Pop Artists Compete For Top CMT Music Awards Honors

CMT just revealed this year’s nominees for the CMT Music Awards, which will be hosted by Little Big Town on Wednesday, June 6.

For the first time, this year’s top category, Video of the Year, features several pop artists vying for the win. Among the nominees are Bebe Rexha (ft. Florida Georgia Line) for “Meant To Be,” Justin Timberlake ft. Chris Stapleton for “Say Something,” and Ludacris, who contributed to Carrie Underwood‘s “The Champion.” They join fellow Video of the Year nominees Blake Shelton, Brett Young, Brothers Osborne, Dan+Shay, Jason Aldean, Kane Brown, Lauren Alaina, Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Combs, and Thomas Rhett.

Carrie Underwood, who holds the title of most CMT Music Awards wins with 17, looks to defend her title against superstars Florida Georgia Line and Jason Aldean, who are tied with Underwood for the most nominations this year with four each. Other artists with multiple nominations include Little Big Town (3), Chris Stapleton (3), Lauren Alaina (3), Thomas Rhett (3), Bebe Rexha (2), Blake Shelton (2), Brothers Osborne (2), Carly Pearce (2), Dan + Shay (2), Danielle Bradbery(2), Justin Timberlake (2), Kane Brown (2), Keith Urban (2), Kelsea Ballerini (2), Lady Antebellum (2), LANco (2), Ludacris (2) and Maren Morris (2).

Artists earning their very first CMT Music Awards nominations include a mix of pop, rock and country artists, including Andra Day, Backstreet Boys, Bebe Rexha, Carly Pearce, Common, Derek Trucks, Devin Dawson, High Valley, Justin Timberlake, LANco, Ludacris, Russell Dickerson, Walker Hayes, and Earth, Wind & Fire.

Voting for the CMT Music Awards is now open at cmt.com.

2018 CMT Music Awards Nominations:

Video of the Year
Best video of the year; awarded to the artist (male, female, group/duo or collaboration) and the video director. Final nominees announced the morning of the show, with final voting held on Twitter during the live telecast.

Bebe Rexha feat. Florida Georgia Line, “Meant To Be”
Blake Shelton, “I’ll Name The Dogs”
Brett Young, “Mercy”
Brothers Osborne, “It Ain’t My Fault”
Carrie Underwood feat. Ludacris, “The Champion”
Dan + Shay, “Tequila”
Jason Aldean, “You Make It Easy”
Justin Timberlake feat. Chris Stapleton, “Say Something”
Kane Brown feat. Lauren Alaina, “What Ifs”
Kelsea Ballerini, “Legends”
Luke Combs, “When It Rains It Pours”
Thomas Rhett, “Marry Me”

Male Video of the Year
Best video by a male artist; awarded to the artist

Blake Shelton, “I’ll Name The Dogs”
Dustin Lynch, “Small Town Boy”
Jason Aldean, “You Make It Easy”
Jon Pardi, “Heartache On The Dance Floor”
Luke Bryan, “Light It Up”
Thomas Rhett, “Marry Me”

Female Video of the Year
Best video by a female artist; awarded to the artist

Carly Pearce, “Every Little Thing”
Carrie Underwood feat. Ludacris, “The Champion”
Kelsea Ballerini, “Legends”
Lauren Alaina, “Doin’ Fine”
Maren Morris, “I Could Use A Love Song”
Miranda Lambert, “Tin Man” From 2017 ACM Awards

Duo Video of the Year
Best video by a duo; awarded to the artists

Big & Rich, “California”
Brothers Osborne, “It Ain’t My Fault”
Dan + Shay, “Tequila”
Florida Georgia Line, “Smooth”
High Valley, “She’s With Me”
Tim McGraw & Faith Hill, “Speak To A Girl”

Group Video of the Year
Best video by a group; awarded to the artists

Lady Antebellum, “You Look Good”
LANco, “Greatest Love Story”
Little Big Town, “When Someone Stops Loving You”
Midland, “Make A Little”
Old Dominion, “No Such Thing As A Broken Heart”
Rascal Flatts, “Yours If You Want It”
Zac Brown Band, “My Old Man”

Breakthrough Video of the Year
Best video from an artist’s major breakthrough album; awarded to the artist (male, female or group/duo)

Carly Pearce, “Every Little Thing”
Danielle Bradbery, “Sway”
Devin Dawson, “All On Me”
LANco, “Greatest Love Story”
Russell Dickerson, “Yours”
Walker Hayes, “You Broke Up With Me”

Collaborative Video of the Year
Best video from a collaboration; awarded to the artists

Bebe Rexha feat. Florida Georgia Line, “Meant To Be”
Carrie Underwood feat. Ludacris, “The Champion”
Cole Swindell feat. Dierks Bentley, “Flatliner”
Justin Timberlake feat. Chris Stapleton, “Say Something”
Kane Brown feat. Lauren Alaina, “What Ifs”
Thomas Rhett feat. Maren Morris, “Craving You”

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)

Andra Day, Common, Little Big Town, Lee Ann Womack and Danielle Bradbery, “Stand Up For Something” (From 2017 CMT Artists of the Year)
Backstreet Boys and Florida Georgia Line, “Everybody” (From CMT Crossroads)
Charles Kelley, Jason Aldean, Darius Rucker and Derek Trucks, “Midnight Rider” (From 2017 CMT Music Awards)
Earth, Wind & Fire and Lady Antebellum, “September” (From CMT Crossroads)
Jason Aldean, Keith Urban, Chris Stapleton and Little Big Town, “I Won’t Back Down” (From 2017 CMT Artists of the Year)
Keith Urban feat. Carrie Underwood, “The Fighter” (From 2017 CMT Music Awards)

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Jessica Nicholson

Jessica Nicholson serves as the Managing Editor for MusicRow magazine. Her previous music journalism experience includes work with Country Weekly magazine and Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) magazine. She holds a BBA degree in Music Business and Marketing from Belmont University. She welcomes your feedback at jnicholson@musicrow.com.

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