Country Music Television (CMT) Awards Show co-host Kelsea Ballerini announced that the CMT Music Awards would be held in Austin next year during Carrie Underwood’s last concert in Austin.
The show will air on April 2, 2023, at Moody Center. It will be the first-ever CMT Awards Show hosted by Texas. Typically, the show is held in Nashville, Tennessee, which is often considered the country music capital of the world.
CEO of Nashville Convention and Visitor’s Corp., Butch Spyridon, told the Nashville Business Journal that it would not be held in Nashville next year because organizers could not find a venue there.
It is harder to find venues in early April, according to Spyridon. Additional challenges arise as the organizers need the venue for a week, for it takes a very long time to set up. Spyridon said he is working hard to bring the awards show back to Nashville in the coming years.
The upcoming event in Austin will feature Ballerini as a co-host for the third year in a row.
The executive producers of the awards show expressed excitement to announce the venue change during a Carrie Underwood concert, especially considering the fact that the musician is their “most awarded artist.”
The vice president of programming at Moody Center, Michael Owens, expressed gratitude for “CMT’s commitment to Austin.” He added, “We couldn’t be more grateful and excited to host them next year.”
The event at Moody Center has been in the works for two years. The show will air on CBS and be available to stream and access on-demand on Paramount+.