Kelsea Ballerini is taking up the 2024 CMT Awards stage — however not each half might be stay.
Ballerini, 30, will host the Sunday, April 7, awards ceremony stay from Austin’s Moody Middle for the fourth time. She may even carry out one among her largest hits, albeit pre-recorded.
“I’m pre-taping my efficiency in a couple of days since I’m additionally internet hosting,” Ballerini quipped by way of Instagram Story on Monday, April 1, throughout a fan Q&A session. [Hosting] is sort of a enjoyable model of working round like a headless rooster. The remaining is stay, babyyy!”
The Grammy nominee has emceed the CMT Awards since 2021, alongside the likes of Kane Brown and Anthony Mackie. Sunday is the primary time she’s going to deal with internet hosting solo.
Kelsea Ballerini is a shiny woman in a glitzy world! By means of the years, the songstress has dazzled Us along with her eye-catching type. The “Dibs” singer has grow to be recognized for her vibrant trend statements that embrace sequin robes, crystal-covered blazers and extra. Ballerini took over New York Style Week in February 2023, attending a number of exhibits dressed […]
“I couldn’t be extra excited to be again for my 4th 12 months with my CMT household to host this 12 months’s CMT Music Awards in Austin, TX,” Ballerini mentioned in a February assertion. “Internet hosting an awards present that celebrates the music that the followers love most has been an honor and I do know this 12 months might be one other unforgettable evening.”
Kelsea Ballerini attends the CMT 2024 Host Junket at Moody Middle on April 3, 2024 in Austin, Texas. Catherine Powell/Getty Photos for CMT
She can also be nominated for 2 trophies, Video of the Yr and CMT Efficiency of the Yr, for her music “If You Go Down (I’m Going Down Too).”
Ultimately 12 months’s ceremony, Ballerini carried out “If You Go Down (I’m Going Down Too)” alongside a bunch of drag queens. The quantity occurred weeks after Tennessee legislators — who govern Ballerini’s residence state — launched a invoice that may ban public “grownup cabaret performances” in entrance of kids.
“I really like efficiency and I really like self-expression and I really like inclusivity,” she advised Leisure Tonight in April 2023 after the present wrapped.
Manila Luzon, Kelsea Ballerini, Jan Sport, Olivia Lux, and Kennedy Davenport carry out onstage through the 2023 CMT Music Awards at Moody Middle on April 2, 2023 in Austin, Texas. John Shearer/Getty Photos for CMT
GLAAD subsequently praised Ballerini’s set.
“As LGBTQ rights are being questioned in Texas, Tennessee, and several other Southern states, Kelsea Ballerini took to one among nation music’s largest phases to show daring allyship by proudly that includes proficient and beloved drag artists,” Anthony Allen Ramos, who’s the Vice President of Communications & Expertise for the nonprofit, mentioned in an announcement. “Kelsea’s efficiency on the CMT Music Awards strengthened that drag just isn’t a risk, it’s an artwork. New laws that tries to silence drag performers in some Southern states is as unpopular as it’s pointless.”
Ramos added: “Nation music stars are utilizing their platforms to face with the LGBTQ neighborhood and the trade is rising into an explicitly welcoming place for LGBTQ followers and expertise. Different nation music stars, concert events, and occasions ought to be aware of CMT’s inclusion and observe go well with.”
