Carrie Underwood walked away with the CMT MUSIC AWARDS’ biggest title of the night, winning VIDEO OF THE YEAR for her hit, “See You Again,” at tonight’s star-studded event in Nashville at the Bridgestone Arena. Blake Shelton took home a buckle for MALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR for “Doin’ What She Likes” and Miranda Lambert took home her fourth buckle in four years for FEMALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR for “Automatic.” Florida Georgia Line won two buckles – DUO OF THE YEAR for “Round Here” and COLLABORATIVE VIDEO OF THE YEAR with Luke Bryan for “This Is How We Roll.” Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie won the CMT PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR for “Oh No/All Night Long” from the 2013 CMT ARTISTS OF THE YEAR, which gave Bryan his second buckle of the evening. Cassadee Pope won for BREAKTHROUGH VIDEO OF THE YEAR for “Wasting All These Tears,” and was presented the trophy by her mentor Blake Shelton. The Band Perry won the buckle for GROUP VIDEO OF THE YEAR for “Done,” the first time they took home the group honor.
Florida Georgia Line, Luke Bryan and pop superstar Jason Derulo kicked off the evening with a mash-up of their mega-hits “This is How We Roll” and “Talk Dirty.” Rockers Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill of ZZ Top made a surprise appearance as part of the opening act, setting the explosive tone for the night. The rocking opening performance was followed by a hilarious star-filled opening segment featuring host Kristen Bell and actors Malin Ackerman, Sean Hayes, Cheryl Hines and Tom Arnold, which showed Bell using a dating app called “HOLLR” to search for her next co-host, only to be encouraged by her friends to do the job solo. Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan were also in the opening short, spoofing the now infamous pop star “elevator brawl,” which recently made headlines. After declaring the evening “Ladies Night,” Bell sang an original comedy song called “Big Buckle, Moose Knuckle” delivering a comic take on the often-seen large belt buckles and tight jeans worn by the guys of country.
With more performances than ever in CMT MUSIC AWARDS history, superstars took the stage with the biggest songs of the summer including Hunter Hayes with his song “Tattoo” off his new album. Keith Urbangave a nod to Nashville’s landmark Bluebird Café as he sang “Cop Car” on the floor of the arena with just his electric guitar. Eric Church was joined by rocker Lzzy Hale for “That’s Damn Rock & Roll,” which they performed in front of giant screens showing images of classic rock and roll legends like Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, the Beatles and iconic images from the last century. Dierks Bentley and his flight attendant team of dancers piloted the crowd to their feet with his hit “Drunk on a Plane,” while Brantley Gilbert sang “Bottom’s Up” and landed a perfect backflip in his first CMT main stage performance.
Lee Ann Womack and Kacey Musgraves honored Alan Jackson for his 25 years of making music videos with a touching performance of the Jackson classic “Livin’ on Love,” and Carrie Underwood presented Jackson with the first-ever CMT IMPACT AWARD. Jackson graciously accepted the award and thanked the fans and the people involved in the making of all his videos for supporting him throughout his career.
For the first time, the CMT MUSIC AWARDS included three outdoor performances. Lady Antebellum performed their newest single, “Bartender,” and Jake Owen brought summer to Nashville with his new song “Beachin’.” Blake Shelton performed for the first time on the CMT MUSIC AWARDS and did it in a big way, shutting down the streets of downtown Nashville and performing his hit “Boys ‘Round Here” for CMT’s Real Big Pepsi Block Party.
John Legend and Jennifer Nettles were joined by Hunter Hayes on guitar as they performed a specially arranged guitar-driven version of Legend’s No. 1 hit “All of Me,” and Luke Bryan walked through the arena of fans singing his hit “Play It Again.” Little Big Town wowed the audience with the visual spectacle of the television debut of their new single “Day Drinkin’” as the band and audience members clad in white were transformed into a rainbow of color with paint, chalk and confetti. Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood closed the CMT MUSIC AWARDS with their girl-powered hit and high-octane performance of their duet “Something Bad.”
For the seventh year in a row, the CMT MUSIC AWARDS featured a second concert stage sponsored by Nationwide Insurance that included performances by Brett Eldredge, Cole Swindell, Dan + Shay, Danielle Bradbery, David Nail, Thomas Rhett and Tyler Farr.
CMT.com simulcast the live 2014 CMT MUSIC AWARDS online, interacting with fans throughout the telecast with live Twitter (@CMT) and Facebook updates from the red carpet and backstage. A record 40 topics trended nationally throughout the live show, including #CMTawards and #mooseknuckle. Cassadee Pope kept viewers in the loop with the live “Twitter Tracker” presented by Verizon, spotlighting the hottest trending topics throughout the show. CMT.com also served as an online hub for all fan interaction surrounding the show with live streams from the red carpet and backstage. Exclusive content can be found on CMT.com, CMT Mobile and the CMT Artists App.
The 2014 CMT MUSIC AWARDS will re-air on the following days/times: Thursday, June 5 at 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 pm; Saturday, June 7 at 2:00 p.m.; Sunday June 8 at 8:00 a.m., 4:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. All times ET/PT.
Photos from the show below!
Photos: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
