The 2018 CMT Music Awards show promises to be one of the most genre-bending ceremonies to date with at least eight collaborative videos featuring pop artists, R&B legends, Americana favorites and more making the final nominees list.
Little Big Town will host the event live from Nashville on June 6 at 8 p.m. ET. Jason Aldean, Florida Georgia Line and Carrie Underwood lead the nominees with four nominations each.
Voting to determine the winners in each category is underway at CMT.com through 12:01 a.m. ET on June 4. The top five video of the year finalists will be announced the morning of the show, and fans will be able to vote for their favorites in the category all day and throughout the special via Twitter.
Underwood is the record-holder for the most CMT Music Award wins with 17 trophies. The video for her Ludacris collaboration, “The Champion,” is nominated in three categories including the night’s top honor of video the year, and she shares a nod for CMT performance of the year with Keith Urban for “The Fighter” from the 2017 CMT Music Awards.
Florida Georgia Line and Bebe Rexha share nominations for video and collaborative video of the year for “Meant to Be,” while the Brian Kelley-co-directed “Smooth” video is up for duo video, and “Everybody” from FGL’s CMT Crossroads with the Backstreet Boys is nominated for CMT performance of the year. Aldean’s four nominations are also in the video, male video and CMT performance of the year categories.
Following Aldean, FGL and Underwood with three nominations each are Little Big Town, Chris Stapleton, Lauren Alaina and Thomas Rhett.
Additionally, the 2018 nominations mark the first time pop musicians Rexha, Ludacris and Justin Timberlake are recognized in the video of the year category along with videos from Rhett, Blake Shelton, Brett Young, Brothers Osborne, Dan + Shay, Kane Brown featuring Alaina, Kelsea Ballerini and Luke Combs.
Andra Day, Backstreet Boys, Carly Pearce, Common, Derek Trucks, Devin Dawson, High Valley, LANco, Russell Dickerson, Walker Hayes and Earth, Wind & Fire are also among the CMT Music Awards’ first-time nominees.
Ballerini helped announce the nominees in three categories during Tuesday’s (May 8) Today show on NBC. Other categories were announced by the Associated Press.
Join the conversation by following @CMT on Twitter and Instagram, using hashtag #CMTawards and liking the CMT Music Awards on Facebook.
Here is a complete list of nominees for the 2018 CMT Music Awards.
Video of the Year
Best video of the year; awarded to the artist (male, female, group/duo or collaboration) and the video director. Final nominees announced the morning of the show, with final voting held on Twitter during the live telecast.
Bebe Rexha feat. Florida Georgia Line, “Meant To Be”
Blake Shelton, “I’ll Name The Dogs”
Brett Young, “Mercy”
Brothers Osborne, “It Ain’t My Fault”
Carrie Underwood feat. Ludacris, “The Champion”
Dan + Shay, “Tequila”
Jason Aldean, “You Make It Easy”
Justin Timberlake feat. Chris Stapleton, “Say Something”
Kane Brown feat. Lauren Alaina, “What Ifs”
Kelsea Ballerini, “Legends”
Luke Combs, “When It Rains It Pours”
Thomas Rhett, “Marry Me”
Male Video of the Year
Best video by a male artist; awarded to the artist
Blake Shelton, “I’ll Name The Dogs”
Dustin Lynch, “Small Town Boy”
Jason Aldean, “You Make It Easy”
Jon Pardi, “Heartache On The Dance Floor”
Luke Bryan, “Light It Up”
Thomas Rhett, “Marry Me”
Female Video of the Year
Best video by a female artist; awarded to the artist
Carly Pearce, “Every Little Thing”
Carrie Underwood feat. Ludacris, “The Champion”
Kelsea Ballerini, “Legends”
Lauren Alaina, “Doin’ Fine”
Maren Morris, “I Could Use A Love Song”
Miranda Lambert, “Tin Man” From 2017 ACM Awards
Duo Video of the Year
Best video by a duo; awarded to the artists
Big & Rich, “California”
Brothers Osborne, “It Ain’t My Fault”
Dan + Shay, “Tequila”
Florida Georgia Line, “Smooth”
High Valley, “She’s With Me”
Tim McGraw & Faith Hill, “Speak To A Girl”
Group Video of the Year
Best video by a group; awarded to the artists
Lady Antebellum, “You Look Good”
LANco, “Greatest Love Story”
Little Big Town, “When Someone Stops Loving You”
Midland, “Make A Little”
Old Dominion, “No Such Thing As A Broken Heart”
Rascal Flatts, “Yours If You Want It”
Zac Brown Band, “My Old Man”
Breakthrough Video of the Year
Best video from an artist’s major breakthrough album; awarded to the artist (male, female or group/duo)
Carly Pearce, “Every Little Thing”
Danielle Bradbery, “Sway”
Devin Dawson, “All On Me”
LANco, “Greatest Love Story”
Russell Dickerson, “Yours”
Walker Hayes, “You Broke Up With Me”
Collaborative Video of the Year
Best video from a collaboration; awarded to the artists
Bebe Rexha feat. Florida Georgia Line, “Meant To Be”
Carrie Underwood feat. Ludacris, “The Champion”
Cole Swindell feat. Dierks Bentley, “Flatliner”
Justin Timberlake feat. Chris Stapleton, “Say Something”
Kane Brown feat. Lauren Alaina, “What Ifs”
Thomas Rhett feat. Maren Morris, “Craving You”
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)
Andra Day, Common, Little Big Town, Lee Ann Womack and Danielle Bradbery, “Stand Up For Something” (From 2017 CMT Artists of the Year)
Backstreet Boys and Florida Georgia Line, “Everybody” (From CMT Crossroads)
Charles Kelley, Jason Aldean, Darius Rucker and Derek Trucks, “Midnight Rider” (From 2017 CMT Music Awards)
Earth, Wind & Fire and Lady Antebellum, “September” (From CMT Crossroads)
Jason Aldean, Keith Urban, Chris Stapleton and Little Big Town, “I Won’t Back Down” (From 2017 CMT Artists of the Year)
Keith Urban feat. Carrie Underwood, “The Fighter” (From 2017 CMT Music Awards)