For her fourth turn hosting the CMT Music Awards, Kelsea Ballerini is doing something different. After three years of co-hosting the show with Kane Brown, Ballerini will host the 2024 awards ceremony, which will air live from the Moody Center in Austin, Texas on CBS on April 7, solo.
“It’s definitely new grounds for me,” said Ballerini. “But it’s my fourth year hosting, so I feel like I’ve learned a lot. And the good thing about CMTs is there’s such a light energy, so there’s not a pressure that I feel to be perfect. I just want to be fun, honor the night, and help people have a good time.”
Ballerini said she’s not nervous about taking on hosting duties all alone but may invite some friends to join her on stage. “It’s really a big reunion and everyone wants to hang out,” she said, “so I might just ask for some help where I can get it.”
In 2023, Ballerini addressed gun violence during the awards show and performed her song “If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too)” with four drag queens, a month after the signing of Senate Bill 3 and House Bill 9 into law, known as the “drag ban,” in Tennessee.
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“I think when you have a platform, especially as a host, especially on a show having such a big platform on CBS and CMT, you have a responsibility to address things that matter,” said Ballerini. “For me, both of those statements last year really mattered to me. I just think it’s really important to have moments in every program, whether it be CMTs or any show where people are expressing their wants, for everyone to feel seen and safe.”
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Along with hosting the CMT Awards, Ballerini is also scheduled to perform during the show. “There’s something about this show, in particular, that feels like a summer party,” said Ballerini. “Everyone backstage is ‘cheers’-ing each other and running into each other’s dressing rooms. That’s the energy that I want to bring on screen and into the room.”
Ballerini added, “I can tell you from the bottom of my heart I have no idea when I’m going to be singing, but I will be singing something.”
Following her fourth album Subject to Change in 2022, Ballerini released the EP Rolling Up the Welcome Mat in 2023, which picked up a CMA nomination for Album of the Year and a Grammy nom for Best Country Album.
Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
