Kelsea Ballerini Wants Dasha To Teach Her The Viral ‘Austin’ Dance

Kelsea Ballerini gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at her preparations for the upcoming CMT Music Awards during a recent livestream on social media. While discussing some of the performances she’s most looking forward to seeing, the female songstress highlighted viral sensation Dasha who is set to bring her breakout hit, “Austin” to the Moody Center stage.

“Austin” has been taking over the internet with its empowering and catchy lyrics that have been paired with an accompanying line dance that Dasha choreographed herself. Over 600k videos have been made on social media using the sound and dance moves, and now Ballerini is hoping to join in on the trend.

 “I’m really, really excited about Dasha on the show. I wonder if she’ll teach me the ‘Austin’ dance for TikTok because I feel like that would give me some TikTok cred,” she joked before adding, “I would just feel cool to know that.”

@dasha

i love u guys so much, half a million streams in the past 24 hours on Austin alone

♬ Austin – Dasha

On Sunday, April 7, Dasha will make her award show debut with a performance of “Austin,” which will also serve as a fitting tribute to the city that is once again hosting the CMT Music Awards. 

Several New Songs Will Debut At The CMT Awards

Ballerini revealed she has already caught a glimpse into some of the star-studded performances as rehearsals are already underway. Other on-stage appearances the Knoxville, TN native mentioned during her livestream include Sugarland’s highly anticipated reunion. The duo will join forces with the band Little Big Town to debut a brand-new collaboration live during the show. 

“It’s giving ‘Life In A Northern Town’ 2.0,” she said in reference to the cover Sugarland, Little Big Town and Jake Owen sang together during the 2008 CMT Music Awards. 

Along with hosting, Kelsea Ballerini will also be performing the reimagined version of her debut single “Love Me Like You Mean It” for the first time in honor of it being 10 years since she released the original track.

“ten years later WE STILL DONT HAVE TIME TO WASTE ON THE BOYS THAT ARE PLAYING THE GAMES,” she wrote on Instagram, announcing that the reimagined track will be dropping at midnight tonight, April 4. 

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A post shared by Kelsea Ballerini (@kelseaballerini)

Ballerini Says She Will Have “A Lot Of Outfit Changes”

Near the end of the livestream, the “Subject To Change” singer also gave a bit of insight into what to expect from her wardrobe during the show. She plans to have “a lot of outfit changes” to match the “celebratory” energy of the night. 

“My favorite thing about the CMT Awards always, is A) they are fan-voted, but B) they also just feel celebratory and like a party so I want the looks to reflect that too and have a little fun with it.”

Along with Kelsea Ballerini, Dasha, Sugarland, and Little Big Town, other confirmed performers include Bailey Zimmerman, Cody Johnson, Jelly Roll, Keith Urban, Lainey Wilson, Megan Moroney, NEEDTOBREATHE + Jordan Davis, Old Dominion, Sam Hunt, and Trisha Yearwood.

The 2024 CMT Music Awards will take place at Austin, Texas’ Moody Center on Sunday, April 7th (8:00-11:00 PM ET/PT), on the CBS Television Network and available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+.*