2 Many”
From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Dan + Shay “I Should Probably Go To Bed”
From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Jimmie Allen and Noah Cyrus “This Is Us”
From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Kelsea Ballerini and Halsey “The Other Girl”
From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Little Big Town “Wine, Beer, Whiskey”
From CMT Crossroads – Nathaniel Rateliff and Margo Price “Twinkle Twinkle”
* Video of the year follows special voting procedures: Top five nominees, from the first round of voting, will be announced on June 1. Top 3 nominees, from the second round of voting, will be announced on June 8. Final voting will be determined via social media and announced as the final category during the live show.)
