Miranda Lambert and Maren Morris Lead 2021 CMT Music Awards Nominees

Nominees for the 2021 CMT Music Awards were revealed on Thursday (May 13) and Miranda Lambert and Maren Morris are…

Lauren Jo Black

| Posted on

May 13, 2021

10:02 am

Miranda Lambert; Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images for Essential Broadcast Media, Maren Morris; Photo by Andrew Wendowski

Nominees for the 2021 CMT Music Awards were revealed on Thursday (May 13) and Miranda Lambert and Maren Morris are tied for the most nominations.

Lambert and Morris lead the pack with four nominations each, including two nods in the Video of the Year category. CMT Music Awards co-hosts, Kelsea Ballerini and Kane Brown, plus Little Big Town and Mickey Guyton are tied with three nominations each.

The fan-voted awards show includes a whopping 13 first-time nominees including Guyton, Dylan Scott, Hailey Whitters, HARDY, Lainey Wilson, Margo Price, Nathaniel Rateliff, Niko Moon, Noah Cyrus, Parmalee, Ryan Hurd, Tyler Hubbard and Willie Jones.

Ballerini and Brown will co-host the show, airing Wednesday, June 9th at 8:00PM ET/7:00PM CT on CMT, with a five channel simulcast across MTV, MTV2, Logo, Paramount Network and TV Land.

Performers and presenters will be announced at a later date. Each winner is selected by the fans, with voting now open at vote.cmt.com.

The full list of nominees can be viewed below.

2021 CMT Music Awards Nominees

VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video of the year; awarded to the artist (male, female, group/duo or collaboration). Top five nominees, from the first round of voting, will be announced on June 1. Top 3 nominees, from the second round of voting, will be announced on June 8. Final voting will be determined via social media and announced as the final category during the live show.

• Carrie Underwood with John Legend – “Hallelujah”
• Dierks Bentley – “Gone”
• Elle King and Miranda Lambert – “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)”
• Ingrid Andress – “Lady Like”
• Kane Brown – “Worldwide Beautiful”
• Keith Urban with P!nk – “One Too Many”
• Kelsea Ballerini – “hole in the bottle”
• Kenny Chesney – “Knowing You”
• Maren Morris – “Better Than We Found It”
• Mickey Guyton – “Heaven Down Here”
• Miranda Lambert – “Settling Down”
• Ryan Hurd with Maren Morris – “Chasing After You”
• Sam Hunt – “Breaking Up Was Easy In The 90’s”
• Willie Jones – “American Dream”

FEMALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video by a female artist; awarded to the artist

• Carly Pearce – “Next Girl”
• Gabby Barrett – “The Good Ones”
• Kelsea Ballerini – “hole in the bottle”
• Maren Morris – “To Hell & Back”
• Mickey Guyton – “Heaven Down Here”
• Miranda Lambert – “Settling Down”

MALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video by a male artist; awarded to the artist

• Chris Stapleton – “Starting Over”
• Darius Rucker – “Beers and Sunshine”
• Kane Brown – “Worship You”
• Luke Bryan – “Down To One”
• Luke Combs – “Lovin’ On You”
• Thomas Rhett – “What’s Your Country Song”

DUO/GROUP VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video by a duo or group; awarded to the artists

• Brothers Osborne – “All Night”
• Lady A – “Like A Lady”
• Little Big Town – “Wine, Beer, Whiskey”
• Old Dominion – “Never Be Sorry”
• Parmalee and Blanco Brown – “Just The Way”
• Runaway June – “We Were Rich”

BREAKTHROUGH VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video from an artist’s major breakthrough album; awarded to the artist (male, female or group/duo)

• Dylan Scott – “Nobody”
• Hailey Whitters feat. Little Big Town – “Fillin’ My Cup”
• HARDY – “Give Heaven Some Hell”
• Lainey Wilson – “Things a Man Oughta Know”
• Mickey Guyton – “Black Like Me”
• Niko Moon – “GOOD TIME (Ride Along Video)”

