Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley to co-host CMA Awards for fourth straight year
Checotah native Carrie Underwood and fellow country music superstar Brad Paisley announced this morning that they are returning in fall to co-host the Country Music Association’s annual awards show for the fourth consecutive year.
The 45th Annual CMA Awards will air live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., on Wednesday, Nov. 9 on ABC.
The superstars made the announcement in a video posted on the CMA’s official Facebook. The announcement was filmed on the set of the music video for “Remind Me,” their latest duet, which is featured on Paisley’s new hit album “This Is Country Music.”
“We couldn’t ask for better hosts than Carrie and Brad,” said Steve Moore, CMA Chief Executive Officer, in the subsequent news release. “They have the unique qualities of humor, talent, credibility, and natural rapport that makes them a hit with the fans and the industry audience. The CMA Awards are in great hands with Brad and Carrie at the podium.”
Underwood said getting the invitation to co-host again with Paisley is “exciting news.” In an interview before co-hosting the 2010 CMA Awards, Underwood told me that she enjoys the whole process, even the meetings leading up to the actual event.
“It’s a lot of fun. I mean, gearing up for it, we have meetings and things like that.We listen to scripts, and we’ve gotta look things over and make notes … so we can be prepared and say, ‘You know I really wouldn’t say this this way’ or whatever. And Brad has a lot of really awesome ideas as far as scripts go; he’s definitely got a more like TV writer mind than I do. I’ll read whatever’s on the teleprompter,” she said with a laugh during our fall 2010 phone interview.
“But we just go in and have fun and spend a few hours doing that, and before you know it, it’s showtime. For me, there’s lots of wardrobe changes, and I’m running back and forth. Somebody’s always grabbing one of our hands taking us to the stage. … Three hours really flies by when you’re hosting.”
Paisley echoed in the news release that he was honored to be asked back as the show’s co-host.
“It’s hard to believe this will be our fourth year to host the CMA Awards – it’s such an honor to be invited back,” Paisley said. “I love working with Carrie, she’s a class act and a complete balance to my non-class act. I’ll try my best to not mess it up.”
Paisley is the reigning CMA entertainer of the year. He has won 14 CMA Awards since receiving the Horizon Award (now the new artist award) in 2000, including album of the year in 2006 for “Time Well Wasted” and male vocalist of the year in 2007, ’08 and ’09. He has won the musical event of the year award three times, in 2004 with Alison Krauss for “Whiskey Lullaby,” in 2006 for “When I Get Where I’m Going” with Dolly Parton, and in 2009 for “Start a Band” with Keith Urban. He also claimed the vocal event of the year trophy in 2001 for “Too Country” with Bill Anderson, George Jones and Buck Owens. He has earned the music video of the year honor three times, in 2002 for “I’m Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin’ Song),” in 2004 for “Whiskey Lullaby” (again with Krauss), and in 2007 for “Online.” He ranks at No. 5 on the list of top CMA Award winners of all time.
A singer/songwriter/guitarist triple-threat, Paisley has sold more than 12 million albums and has earned 19 No. 1 singles since debuting in 1999. A member of the Grand Ole Opry, Paisley’s innovative and entertaining 2010 “H20 World Tour” was ranked No. 1 country tour for attendance by Pollstar. His 2011 tour, “H2O II: Wetter & Wilder,” featuring Oklahoma native Blake Shelton, continues the success with tour dates across the United States and Canada, along with an international itinerary that includes London, Dublin, Stockholm, Oslo and more.
The 2005 “American Idol” winner, Underwood has received five CMA Awards in her career, including three consecutive wins as female vocalist of the year in 2006-08, along with the Horizon Award in 2006 and single of the year for “Before He Cheats” in 2007. The CMA Awards gig will cap another big year for the five-time Grammy winner, who made her big screen debut in spring in the movie “Soul Surfer” and recently wrapped her first promotional trip to Australia for the release of “Play On: Deluxe Edition.”
The Oklahoma native is one of music’s most powerful vocalists and has amassed more than 13 million in U.S. album sales and has achieved 13 No. 1 hits since releasing her debut album, “Some Hearts” in 2005. She co-wrote six of her No. 1 singles. In 2010, she was the top-ranked female country touring artist of the year for her “Play On Tour,” which performed in more than 100 cities for 1 million fans throughout the U.S. and Canada. Her career achievements include nearly 60 award trophies along with membership in the Grand Ole Opry.
The CMA Awards nominees and winners are determined by the 6,000 industry professional members of the Country Music Association, which was the first trade organization formed to promote an individual genre of music in 1958. The final nominees in each of the 12 categories for the 2011 CMA Awards will be announced in early September.
-BAM
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