Listen up country music fans, the 2021 CMT Music Awards are back and better than ever come June 9. On Wednesday, May 12, CMT announced that Kane Brown and Kelsea Ballerini will be teaming up to host the star-studded night.

“Kelsea and Kane are two of the brightest, most sought-after stars in country music today and we’re thrilled to welcome them both as hosts of the 2021CMT Music Awards,” shared a CMT producer in a recent statement. “This dynamic duo reflects the show’s revitalized energy as live music returns to center stage in a night filled with incredible outdoor performances, cross-genre collaborations, and a few surprises!”

It’s no surprise that CMT has hand-picked Kane and Kelsea to bring the summer heat during the weekday event, as they are known to dominate the stage with their country-pop bangers. In fact, Kane’s recent performance of “Famous Friends” with Chris Young at the 2021 ACM Awards proves that he is worthy of this outstanding honor.

Brown is a two-time CMT Award winner, after receiving “Male Video Award” in 2019 for “Lose It” and “Collaborative Video” in 2018 for “What Ifs.” However, our girl Kelsea Ballerini has not scored herself a CMT Award yet, but she is no stranger to the CMT stage. During the socially distanced award show last year, she performed “The Other Girl” with Halsey.

“I’m so excited to be hosting the 2021 CMT Music Awards with Kane,” says the powerhouse country singer. “The CMT Awards are so special because they are truly fan-voted. Following a year plus where we have not been able to be with the fans and share music together, makes this night even more special.”

Once the news leaked about the dynamic duo hitting the CMT stage together, Kane couldn’t
Wait to share his excitement and love for The CMT Music Awards. “I loved getting a chance to host the CMT Music Awards last year and I’m excited to be back this year with Kelsea. The CMT Music Awards are special to me – it’s the first industry award I won and getting on that stage was an amazing feeling. I love that the fans get to have their voices heard as we celebrate the best in country music,” Kane shared in a statement.

If you take a trip down memory lane and think about all the recent country music award shows, you might realize one common trend – black and white host pairings. Yes, we are finally seeing representation within the country music scene! Less than two months ago, we witnessed Keith Urban and Mickey Guyton slay as co-hosts at the 2021 ACM Awards, In 2020 we watched Darius Rucker and Reba McEntire come together for the CMA Awards, and at the 2020 CMT Awards on October 21, Kane Brown co-hosted the COVID-friendly show with Ashley McBryde and Sarah Hyland.

Hopefully, this is a sign that the Nashville music scene is slowly becoming more welcoming and accepting of individuals from different backgrounds.

The list of nominations for the 2021 CMT Awards will be dropping on Thursday, May 13.

The 2021 CMT Music Awards will air Wednesday, June 9th @ 8/7c on CMT, MTV, MTV2, Logo, Paramount Network and TV Land.

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