BREAKING: Sugarland To Reunite At 2024 CMT Music Awards
The duo will take the stage with Little Big Town for a world premiere performance.
Sugarland; Photo Provided
Sugarland, the award-winning country duo composed of Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush, will reunite at the upcoming 2024 CMT Music Awards.
Sugarland Will Perform With Little Big Town At The CMT Music Awards
Their long-awaited reunion will take place as part of a performance with Little Big Town. The artists will join forces for a world premiere performance, debuting a brand-new collaboration live during the show.
This marks Sugarland’s first CMT performance together since 2011. The duo has a long history with CMT, including 19 total CMT Music Awards nominations and a total of four wins. They took home their first belt buckle for “Breakthrough Video of the Year” with their breakout hit “Baby Girl” in 2005.
In 2020, Nettles received the CMT Equal Play Award, commemorating her advocacy for women, the LGBTQ+ community, and other underrepresented groups within the music industry.
The History Of Sugarland
Founded in 2002, Sugarland dominated the country music scene for several years, beginning with the release of “Baby Girl” in 2004. A run of successful singles included “Something More,” “Want To,” “Settlin’,” “Already Gone,” “Stay,” “Stuck Like Glue,” and more.
At the height of their career, Sugarland headlined several tours and also toured with artists such as Kenny Chesney and Keith Urban.
The Grammy, CMA and ACM Award-winning duo took some time off in 2012. During this time, Nettles was on maternity leave and Bush explored a solo release. Nettles’ solo project followed in 2012, releasing “That Girl” in a newly signed deal with Mercury Records.
Both artists continued to dabble in the solo space until 2017 when they reunited at the CMA Awards. At the time, they announced that they were working on new music together and released the single “Still The Same” shortly after. They delivered their first performance together in nearly five years during Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin Eve in 2018 and went on to perform overseas during the C2C Festival.
2018 brought the release of their new album, Bigger, which featured the song “Babe,” written by Taylor Swift. It became a hit for the duo and was later certified Gold by the RIAA.
A new musical chapter began for Sugarland in 2019 when it was revealed that they ended their relationship with UMG Nashville and signed with Big Machine Records.
“I am so proud to continue my association with Scott Borchetta and Big Machine Records,” Nettles shared in a statement at the time. “Scott has been there for Sugarland since our very first release, ‘Baby Girl,’ and continues to be our biggest champion when it comes to our records. We are so excited about all that’s ahead!”
“Sugarland has always been a band with a mission to spread our message as far as we can into every corner of the world and I can imagine no better partner or bigger machine than Scott Borchetta and BMLG,” Bush added.
2020 Tour Was Scraped Due To COVID
In 2020, the duo was set to embark on a 25+ date tour, however, those plans were scraped due to the pandemic. Upon the tour announcement Nettles and Bush teased “fresh music” on the way, however, fans never had the chance to hear what they had been working on.
Since 2020, Bush has spent time working on solo projects as well as producing breakout star Megan Moroney. Nettles was tapped to host Farmer Wants A Wife and previously appeared in The Righteous Gemstones. She recently landed a role in Blumhouse TV’s The Bondsman, an action-filled horror series for Amazon’s Prime Video.
Who Is Performing At The CMT Music Awards?
Sugarland’s upcoming CMT Music Awards performance with Little Big Town will certainly be a highlight of the show. Other confirmed performers include Bailey Zimmerman, Cody Johnson, Jelly Roll, Keith Urban, Kelsea Ballerini, Lainey Wilson, Megan Moroney, NEEDTOBREATHE + Jordan Davis, Old Dominion, Sam Hunt and Trisha Yearwood.
Hosted by Ballerini, 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+.*
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.
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