COLLABORATIVE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video from a collaboration; awarded to the artists

• Carrie Underwood with John Legend – “Hallelujah”
• Chris Young and Kane Brown – “Famous Friends”
• Elle King and Miranda Lambert – “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)”
• Keith Urban with P!nk – “One Too Many”
• Ryan Hurd with Maren Morris – “Chasing After You”
• Tim McGraw and Tyler Hubbard – “Undivided”

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)

• From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Brooks & Dunn and Luke Combs “1, 2 Many”
• From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Dan + Shay “I Should Probably Go To Bed”
• From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Jimmie Allen and Noah Cyrus “This Is Us”
• From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Kelsea Ballerini and Halsey “The Other Girl”
• From the 2020 CMT Music Awards – Little Big Town “Wine, Beer, Whiskey”
• From CMT Crossroads – Nathaniel Rateliff and Margo Price “Twinkle Twinkle”

For more information, visit CMT.com, follow @CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube, use hashtag #CMTawards and ‘like’ the CMT Music Awards on Facebook.

Written by

Lauren Jo Black

Lauren Jo Black is a longtime country music journalist, editor, host, and media personality whose work has helped shape the conversation around country music for nearly two decades. As the current Editor-in-Chief of Country Now, she has become one of the genre’s most respected voices, interviewing hundreds of country music’s biggest stars, including Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Randy Travis, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, and countless others. Over the course of her career, Black’s written work and interviews have reached billions of country music fans worldwide. A 2009 graduate of the University of Central Florida, Black began her career by founding Country Music Is Love, one of country music’s earliest independent digital publications, which she later sold to a major record label in 2015 before it was rebranded as Sounds Like Nashville. She then served as the publication’s Editor-in-Chief for more than two years. Her work has also appeared in Forbes, and she previously served as the Country Music Expert for Answers.com. Widely recognized for her expertise, Black has appeared as a featured guest on The Bobby Bones Show, BobbyCast, and Scripps News Morning Rush, providing insight on country music’s biggest moments. She has also hosted Country Now Live, a concert series featuring performances from artists including Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Riley Green, Jordan Davis, Dustin Lynch, Gabby Barrett, Brett Young, Jon Pardi, Kip Moore, Chris Young, and more. The series has welcomed thousands of fans in person while reaching millions more online. In addition, she hosted Connect With Country Now, a weekly interview series featuring conversations with rising country stars. Throughout her career, Black has earned a reputation for discovering and championing artists long before they become household names. She has covered Luke Bryan since the early days of his career, beginning when he was writing songs for other artists, including Billy Currington’s No. 1 hit “Good Directions,” before stepping into the spotlight with his debut single, “All My Friends Say” and eventually becoming one of biggest names in music. She also gave Megan Moroney her first opportunity to walk a major red carpet as Country Now’s official guest correspondent at the 2022 CMA Awards. An interview she conducted in 2018 for Forbes.com with Luke Combs that inspired his multi-week No. 1 hit, “Doin’ This.” She has also hosted stages at CMA Fest, moderated an industry panel at Country Radio Seminar, and helped lead important conversations about the evolving landscape of country music media. Beyond journalism, Black has also used her platform to support charitable causes and highlight organizations making an impact. Through Country Now Live, she has helped raise awareness and support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, while also advocating for animal rescue through Country Now’s Pupdate series, spotlighting organizations including MuttNation Foundation, Wags & Walks, and Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue. Black has been recognized as one of Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. She is a longtime member of both the Country Music Association (CMA) and the Academy of Country Music (ACM). After nearly 20 years covering country music, Lauren Jo Black has spent her career telling the stories behind the artists, songs, and moments that have shaped the genre. Her first-ever book, Country Music Forever: An A-to-Z Celebration of Icons, Songs and Stories, brings that same passion and firsthand knowledge to the page, celebrating not only the legendary artists and timeless songs that have become the soundtrack to generations of fans, but also the places, traditions, and cultural moments that have made country music one of the most beloved genres around the world.